1900: A physics genius wandering around Europe

Chapter 433: The shocking prophecy! The binary nature of electrons! The clue to the fourth quantum number! Everyone goes crazy!
Li Qiwei's speech today is destined to shock the entire scientific community.

His status in the field of chemistry will suddenly become as unrivaled as that in the field of physics.

Its brilliance is like the sun hanging high in the sky, leaving no darkness in the chemical sky.

The electron shell model and the derived chemical bond theory have made chemistry an independent discipline with self-consistent logic.

From then on, chemists had their own theoretical weapons.

You can go deep into the atomic level, explore the essence of chemistry, and grasp the truth of reactions.

It’s no longer just about tinkering with bottles and jars, then weighing and measuring to see the changes.

"Professor Bruce has delivered on his promise."

"Chemists are no longer alchemists."

This shows how high Li Qiwei's status in the chemical world will be.

Nernst’s reputation as the “father of modern chemistry” is by no means an exaggeration.

At this moment, the entire venue was plunged into a sea of ​​shock.

Everyone couldn't help but share their feelings with the people next to them.

For some people, being able to hear a speech of this level in their lifetime is a great fortune.

Li Qiwei waited for five minutes before the venue gradually quieted down.

There was always a slight smile on his face, and he looked cheerful.

It seemed as if the great and amazing achievement just now was completely not worth mentioning in his eyes.

He opened his mouth and said:
"Everyone, if you have any questions about my speech just now, please feel free to ask?"

“I really hope to communicate with you.”

The crowd suddenly became agitated.

Everyone then remembered that the question-and-answer session in Professor Bruce's speech was the more thrilling one.

That was an academic competition where ideas collided and wisdom burst forth!

It is the lifelong dream of all scientific researchers.

However, there are not many people in the world who are qualified to engage in a debate with Professor Bruce.

In the face of such a great theory, if you ask a very stupid question, you will definitely fail socially.

As a result, only whispers were heard in the huge conference hall.

No one dared to raise their hand.

And most people really can't see any problem.

Although the electron shell model and chemical bond theory are, in a sense, just conjectures.

But there are too many practical problems that can be solved by this kind of conjecture.

This in turn proves the correctness of the conjecture.

Therefore, everyone regards it as a brand new and correct theory.

Li Qiwei's pressure permeated the meeting room, making people lose the courage to debate.

Just as the big guys in the front row were ready to take the lead and set an example.

Suddenly, Pauli moved.

"Professor Bruce, I have a question."

As soon as he stood up, there was a burst of exclamations.

"Wow, it's that fat boy again!"

"What is he going to do this time? Now is not the time to talk nonsense like he did just now."

“You have to understand Professor Bruce’s theory before you can ask valuable questions.”

"That kid hasn't even grown all the hair on his mouth yet, how can he have any knowledge?"

"I guess it's just young people trying to attract attention."

"."

Everyone was obviously not optimistic about Pauli.

According to experience, the more eccentric a person is, the worse his level is.

But Heisenberg was different.

He was well aware of his senior brother's talent and that he was definitely a top genius.

He looked at Pauli with envy. Even in the face of everyone's contempt, he remained calm and didn't care about his surroundings at all.

It seems that no rumors can cause any fluctuations in my mood.

If it were Heisenberg himself, he would never be able to do it.

He was also thinking that after the speech, he would ask his mentor Sommerfeld to introduce him to Professor Bruce.

Because he didn't dare to ask the question openly and confidently in front of so many people.

It's just his personality.

At the front row, Einstein looked at Sommerfeld's embarrassed expression and asked curiously:
"Is this your student?"

Sommerfeld smiled and said, "He is Pauli."

Einstein said "oh" and looked at Pauli twice.

Apparently, he had also heard Pauli's story.

"So he is Pauli."

“It’s a little different than I imagined.”

"But he's very good and courageous!"

"Bruce likes young people like this."

Suddenly, Einstein joked again:
"Sommerfeld, why don't you just let Pauli study at Bruce's quantum research institute for a few years?"

"Toughen his character."

Hearing this, Sommerfeld looked back and smiled with relief.

He murmured to himself, "Pauli is quite good this way."

At this moment, under Li Qiwei's gaze, Pauli calmly began to introduce himself.

"Hello, Professor. My name is Pauli and I am currently a student at the University of Munich in Germany."

"My advisor is Professor Sommerfeld."

As soon as the words fell, there was a small round of shock in the conference hall.

Obviously, Pauli's fame was no longer limited to the University of Munich, but had spread to the German academic community.

"Wow, it turns out to be the genius student known as the Whip of God."

"I heard that he was both an undergraduate and a doctoral student. I have never heard of such a thing."

"I've read the theory of relativity he wrote. It's really well written."

Pauli was the envy of many students.

Young, talented, and arrogant.

This is how students dream of themselves.

The big guys were relatively calm.

After all, Pauli is now just a genius in their eyes, not a truly productive physicist.

Genius, the big guys have seen too many of them.

Everyone in the front row, who wasn’t a genius when you were young?

The one on the stage is the king of genius.

At this moment, Li Qiwei was shocked.

"Oh my goodness, it turns out to be Pauli."

"I didn't expect he was still a little fat boy."

"The guy next to him who looks a little shy must be Heisenberg."

At this moment, Li Qiwei began to look forward to the two of them.

These two are key figures in quantum mechanics.

I didn't expect to meet him today.

He smiled at Sommerfeld and then looked at the brave young man.

"Hello, Pauli-san."

"Your mentor and I are very good friends."

"If you have any questions, feel free to ask."

Although Pauli likes to argue with people, he is not stupid.

He had to show enough respect to Professor Bruce, the best in the world.

“Thank you, Professor,” he said.

"My question is about the relationship between the number of electrons and energy levels."

"In your electron shell theory, you divide the orbitals of electrons into layers."

"The maximum number of electrons that can exist in each layer is strictly limited."

"According to your theory, the number of electrons is twice the number of energy levels."

"The first energy level can accommodate two electrons."

"The second layer has 4 energy levels and can accommodate 8 electrons."

"And so on."

"But why can't the electrons just all crowd into the lowest energy level?"

“For example, all the electrons are crowded in the first layer, or in a certain energy level in the second layer.”

"This way, the energy of the entire system is the lowest and the state is the most stable."

"If electrons can't be squeezed into the same layer or energy level, then why can each energy level accommodate 2 electrons?"

"Logically, one energy level represents one orbit, so shouldn't there only be one electron?"

"If two electrons are in the same orbit, won't there be collisions or other effects that cause the electrons' motion to become unstable?"

“Does this [2] have any special meaning?”

Wow!
Pauli's question surprised most of the people present.

Because they unconsciously ignored this issue during Li Qiwei's endless speech.

It seems like 2 times is normal, natural, and does not need to be proven.

However, Pauli's keen physics intuition made him not miss this small detail.

There must be a deeper secret hidden in this.

At this moment, everyone realized that they had underestimated Pauli.

The other party's reputation as a genius is not undeserved.

And it makes sense that this kind of genius likes to argue with people.

After all, a genius thinks everyone is stupid.

Einstein smiled and said to Sommerfeld:

"This young man Pauli is really good."

"He was able to spot the problem so quickly and was good at thinking about it."

"I was almost ready to ask Bruce that question."

Sommerfeld was very happy to hear Einstein's praise.

Pauli did not disappoint him. Even when facing Professor Bruce, he was able to raise his doubts incisively and accurately.

These are the qualities that an excellent physicist needs to possess.

You can admire and envy, but you must not flatter.

Think independently.

After listening to Pauli's question, Li Qiwei felt deeply moved.

Those great physics figures in history are indeed worthy of their reputations.

Pauli was only 20 years old this year, and he had not been studying physics systematically for a long time, but he had already achieved such a deep understanding.

To people in later generations, isn’t this question obvious and easy to ask?

But in that era, when the road ahead was shrouded in fog, being able to keenly grasp the key factors was an incredible ability.

It may even be a kind of talent.

This is what distinguishes big guys from ordinary people.

And this question will directly lead to the last piece of the old quantum theory: the fourth quantum number!
At this moment, Li Qiwei said with a smile:

"Thank you for your question, Pauli-san."

“That’s a very good question.”

"In fact, I haven't figured out how to answer it yet."

There was another exclamation from the audience.

Pauli also showed a proud expression on his face.

"I am indeed a genius, hehe."

Heisenberg secretly tugged at Pauli's trouser leg and gave him a look of admiration.

Ridgeway continued:

"When I was thinking about the electron shell model, I naturally used the 2x relationship."

"Because it makes the arrangement of electrons very regular and perfect."

"So much so that I didn't even think about why it was 2 at first."

"Before today's speech, I have actually been thinking about this question, but I just didn't have an idea."

"But just now, after Pauli proposed it, I suddenly had an inspiration." "I think this may be the most likely answer."

Wow!
As soon as Li Qiwei finished speaking, everyone was shocked.

In everyone's opinion, it doesn't matter even if Professor Bruce can't answer twice as many questions today.

As more people start to study it, it will definitely be solved.

Especially chemists, they will never give up this theory.

Even if we have to make it up, we have to come up with a reasonable explanation for the 2x relationship.

But now, in just a moment, inspired by Pauli, Professor Bruce actually thought of the answer.

"This is incredible!"

Einstein and other bigwigs also looked serious and nervous.

Because this problem is in the realm of pure physics.

It concerns the future of quantum theory and everyone is concerned about it.

Li Qiwei paused for a moment, then said:
"You should know that in the current Bohr-Lee model, there are three quantum numbers in total."

"It was through an in-depth analysis of these three quantum numbers that I proposed the electron shell structure."

"But the anomalous Zeeman effect discovered by Yu Yin cannot be explained by three quantum numbers."

"So, almost everyone in the physics community believes that there must be a fourth quantum number."

“I hold this view myself.”

"But unfortunately, so far, no one has found any trace of the fourth quantum number."

"Because the number, shape, and direction of electron orbitals have all been quantized."

"It is almost impossible to find properties that have not yet been discovered."

"But my intuition tells me that the fourth quantum number must exist."

“It’s right there in a very obvious place, but everyone ignores it.”

"To this day, the question raised by Pauli is why there are twice as many electrons as energy levels."

"I have a rough idea of ​​where this quantum number might be hidden."

“It’s all in the number [2]!”

boom!
At this moment, the entire venue was in an uproar!

Everyone was breathing rapidly with excitement, afraid of missing a word that was about to come.

That is content that may affect the fate of everyone.

Because the fourth quantum number is so special.

If Li Qiwei had talked about unified field theory or relativity today, people present would not have been so excited.

Because those things are too far away from most researchers.

There is basically no relationship.

It’s like the competition for the throne of a country has begun now.

But what does it have to do with ordinary people?

You are not a prince, so you are not even qualified to participate in this competition game.

That's what relativity is.

It's so hard.

For many physicists, it is something that is put on the shelf.

Ordinary scholars don't even need to think about it.

But the fourth quantum number is different.

With the reference of the first three quantum numbers, everyone knows from which angle to think.

Although it cannot be found for the time being, there is at least a possibility.

It's like common people are also qualified to compete for the throne.

How not to drive people crazy!
And now, Li Qiwei is about to give out clues, which will reduce the difficulty of finding the fourth quantum number again.

This is an unimaginable blessing.

Everyone longs to be that lucky person.

He discovered the fourth quantum number, which made him famous in the physics world and brought him instant success.

At this moment, everyone looked at Li Qiwei with burning eyes.

What that man says next will most likely create a top physicist.

This kind of strength is unpredictable.

Facing everyone's expectations, Li Qiwei smiled slightly and said:

"Pauli was right about something."

"Since one energy level represents one orbital, one orbital should only hold one electron."

"It's similar to a train running on rails."

“Only one train can be on a track at a time.”

"But now, if my electron shell model is correct."

"The fact is, there are two trains on one track."

"In one electron orbit, there are two electrons."

"I think this strange property is caused by the fourth quantum number."

"This quantum number should act on the electron itself, causing it to undergo some unique changes."

"But I don't have an answer yet as to what specific properties of electrons it is."

“Everyone can brainstorm and use it as their own research topic when they return.”

"Perhaps some of you here have discovered it before me."

What Li Qiwei said is actually infinitely close to the Pauli Exclusion Principle.

In real history, Pauli proposed this hypothesis when he was thinking about the double problem.

He firmly believed that only one electron could exist in one orbital energy level.

The so-called 2-fold phenomenon shows that the known electron orbit is not an energy level.

How to understand it?

The electron orbital model according to three quantum numbers.

The electron orbit is determined by its ordinal number, shape, and direction.

When an electron is in this orbit, its state properties are fixed.

But what if electrons themselves also have quantum numbers?
Although the two electrons exist in the same orbit, the states of the two electrons are different.

The image explanation is:

There is already a train on the track. What should we do if we want to add another train?

Simple, just make another train fly.

Its flight trajectory is the same as that of a railroad track, which is equivalent to it existing on the railroad track.

It is obvious that the nature of these two trains is different, after all, one can fly and the other cannot.

This is the equivalent of two electrons.

For example, an electron can laugh and an electron can cry.

If electrons also have such a "binary" quantum number, then this phenomenon can be explained.

Based on this, Pauli proposed the following hypothesis:

In an atom, there are no two or more electrons with the same state.

In other words, four quantum numbers are needed to determine the state of an electron.

This makes it easy to explain why the number of electrons in each energy level is limited.

For example, suppose there are two electrons at a certain energy level.

Although these two electrons are at the same energy level, they are different because of the binary quantum numbers.

One is the laughing electron and the other is the crying electron.

Therefore, according to the Pauli exclusion principle, they can exist at the same time.

If at this time, another electron is added to this energy level, then problems arise.

Electrons have only two quantum states: crying and laughing. If three electrons are together, it is certain that the quantum states of two of them will be the same.

This does not conform to the Pauli exclusion principle.

So, this theory perfectly explains the 2-fold relationship and why electrons cannot all be crowded into the same energy level.

Furthermore, the theory will soon be extended to a deeper level.

It will explain: Why does matter have volume? (I will explain this in detail later)
However, after Pauli proposed the exclusion principle, he did not know what the fourth quantum number was.

Now, Ridgwell has predicted in advance that the fourth quantum number is related to binary nature.

It will surely speed up Pauli's progress.

Sure enough, Pauli seemed to have an epiphany at this moment.

He remained standing erect, thinking about binary thoughts in his mind.

“How can we explain the behavior of electrons using binary quantum numbers?”

"What property of an electron has two quantum states?"

At the same time, the entire venue was eerily quiet.

Then, the sound of people swallowing saliva could be clearly heard.

"Oh my God, Professor Bruce predicted the fourth quantum number!"

"That is to say, this quantum number has two states in total."

“It also has to do with the behavior of the electrons themselves.”

"It's just a little bit close!"

"Oh my god, what on earth is going on? I'm going crazy!"

"Once found, it will surely shock the entire physics community!"

"."

Countless ordinary and unknown scholars are scratching their heads at this moment.

It's like the crown is right before your eyes, but you just can't grab it.

It seems like only one step away, but it is like an insurmountable chasm.

The many bigwigs in the front row were deeply shocked.

But when they thought of the electron shell model just now, they suddenly felt that the fourth quantum number was nothing special.

The fourth quantum number is of course crucial to ordinary physicists, and even senior physicists.

They may not be able to publish comparable results in their lifetime.

But for Professor Bruce, it seemed a bit bland.

The other party has just returned to Europe for a year.

He successively published the wave-particle duality of light, the proton-neutron model, the electron shell model, and the chemical bond theory.

Horror!
Compared with these results, the fourth quantum number is just so-so.

But the bosses are well aware that the fourth quantum number itself is not enough for Professor Bruce.

However, it is an important piece of the puzzle of quantum theory, and may even be the last piece.

From this perspective, its importance is raised several levels.

Therefore, even these big guys are not calm anymore.

The complete quantum theory is a theory that is comparable to the theory of relativity.

Whoever makes a contribution will be remembered in history.

However, soon they will be shocked again by Li Qiwei's words!

At this time, Pauli finally recovered from his excited epiphany.

He couldn't wait to sort out his thoughts.

He found that Professor Bruce did not go any further after this.

This is strange.

Pauli couldn't help asking:
"Professor Bruce, with your strength, can't you guess what the fourth quantum number is?"

"Binary nature, and something to do with electrons, shouldn't be particularly difficult, right?"

Sommerfeld looked surprised when he heard this.

What? Our Pauli can praise people now?

It seems that the other party was completely convinced by Professor Bruce.

After hearing this, Li Qiwei smiled.

He glanced at everyone in the meeting room, then took a deep breath and said:
"I have already discovered two quantum numbers, so I have to give others some chances."

Everyone smiled knowingly.

Then, he said seriously:
"The reason I didn't continue to study the fourth quantum number is because there are more important things I want to do."

Pauli was shocked!

Is there anything more important than this?
"Professor, what is that?"

Li Qiwei said:

“I want to reconstruct the entire quantum theory!”

hiss!
The whole audience was shocked!

(End of this chapter)