Chemical Forums
Specialty Chemistry Forums => Other Sciences Question Forum => Topic started by: arlaness on August 27, 2007, 08:00:33 AM
-
i know electrons are always moving forever and cannot stop as it is a standing wave but do atoms in molecules moving relative to each other, even at absolute zero temperature?
-
They are always oscillating around their equilibrium position.
-
hmmm i see.. but how do you justify that answer?
thanks a lot for the reply :) appreciated it
-
Uncertainty principle. Once they stop their position and speed will be both known exactly - they can't.
-
The laws of quantum mechanics don't just apply to electrons, but to all particles. The effects of quantum mechanics, however, are just more noticeable with electrons because of their small mass.
The fact that atoms oscillate around their equilibrium positions at absolute zero gives rise to the concept of zero-point energy (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ZPE) which you may have heard of.