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Planck’s Theory (1898–1906) and the Birth of Quantum Physics

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The Foundations of Quantum Mechanics — Historical Analysis and Open Questions

Part of the book series: Fundamental Theories of Physics ((FTPH,volume 71))

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Abstract

Generally historians of science studied Planck’s theory of black body radiation (1900–1906) with focus of their analysis in the question whether resonator energy is continuous or discontinuous. Following an alternative historiographical approach, we consider this question incorrect and secondary and we think that the central point for the comprehension of Planck’s theoretical work consists in his evolutive thought about irreversibility.

The main steps of this evolution are essentially the hypothesis of natural radiation, the elementary disorder principle, the combinatorial entropy and the phaseplane subdivision: focusing our attention on this conceptual development it is possible to understand how this theory is able to highlight some quantistic aspects without strict incompatibility with classical physics, particularly the appearance of energy elements, phase-space elementary regions and microscopical indetermination.

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Notes and references

  1. We refer here particularly to the basic works of T. Kuhn and J.M. Klein: T.S. Kuhn (1978), Black-Body theory and the quantum discontinuity, 1894–1912 ,Oxford University Press

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dip. di Fisica “G. Galilei”, Università di Padova, Via Marzolo 8, 35131, Padova, Italy

    P. Campogalliani

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  1. P. Campogalliani
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physics, University of Lecce, Lecce, Italy

    Claudio Garola  & Arcangelo Rossi  & 

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Campogalliani, P. (1995). Planck’s Theory (1898–1906) and the Birth of Quantum Physics. In: Garola, C., Rossi, A. (eds) The Foundations of Quantum Mechanics — Historical Analysis and Open Questions. Fundamental Theories of Physics, vol 71. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-0029-8_6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-0029-8_6

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-94-010-4017-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-011-0029-8

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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