What is the basic difference between Schrodinger\'s equation and Newton\'s 2nd l

Question

What is the basic difference between Schrodinger's equation and Newton's 2nd law?

a. Newton's 2nd can be used to predict exactly where a particle will be at any given time , whereas solutions to Schrodinger's equation only give probabilities.

b. Newton's 2nd law is only valid for big objects (like balls) and the Schrodinger equation is only valid for small objects (like atoms and electrons).

c. Energy is conserved in Newton's 2nd law, but not in Schrodinger's Equation.

d. All of the Above.

e. None of the above

Explanation / Answer

D. Newton's second law can give an exact location of a particle (and Newton's second law implies momentum is conserved in closed, isolated systems which leads directly to conservation of energy), whereas Schrodinger's equation only gives a probability of where a particle might be. Remember Schrodinger's equation takes into account the wave properties of very small particles (and thus why you can never know exactly where a particle is, because of its wave-like properties, see wave-particle duality), whereas Newton's second law does not (and thus why Newton's is for big objects, and Schrodinger's is for small). Schrodinger's equation cannot account for the energy of a system because all Schrodinger's equation can show is probability densities for the location of a particle. Further reading can be done on the wave equation, and how that applies to small particles, and why Newton's law fails for small objects. Hope that helps!

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