Which of the following statements is NOT true about the expectation value of a physical observable?


a. It is calculated from wave functions.
b. It is usually near in agreement with experimental results.
c. It can be calculated for energy, momentum, and position.
d. It is best described as a probable average of many measurements.
e. It can only be found after normalizing the wave functions involved.



e.
This statement is not true. To find the expectation value for a physical observable, it is much like taking the average of a series of measurements, except that this series of measurements is a function given by the wave function. The average is the function values times the weight (the x-values) divided by the summed total of the function values. Normalization is not necessary in this case. The summed total of the probability function should be 1 when normalized, but the expectation value can use the summed total of the probability function even if it is not normalized.

Physics & Space Science

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