"It is clear... that the electrons—those minute particles whose size is to that of a bacillus as the size of a bacillus is to, say, the whole earth, and whose properties we may yet measure with the greatest precision— that these electrons are one of the most important foundations of our whole world structure."
The electron is a subatomic particle whose electric charge is negative one elementary charge. It is an elementary particle that comprises the ordinary matter that makes up the universe, along with up and down quarks.
"And, just like it should in all stories about philosophers, it ended up in complete chaos. In all their previous discussions they hadnt even asked themselves whether such a simple object as a brick, much less an electron, is an "essential object."
Electron"It being assumed as the basis for this New View that Electricity is the only element in nature which has weight, we have immediately to notice certain consequences of the assumption which are inevitable... 3. The attraction of common matter for electricity cannot be the cause of gravitation, because bodies gravitate when neither electrically plus nor minus; in which neutral state, owing to the definite nature of electrical attraction, the electricity of no one body attracts the common matter of any other body. 4. On a supposition that particles, or atoms, of electricity attract one another, instead of being mutually repulsive, as is taught by preceding theories, then the quantity of electricity in each chemical atom acting on the universal electricity would confer on all chemical atoms gravitating forces represented by their respective equivalent numbers."
Electron"Already in 1880... H. A. Lorentz showed that the foundations of an electromagnetic theory of dispersion could be laid in a manner quite analogous to the mechanical theory, by regarding every molecule as the origin of electric vibrations of a definite period. He says:—"Let there be in every material particle several material points charged with electricity, of which, however, only one be movable, and have the charge e and the mass μ." Lorentz derives the equations of dispersion from this fundamental assumption of vibrating charged particles."
Electron"One possibility in this direction is to regard, classically, an electron as the end of a single Faraday line of force. The electric field in this picture from discrete Faraday lines of force, which are to be treated as physical things, like strings. One has then to develop a dynamics for such a string like structure, and quantize it.... In such a theory a bare electron would be inconceivable, since one cannot imagine the end of a piece of string without having the string."
Electron"In physics we have outgrown archer and apple-pie definitions of the fundamental symbols. To a request to explain what an electron really is supposed to be we can only answer, "It is part of the ABC of physics". The external world of physics has thus become a world of shadows. In removing our illusions we have removed the substance, for indeed we have seen that substance is one of the greatest of our illusions. ...that physical science is concerned with a world of shadows is one of the most significant of recent advances."
Electron"What quantum mechanics tells us, I believe, is surprising to say the least. It tells us that the basic components of objects – the particles, electrons, quarks etc. – cannot be thought of as "self-existent". The reality that they, and hence all objects, are components of is merely "empirical reality"."
Electron