RUME 26
2024
Omaha, Nebraska
Student Reasoning in Quantum Mechanics Examined Through Modeling and Sensemaking
Page: 351
As part of an effort to examine student mathematical and physical reasoning in quantum mechanics, a paired, semi-structured, think-aloud interview was conducted. The students were asked to interpret a quantum mechanical operator expression in a functional (position) representation and to think about an analogous expression in Dirac notation. When the students ceased to make progress on this task, they were given a modeling task in which they constructed an eigenvalue equation for a different operator in quantum mechanics. After examining their newly constructed eigenvalue equation, students were able to determine more precisely the nature of the original expression given in a functional representation. These data were coded in accordance with mathematical modeling and mathematical sensemaking frameworks to examine the intersection of the two frameworks.