uncertainty principle
E107438
The uncertainty principle is a fundamental concept in quantum mechanics stating that certain pairs of physical properties, such as position and momentum, cannot both be known to arbitrary precision simultaneously.
All labels observed (3)
| Label | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| Heisenberg uncertainty principle | 14 |
| uncertainty principle canonical | 5 |
| energy–time uncertainty principle | 1 |
How this entity was disambiguated
This entity first appeared as the object of triple T909780 — resolving that mention is where its identity was fixed. The disambiguator weighed these candidate entities and picked the highlighted one (or “None”, minting a new entity). This is how homonymy is resolved: the same surface form can point to different entities.
NED1
Entity disambiguation (via context triple)
gpt-5-mini-2025-08-07
Target entity: uncertainty principle Context triple: [Werner Heisenberg, notableWork, uncertainty principle]
-
A.
Mathematical Foundations of Quantum Mechanics
Mathematical Foundations of Quantum Mechanics is John von Neumann’s landmark 1932 treatise that rigorously formulates quantum theory using functional analysis and operator theory on Hilbert spaces.
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B.
Wigner’s friend thought experiment
Wigner’s friend thought experiment is a foundational quantum mechanics scenario that explores the role of observers and consciousness in measurement by considering how different observers can assign conflicting quantum states to the same system.
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C.
Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics
The Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics is a foundational philosophical framework that emphasizes probabilistic wavefunctions, measurement-induced collapse, and the central role of observation in determining physical reality.
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D.
Bekenstein bound
The Bekenstein bound is a theoretical limit in physics on the maximum amount of information or entropy that can be contained within a finite region of space with a given amount of energy.
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E.
Mach principle
Mach principle is a philosophical and physical concept proposing that local inertial properties of matter are determined by the large-scale distribution of mass and energy in the universe.
- F. None of above. chosen
- G. Unsure - the case is ambiguous/there is not enough information to decide.
NED2
Entity disambiguation (via description)
gpt-5-mini-2025-08-07
Target entity: uncertainty principle Target entity description: The uncertainty principle is a fundamental concept in quantum mechanics stating that certain pairs of physical properties, such as position and momentum, cannot both be known to arbitrary precision simultaneously.
-
A.
Mathematical Foundations of Quantum Mechanics
Mathematical Foundations of Quantum Mechanics is John von Neumann’s landmark 1932 treatise that rigorously formulates quantum theory using functional analysis and operator theory on Hilbert spaces.
-
B.
Wigner’s friend thought experiment
Wigner’s friend thought experiment is a foundational quantum mechanics scenario that explores the role of observers and consciousness in measurement by considering how different observers can assign conflicting quantum states to the same system.
-
C.
Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics
The Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics is a foundational philosophical framework that emphasizes probabilistic wavefunctions, measurement-induced collapse, and the central role of observation in determining physical reality.
-
D.
Bekenstein bound
The Bekenstein bound is a theoretical limit in physics on the maximum amount of information or entropy that can be contained within a finite region of space with a given amount of energy.
-
E.
Mach principle
Mach principle is a philosophical and physical concept proposing that local inertial properties of matter are determined by the large-scale distribution of mass and energy in the universe.
- F. None of above. chosen
Statements (50)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
physical law
ⓘ
principle of quantum mechanics ⓘ |
| alsoKnownAs |
uncertainty principle
ⓘ
surface form:
Heisenberg uncertainty principle
|
| appliesTo |
angular position and angular momentum
ⓘ
energy and time ⓘ pairs of non-commuting observables ⓘ position and momentum ⓘ |
| category |
physical principles
ⓘ
quantum theory concepts ⓘ |
| constantInvolved | reduced Planck constant ⓘ |
| contrastsWith | classical determinism of trajectories ⓘ |
| describes | fundamental limit to precision of simultaneous measurements ⓘ |
| doesNotImply | limitations of measurement technology only ⓘ |
| field | quantum mechanics ⓘ |
| formulatedBy | Werner Heisenberg ⓘ |
| generalizedBy | entropic uncertainty relations ⓘ |
| hasDimension | action (product of conjugate variables) ⓘ |
| hasExample | Gaussian wave packet minimizing uncertainty product ⓘ |
| hasGeneralFormulation | Robertson–Schrödinger uncertainty relation ⓘ |
| hasMathematicalForm |
ΔE · Δt ≥ ħ/2
ⓘ
Δx · Δp ≥ ħ/2 ⓘ |
| hasMinimumUncertaintyState | coherent state ⓘ |
| holdsFor | all quantum systems ⓘ |
| implies |
intrinsic quantum indeterminacy
ⓘ
measurement disturbs quantum systems ⓘ no particle can have exactly defined position and momentum simultaneously ⓘ |
| influences |
design of high-precision experiments
ⓘ
limits of simultaneous measurement precision ⓘ |
| isConsequenceOf |
Fourier transform relations
ⓘ
non-commutativity of operators ⓘ wave–particle duality ⓘ |
| isPropertyOf | quantum states ⓘ |
| namedAfter | Werner Heisenberg ⓘ |
| philosophicalImpact |
challenges classical determinism
ⓘ
influences debates on realism in physics ⓘ |
| publicationYear | 1927 ⓘ |
| relatedTo |
Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics
ⓘ
complementarity principle ⓘ measurement problem in quantum mechanics ⓘ quantum fluctuations ⓘ vacuum energy ⓘ |
| relatesConcept |
probability distributions of measurement outcomes
ⓘ
standard deviation of observables ⓘ |
| symbolForConstant | ħ ⓘ |
| usedIn |
analysis of quantum harmonic oscillator
ⓘ
quantum cryptography security proofs ⓘ quantum field theory ⓘ quantum metrology ⓘ quantum optics ⓘ stability of atoms ⓘ |
How these facts were elicited
The pipeline generated the facts above by prompting gpt-5.1 with this entity's name + description and the instruction below.
Instruction
You are a knowledge base construction expert. Given a subject entity and a description of it, return factual statements that you know for the subject as a JSON list of dictionaries(triples), where keys must be "subject", "predicate" and "object". The number of facts may be very high, between 25 to 50 or more, for very popular subjects. For less popular subjects, the number of facts can be very low, like 5 or 10. # Requirements - If you don't know the subject at all, return an empty list. - If the subject is not a named entity, return an empty list. - Include at least one triple where predicate is "instanceOf". - Do not get too wordy. - Separate several objects into multiple triples with one object.
Input
Subject: uncertainty principle Description of subject: The uncertainty principle is a fundamental concept in quantum mechanics stating that certain pairs of physical properties, such as position and momentum, cannot both be known to arbitrary precision simultaneously.
Referenced by (20)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.
this entity surface form:
Heisenberg uncertainty principle
this entity surface form:
Heisenberg uncertainty principle
this entity surface form:
Heisenberg uncertainty principle
this entity surface form:
Heisenberg uncertainty principle
this entity surface form:
Heisenberg uncertainty principle
this entity surface form:
Heisenberg uncertainty principle
subject surface form:
ħ
this entity surface form:
Heisenberg uncertainty principle
this entity surface form:
Heisenberg uncertainty principle
subject surface form:
Does God Play Dice?
this entity surface form:
Heisenberg uncertainty principle
this entity surface form:
Heisenberg uncertainty principle
this entity surface form:
Heisenberg uncertainty principle
this entity surface form:
Heisenberg uncertainty principle
this entity surface form:
energy–time uncertainty principle
this entity surface form:
Heisenberg uncertainty principle