Try it on paper first. A hint, the key idea and the worked solution are here when you need them.
A speck of dust has a mass of . (a) How fast would it have to move for its de Broglie wavelength to be nm, about the size of a few atoms? (b) How long would it then take to move mm? Give the time in seconds and in years, and take one year as s. Use J s.
A photon has momentum . A particle has the de Broglie wavelength . An electron speeded up by volt has nm. Rows of atoms a distance apart give peaks where .
Have you tried it?
Work it out on paper first. It is fine to get stuck or make a mistake: that is how we learn. When you are ready, go through the solution one step at a time, and check each step against your own.
Given. kg, m.
Step 1. The speed. .
Step 2. The time for 1.0 mm. .
Step 3. In years. .
Answer: m/s; s; about years.
Check. The dust must move so slowly that it would take far longer than the age of any city to cross a millimetre. Even a speck this small has a wavelength that is too short to notice, at any speed we can see.
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