Emil Rupp, Albert Einstein and the canal ray experiments on wave-particle duality: Scientific fraud and theoretical bias

TL;DR

This paper examines Emil Rupp's controversial canal ray experiments on wave-particle duality, revealing evidence of scientific fraud and analyzing the influence of theoretical bias and social context on scientific assessment.

Contribution

It uncovers evidence of forgery in Rupp's experiments and analyzes the impact of theoretical bias and social divisions on the scientific community's response.

Findings

Evidence of Rupp's experimental forgery is presented.

The role of theoretical bias in evaluating experiments is analyzed.

The social and political context influenced the reception of Rupp's work.

Abstract

In 1926 Emil Rupp published a number of papers on the interference properties of light emitted by canal ray sources. These articles, particularly one paper that came into being in collaboration with Albert Einstein, drew quite some attention as they probed the wave versus particle nature of light. They also significantly propelled Rupp's career, even though that from the outset they were highly controversial. This article will review this episode, and in particular Rupp's collaboration with Einstein. Evidence that Rupp forged his results is presented and their critical reception in the socially and politically divided German physics community is discussed. These divisions fail to explain the full dynamic; the latter is attempted by turning to the role that theoretical bias on occasion has in assessing experiment. Einstein's responses in particular are analyzed in this context.