Feliss

Thanks swansont, I thought something else could be happening that I may not be aware of. But alrighty yup it could just possibly be an estimate... And thanks Decraig too You got me thinking some stuff about partitioning of energy...

Hi all, This is my first time here, please help me along Qn: Calculate the De Broglie wavelength of a neutron with a translational kinetic energy = kT at 300K. k = boltzmann constant = 1.38 x 10^-23 JK-1 Solution: λ = h / p = h / (2mE)^1/2 (E: kinetic energy) = h / (2mkT)^1/2 (substitute E with kT, the translational kinetic energy) why do we use translational energy = kT here? I googled, most of the webpage suggest KE = 3/2 kT (or kBT) (kB: boltzmann constant) I am trying to understand why the question omit 3/2? To my understanding 3/2 is to account for the 3 axis of direction, x, y, and z direction. So instead of KE = 1/2 kT, we get 3/2 kT. Any guidance is appreciated!