The Solvay Councils, de Broglie's brothers, and the development of wave-particle duality

Abstract

The meeting patronized by Ernest Solvay in 1911, the first Solvay Council, marked the beginning of what can be called the first quantum revolution. Maurice de Broglie was one of the secretaries of the Council. He participated in the two following conferences and contributed to the third Council with his work. Louis de Broglie collaborated and discussed with his elder brother. Departing from Maurice's achievements, Louis developed his approach to the wave-particle duality of light and extended it to other particles. He presented it at the fifth meeting in 1927. This paper investigates the connection between the two scientists and the Solvay Councils, arguing that this link was essential in developing the first quantum revolution, a process that ended, according to Werner Heisenberg, at the fifth Solvay Physics Council.