No, elementary particles cannot be adequately explained by a wave-only model in the context of quantum mechanics and wave-particle duality. While wave-particle duality suggests that particles can exhibit both wave-like and particle-like behavior, a wave-only model fails to fully capture the properties and behavior of elementary particles.
Quantum mechanics describes the behavior of particles at the microscopic level, and it employs mathematical tools such as wave functions and probability amplitudes to describe the probabilistic nature of particle interactions. The wave function represents the probability distribution of finding a particle in a particular state, and it evolves over time according to the Schrödinger equation.
However, the wave function alone does not provide a complete description of elementary particles. Particles such as electrons, quarks, and neutrinos possess intrinsic properties such as mass, charge, and spin, which cannot be explained solely by wave-like characteristics. These properties are discrete and quantized, meaning they can only take certain specific values.
Furthermore, experiments have shown that elementary particles can exhibit particle-like behaviors, such as discrete energy levels, interactions at specific points in space, and the ability to occupy distinct quantum states. These particle-like behaviors cannot be explained solely by a wave-based model.
In quantum mechanics, the wave-particle duality suggests that elementary particles have both wave-like and particle-like aspects, and their behavior is described by a mathematical framework that combines wave functions and probabilistic interpretations. This framework provides a more comprehensive and accurate description of the behavior of elementary particles compared to a wave-only model.