Wolfgang Pauli 1900 to 1930: His Early Physics in Jungian Perspective

Abstract

Wolfgang Pauli's philosophy and physics were intertwined. His philosophy was a variety of Platonism, in which Pauli's affiliation with Carl Jung formed an integral part, but Pauli's philosophical explorations in physics appeared before he met Jung. Jung validated Pauli's psycho-philosophical perspective. Thus, the roots of Pauli's physics and philosophy are important in the history of modern physics. In his early physics, Pauli attempted to ground his theoretical physics in positivism. He then began instead to trust his intuitive visualizations of entities that formed an underlying reality to the sensible physical world. These visualizations included holistic kernels of mathematical-physical entities that later became for him synonymous with Jung's mandalas. I have connected Pauli's visualization patterns in physics during the period 1900 to 1930 to the psychological philosophy of Jung and displayed some examples of Pauli's creativity in the development of quantum mechanics. By looking at Pauli's early physics and philosophy, we gain insight into Pauli's contributions to quantum mechanics. His exclusion principle, his influence on Werner Heisenberg in the formulation of matrix mechanics, his emphasis on firm logical and empirical foundations, his creativity in formulating electron spinors, his neutrino hypothesis, and his dialogues with other quantum physicists, all point to Pauli being the dominant genius in the development of quantum theory. Because Pauli was in a difficult individuation process during his early years, his own writings on philosophy tend to be sparse and often contradictory. My analysis of Pauli's physics and philosophy is based upon published and unpublished sources, and Pauli's later reflections. A pattern has emerged. Pauli changed his mind from relying on high rationality and empiricism, to valuing intuitive metaphysical visualizations. This coupled with disturbing events in his life precipitated a breakdown and led Pauli to seek treatment at the Jung Clinic. Pauli's psychological tension diminished after 1932. His physics consistently involved symmetry and invariants. His philosophy allied with Jung's resembled a Platonism of combined psyche and physics. Pauli sought a rational unification and foundation for his philosophy, but that goal was cut short by his untimely death at the age of 58.