The Davisson–Germer experiment was conducted from 1923 to 1927 by Clinton Davisson and Lester Germer at Western Electric. Electrons, scattered by the surface of a crystal of nickel metal, displayed a diffraction pattern. This confirmed the hypothesis, advanced by Louis de Broglie in 1924, of wave-particle duality, and also the wave mechanics approach of the Schrödinger equation. It was an experimental milestone in the development of quantum mechanics.