Schrodinger to describe particle behavior

[Gary Voigt 1F]

I understand that the Schrödinger equation is a representation of the wave functions which represent potential electron locations but how does the magnitude get assigned an absolute value to it? Also why does squaring it give probability when magnitude does not?

[Joanne Phan 2H]

The reason why squaring the wave function will give you the probability of finding an electron is purely mathematical. Squaring the function will get you a real function that you can measure, so that is why it can help you find where electrons may be. Hope this helps!

[Joseph Dekel 1F]

In addition to the comment above,

The Schrödinger equation gives the wave function (ψ) for electrons. Taking the absolute value ensures we get a real magnitude from it. The physical interpretation isn't from ψ itself, but from its square, |ψ|^2, which represents the probability density of finding an electron at a particular point. We square it because in quantum mechanics, the squared magnitude gives a real, non-negative value, reflecting a true probability of the electron's location.