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How do future physics teachers envisage atoms? Do they regard electrons as being permanently localized? What does the Heisenberg uncertainty relation mean for them? To answer such questions, we carried out an empirical study on students’ conceptions of quantum physics in the years 1996 –1998. The study has been carried out to support the development of a new course on quantum physics for the German “Oberstufe” (12th to 13th year). In the center of this course we put the novel type of interpretative problems that quantum mechanics entails. Such a course makes high demands on the students as well as on the teachers. It is of particular importance for the teachers to have gained an understanding of the interpretation of quantum mechanics during their university education.