Related papers: A Discussion of Special Relativity
Special Relativity (SR) kinematics is derived from very intuitive assumptions. Contrary to standard Einstein's derivation, no light signal is used in the construction nor it is assumed to exist. Instead we postulate the existence of two…
I review, some of the algebraic and geometric structures that underlie the theory of Special Relativity. This includes a discussion of relativity as a symmetry principle, derivations of the Lorentz group, its composition law, its Lie…
Special relativity turns out to be more than coordinate transformations in which the constancy of the speed of light plays the central role between two inertial reference frames. Special relativity, in essence, is a theory of…
Simply by assuming the first postulate of Special Relativity and by exploring Gedankenexperiments with electromagnetic forces, we suggest that there is a speed limit in the universe, which can be determined as a relation between vacuum…
Einstein based his special theory of relativity on two postulates: (a) physical laws appear the same in all inertial frames, and (b) the speed of light in vacuum is an observer-independent constant. However, it is already known that the…
The central concept of the theory of relativity is the relativity of velocity. The velocity of a material body is not an intrinsic property of the body; it depends on a free choice of reference system. Relative velocity is thus…
It is demonstrated that the measured spatial separation of two objects, at rest in some inertial frame, is invariant under space-time transformations. This result holds in both Galilean and Special Relativity. A corollary is that there are…
We study the acceleration and collisions of rigid bodies in special relativity. After a brief historical review, we give a physical definition of the term `rigid body' in relativistic straight line motion. We show that the definition of…
We consider elastic bodies in rigid rotation, both nonrelativistically and in special relativity. Assuming a body to be in its natural state in the absence of rotation, we prove the existence of solutions to the elastic field equations for…
The development of both special and general relativity is accomplished in a series of 6 papers using a simple approach. The purpose is to explain the how and why of relativity to a broad public, and to be useful for students of physics by…
Special relativity theory is generalized to two or more ``maximal'' signalling speeds. This framework is discussed in three contexts: (i) as a scenario for superluminal signalling and motion, (ii) as the possibility of two or more ``light''…
Special relativity, the symmetry breakdown in the electroweak standard model, and the dichotomy of the spacetime related transformations with the Lorentz group, on the one side, and the chargelike transformations with the hypercharge and…
The special theory of relativity has fundamentally changed our views of space and time. The relativity of simultaneity in particular, and the theory of relativity as a whole, still presents significant difficulty for beginners in the…
We present the theory of special relativity here through the lens of differential geometry. In particular, we explicitly avoid any reference to hypotheses of the form "The laws of physics take the same form in all inertial reference frames"…
In a previous work we have shown that the null result of the Michelson-Morley experiment in vacuum is deeply connected with the notion of time. The same is true for the the postulate of constancy of the two-way speed of light in vacuum in…
Based on two previous papers, the physical meaning of synchronization and simultaneity as is presented in Einstein's Special Relativity paper of 1905 is reconsidered. We follow Einstein's argumentation to introduce a criterium of…
The paper discusses the problem of the Lorentz contraction in accelerated systems, in the context of the special theory of relativity. Equal proper accelerations along different world lines are considered, showing the differences arising…
We give a critical analysis of the conceptual foundations of special relativity. We formulate a simple operational criterion for distinguishing between noninertial and inertial frames which is introduced prior to geometry. We associate the…
The meaning of Lorentz contraction in special relativity and its connection with Bell's spaceships parable is discussed. The motion of Bell's spaceships is then compared with the accelerated motion of a rigid body. We have tried to write…
I argue that there are no physical singularities in space-time. Singular space-time models do not belong to the ontology of the world, because of a simple reason: they are concepts, defective solutions of Einstein's field equations. I…