Related papers: A Wave-centric View of Special Relativity
Arguments are reviewed and extended in favor of presenting special relativity at least in part from a more mechanistic point of view. A number of generic mechanisms are catalogued and illustrated with the goal of making relativistic effects…
The special theory of relativity is constructed demanding the retention of the rectilinear form of a trajectory and invariance of the wave equation under linear transformations of space and time coordinates. The usual approach to relativity…
The properties of the light, the Lorentz transformations and the relation mass-energy are introduced using the wave picture of the light and of the massive particles.
A modest aim of this pedagogical presentation is to analyze, critically, certain fundamental physical concepts to illustrate the physical principles behind the special theory of relativity and, hence, to also illustrate the limitations of…
Nature succeeds in accelerating extended and massive objects to relativistic velocities. Jets in Active Galactic Nuclei and in galactic superluminal sources and gamma-ray bursts fireballs have bulk Lorentz factors from a few to several…
The goal of this lecture is to introduce the student to the theory of Special Relativity. Not to overload the content with mathematics, the author will stick to the simplest cases; in particular only reference frames using Cartesian…
This paper has pedagogical motivation. It is not uncommon that students have great difficulty in accepting the new concepts of standard special relativity, since these seem contrary to common sense. Experience shows that geometrical or…
In the state-vector space for relativistic quantum fields a new set of basis vectors are introduced, which are taken to be eigenstates of the field operators themselves. The corresponding eigenvalues are then interpreted as representing…
Simple physical models of a measuring rod and of a clock are used to demonstrate the contraction of objects and clock retardation in special relativity. It is argued that the models could help in promoting student understanding of special…
A new approach to special relativity is presented which introduces coordinate systems with imaginary time axes, observation systems, and coordinate bases.
I give an overview of the motivations for gravitational-wave research, concentrating on the aspects related to ``fundamental'' physics.
The purpose is to introduce in a clear and direct way the students of undergraduate courses in physics and/or astronomy to the subject of radiative transfer. A pedagogical revision is made in order to obtain the radiative transfer equation,…
In these lectures general relativity is outlined as the classical field theory of gravity, emphasizing physical phenomena rather than mathematical formalism. Dynamical solutions representing traveling waves as well as stationary fields like…
A phenomenological explanation is presented for the physics of aberration, which is in contrast with special relativity physics. The effect of relativity is identified with an effect due to the velocity of observation being affected by the…
The wave nature of the light, applied to the kinematics of the moving bodies, permits to investigate and find a coherent solution on some questions raised by the theory of special relativity about the Lorentz contraction.
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''…
We construct an idealized universe for didactic purposes. This universe is assumed to consist of absolute Euclidean space and to be filled with a classical medium which allows for sound waves. A known solution to the wave equation…
The quantum mechanics description of a physical object stretched in space and stable in time from the relativistic space-time properties point of view, introduced in special theory of relativity, is considered and analysed. The mathematical…
This is a short note to announce the availability of some movies that may be useful in classroom discussions on the photographic appearance of objects moving at relativistic speeds. The images are based on special relativity with no account…