Related papers: One more experiment on "fast-light"
We review recent work on the possibility of a varying speed of light (VSL). We start by discussing the physical meaning of a varying $c$, dispelling the myth that the constancy of $c$ is a matter of logical consistency. We then summarize…
Method given for intuitively visualizing constancy of light speed. Using mass-energy equivalence, we can show with the help of simple thought experiments, that velocity time dilation and gravitational time dilation are a necessary…
The group-velocity of evanescent waves (in undersized waveguides, for instance) was theoretically predicted, and has been experimentally verified, to be Superluminal (v_g > c). By contrast, it is known that the precursor speed in vacuum…
We consider an Einstein-Maxwell action modified by the addition of three terms coupling the electromagnetic strength to the curvature tensor. The corresponding generalized Maxwell equations imply a variation of the speed of light in a…
As generally known, the speed of propagation of light in solid state bodies can be different from the speed of light in vacuum. That the mere presence of electric or magnetic fields in the vacuum can suffice to influence the speed of light,…
The speed of light ($c$) in a vacuum is independent on a choice of frames to describe the propagation, according to the theory of relativity. We consider how light is characterised in a material, where the speed of light is different from…
In two models it is shown that a light pulse propagates from a vacuum into certain media with velocity greater than that of a light in a vacuum (c). By numerical calculation the propagating properties of such a light are given.
We assume the spacetime foam picture in which vacuum is filled with virtual wormholes. In the presence of an external field the distribution of wormholes changes. We consider an anisotropic distribution of wormholes and analyze its relation…
This paper sets out to explain: 1. Why the speed of light c is a constant and is the maximum speed at which any moving entity can travel. 2. Why time elapsed is different for a moving entity relative to a stationary entity. 3. Why there has…
Introducing precise spatio-temporal structure into a pulsed optical field can lead to remarkable changes with its free propagation. `Space-time' (ST) wave packets, for example, propagate rigidly at a tunable group velocity in free space by…
We unify all existing results on the change of the speed of low--energy photons due to modifications of the vacuum, finding that it is given by a universal constant times the quotient of the difference of energy densities between the usual…
From an extended relativistic dynamics for a particle moving in a cosmic background field with temperature T, we aim to obtain the speed of light with an explicit dependence on the background temperature of the universe. Although finding…
We discuss possible tests of the constancy of the velocity of light using distant astrophysical sources such as gamma-ray bursters (GRBs), Active Galactic Nuclei (AGNs) and pulsars. This speculative quest may be motivated by some models of…
The empirical evidences in favor of the hypothesis that the speed of light decreases by a few centimeters per second each year are examined. Lunar laser ranging data are found to be consistent with this hypothesis, which also provides a…
Recently, a series of theoretical and experimental papers on free-space propagation of pulsed Laguerre-Gaussian and Bessel beams was published, which reached contradictory and controversial results about group velocities of such pulses.…
Energy-dependent speeds of light have been considered an observable signature of quantum gravity effects. The two simplest dispersion relationships produce either linear or quadratic corrections, in particle energy, to the photon speed. The…
The group velocity for pulses in an optical medium can be negative at frequencies between those of a pair of laser-pumped spectral lines. The gain medium then can amplify the leading edge of a pulse resulting in a time advance of the pulse…
There is suggested a version of the experiment with a correlated pair of particles in the entangled state. The experiment demonstrates that, in the case of weak and/or non-demolition measurements of one of the particles, it is possible to…
We propose a quantum model for the vacuum filled of virtual particle pairs. The main originality of this model is to define a density and a life-time of the virtual particles. Compared to the usual QED $(p,E)$ framework, we add here the…
A plane monochromatic wave propagates in vacuum at the velocity of c. However, wave packets limited in space and time are used to transmit energy and information. Here it has been shown based on the wave approach that the on-axis part of…