Related papers: Graphical aids for relativistic optics
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…
Assuming the minimal time to send a bit of information in the Einstein clock synchronization of the two clocks located at different positions, we introduce the extended metric to the information space. This modification of relativity…
I propose an alternative, purely kinematical, derivation of Einstein's Doppler formula. It is valid for periodic signals of any shape that propagate with the velocity of light. The formula is asymptotic in a parameter proportional to the…
A logic of reciprocity between inertial frames in relative uniform motion is investigated. Relativity allows any reference frame to apply Lorentz Transformation while reciprocity would require the relative frame to use Inverse…
We show that when the observers are located in a plane electromagnetic wave it is not compulsory for them to take into account the time dilation and length contraction effects when the wave is detected from two inertial reference frames in…
We find the quantum power emitted and distribution in $3+1$-dimensions of relativistic acceleration radiation using a single perfectly reflecting mirror via Lorentz invariance demonstrating close analogies to point charge radiation in…
We develop the spacetime approach to gravitational lensing by spherically symmetric perturbations of flat, cosmological constant-dominated Friedman-Robertson-Walker metrics. The geodesics of the spacetime are expressed as integral…
This article shows how to express relativistic concepts in a visual manner using the full power of hyperbolic trigonometric functions. Minkowski diagrams in energy-momentum space are used in conjunction with hyperbolic triangles. Elegant…
The Lorentz transformation is entirely derived from length contraction, itself established through the known light-clock thought experiment . This makes the derivation accessible to beginning students once Eintein's two postulates have been…
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 consider an inverse variational problem for the lines of constant curvature in (pseudo-)Euclidean two-, three-, and four-dimensional spaces. The accumulated results are physically meaningful in the case of relativistic mechanics of…
After having identified all the possible relationships between the electric field and the magnetic field in a given inertial reference frame we derive the transformation equations for the components of these fields. Special relativity is…
Assuming the existence of a preferred aether frame and the anisotropy of the one-way speed of light in platforms different from the aether frame, we derive the space and time transformations relative to bodies moving in any direction of…
We compare the results obtained by interpreting some fundamental relativistic experiments from the point of view of two alternative theories: Einstein's special relativity theory and the Lorentz-Poincare theory admitting the existence of a…
We study the physical effects of torsion as predicted by the Einstein-Cartan theory in the test particle approximation and the non-relativist limit. We first present the corresponding non-relativistic Hamiltonian for a 2-spinor. Then, we…
A careful study is made of the operational meaning of the time symbols appearing in the space-time Lorentz transformation. Four distinct symbols, with different physical meanings, are needed to describe reciprocal measurements involving…
A simple, though rarely considered, thought experiment on relativistic rotation is described in which internal inconsistencies in the theory of relativity seem to arise. These apparent inconsistencies are resolved by appropriate insight…
A simple visual representation of Minkowski spacetime appropriate for a student with a background in geometry and algebra is presented. Minkowski spacetime can be modeled with a Euclidean 4-space to yield accurate visualizations as…
We show that alternative relativity theories that are essentially based on varied distant clock synchronization procedures can be recovered by using the standard Lorentz-Einstein transformations for the space-time coordinates of the same…
Relativistic flying mirrors in plasmas are realized as thin dense electron (or electron-ion) layers accelerated by high-intensity electromagnetic waves to velocities close to the speed of light in vacuum. The reflection of an…