Related papers: Lengths on rotating platforms
The conventional discussion of the observed distortions of space and time in Special Relativity (the Lorentz-Fitzgerald Contraction and Time Dilatation) is extended by considering observations, from a stationary frame, of : (i) objects…
In an apparently unexplored region of relativistic spacetime, a simple thought experiment demonstrates that conjoined Lorentz transformations predict a proper clock at rest will run backwards and that prediction violates the logical…
A new apparent relativistic paradox is presented involving only one space-time event. This is different from earlier relativistic paradoxes involving extended bodies or events at different positions. A collision between a rod and a ring…
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…
Physical foundations for relativistic spacetimes are revisited, in order to check at what extent Finsler spacetimes lie in their framework. Arguments based on inertial observers (as in the foundations of Special Relativity and Classical…
Contraction analysis considers the distance between two adjacent trajectories. If this distance is contracting, then trajectories have the same long-term behavior. The main advantage of this analysis is that it is independent of the…
A fifty-year old apparently paradoxical thought experiment involving two accelerating spaceships and a thread hat connects them states that the thread will break due to length contraction. This paradox still appears to be regarded by some…
This paper deals with four topics: The first subject is Abraham's spherical electron, Lorentz's contracted electron and B\"ucherer's electron. The second topic is Einstein's 1905 relativity theory of the motion of an electron. Einstein…
The special theory of relativity is the foundation of modern physics, but its unusual postulate of invariant vacuum speed of light results in a number of plausible paradoxes. This situation leads to radical criticisms and suspicions against…
One of two postulates that are base for special relativity is that the laws of physics are invariant in all inertial systems, which has as a consequence that it is impossible for an observer to detect his motion through space. It will be…
A two-dimensional Minkowski spacetime diagram is neatly represented on a Euclidean ordinary plane. However the Euclidean lengths of the lines on the diagram do not correspond to the true values of physical quantities in spacetime, except…
Lorentz transformation of the reduced helicity density matrix for a massive spin 1/2 particle is investigated in the framework of relativistic quantum information theory for the first time. The corresponding helicity entropy is calculated,…
We present a derivation of the relativistic length-contraction formula based on Lorentz space-time transformations on non-simultaneous events. Our derivation avoids the disputable story about the stationary observer and its simultaneous…
The equivalence of a conformal metric on 4-dimensional space-time and a local field of 3-dimensional subspaces of the space of 2-forms over space-time is discussed and the basic notion of transection is introduced. Corresponding relation is…
The Bell Spaceship Paradox has promoted confusion and numerous resolutions since its first statement in 1959, including resolutions based on relativistic stress due to Lorentz contractions. The paradox is that two ships, starting from the…
General Relativity is known to break down at singularities. However, it is expected that quantum corrections become important when the curvature is of the order of Planck scale avoiding the singularity. By calculating the effect of tidal…
Relativistic length contraction is revisited and a simple but new thought experiment is proposed in which an apparent asymmetric situation is developed between two different inertial frames regarding detection of light that comes from a…
Contraction analysis uses a local criterion to prove the long-term behaviour of a dynamical system. A contraction metric is a Riemannian metric with respect to which the distance between adjacent solutions contracts. If adjacent solutions…
The Mathisson-Papapetrou equations in Kerr's background are considered. The region of existence of highly relativistic planar circular orbits of a spinning particle in this background and dependence of the particle's Lorentz $\gamma$-factor…
The radar experiment connects the geometry of spacetime with an observers measurement of spatial length. We investigate the radar experiment on Finsler spacetimes which leads to a general definition of radar orthogonality and radar length.…