ChapterOne

SpecialRelativity

ClassicalPhysics
Physicsknownbytheendofthenineteenthcentury(before1900)
Includes:ClassicalMechanics,ClassicalElectromagneticTheory,
Optics,WavesofSound,Thermodynamics.
ClassicalPhysicsisbasedongeneralassumptions:
Absolutespace,Absolutetime,Simultaneity
Actionatadistance
Formsofphysicalexistence:eithermatterorwaves
Determinism
.

BasicProblemswithClassical(Newtonian)
Mechanics
Newtonianmechanicsfailstodescribeproperlythemotion
ofobjectswhosespeedsapproachthatoflight
Newtonianmechanicsplacesnoupperlimitonspeed.
Itisincontradictionwithmodernexperimentalresults

Accordingtoourcurrentunderstanding,Newtonian
mechanicsbecomesaspecializedcaseofEinsteins
specialtheoryofrelativity;whenspeedsaremuchless
thanthespeedoflight.

 What is a frame of reference?

A "frame of reference" is a set of coordinates and a clock that we use to measure
observables in Newtonian mechanical such as: position and velocity.

What is motion?
When we say that an object is moving, this means that its position changes relative
to a frame of reference.
A frame of reference is part of the description of motion.
No absolute motion!

What is an inertial frame of reference?

An inertial frame of reference is a frame of reference in which Newtons first law of
motion holds.
Any object which isn't being acted on by an outside force stays at rest if it is
initially at rest, or continues to move at a constant velocity if that's what it was
doing.

Give an example of a non-inertial frame of reference.

An example of a non-inertial frame is a rotating frame.
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Classical Mechanics &

Galilean Relativity
Todescribeaphysicalevent,aframeofreferencemustbe
defined
NewtonsLawsapplyinspecialframesofreference,called
inertialframesofreference.
Aninertialframeofareferenceisareferenceinwhich
Newtons1st Lawisvalid.(UsedasaDefinition)
Inertialframesofreferencemovewithuniform(constant)
velocitiesrelativetoeachother.

 Thereisnoabsoluteinertialframeofreference.(Thenotion
ofabsoluteframeofreferencewaspostulatedbyNewton,
butwasdismissedlaterinclassicalphysics)
Allinertialframesofreferenceareequivalent
Thismeansthatthelawsofmechanicsarethesameinall
inertialframesofreference

PrincipleofGalileanrelativity
Remindersaboutinertialframes
Objectssubjectedtonoforceswillexperienceno
acceleration.
Anyframemovingatconstantvelocitywithrespecttoan
inertialframemustalsobeinaninertialframe

AccordingtotheprincipleofGalileanrelativity,the
lawsofmechanicsarethesameinallinertialframes
ofreference

GalileanRelativity Example
Atruckismovingwitha
constantvelocityrelativeto
theground.
Theobserverinthetruck
throwsaballstraightup
Theballappears,accordingto
him,tomoveinaverticalpath
Thelawofgravityandequations
ofmotionunderuniform
accelerationareobeyed

GalileanRelativity Example,cont.

Thereisastationaryobserverontheground
Heviewsthepathoftheballthrowntobeaparabola
Theballhasavelocitytotherightequaltothevelocity
ofthetruck

GalileanRelativity Example,conclusion
Thetwoobserversdisagreeontheshapeofthe
ballspath(Motionisrelative)
Bothagreethatthemotionobeysthelawofgravity
andNewtonslawsofmotion
Bothagreeonhowlong(time)theballwasinthe
air
Conclusion: Thereisnopreferredframeofreference
fordescribingthelawsofmechanics

Dr. Ihab Obaidat

Physics
Department-UAEU

10

 There is no preferred inertial frame of

reference
All inertial frame of reference are
equally valid.
If we see an object changing its position
with respect to us at constant velocity,
then relative to that object we are
moving at constant velocity.

It is meaningless to ask who is

actually moving!

There is no universal frame of reference

that can be used everywhere (no
absolute motion)
Motion is relative
Is the car moving or
the man???

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ViewofanEvent
Anevent issomephysical
phenomenon
Assumetheeventoccurs
andisobservedbyan
observeratrestinan
inertialreferenceframe
Theeventslocationand
timecanbespecifiedby
thecoordinates(x,y,z,t)
Dr. Ihab Obaidat
Physics Department-UAEU

12

ViewsofanEvent,cont.
Considertwoinertialframes,SandS
Smoveswithconstantvelocity,v,alongthecommonx and
xaxes
ThevelocityismeasuredrelativetoS
AssumetheoriginsofSandScoincideatt =0

Dr. Ihab Obaidat

Physics
Department-UAEU

13

GalileanSpaceTimeTransformation
Equations
AnobserverinSdescribestheeventwithspacetime
coordinates(x,y,z,t)
AnobserverinSdescribesthesameeventwithspacetime
coordinates(x,y,z,t)
Therelationshipamongthecoordinatesare
x=x vt , y=y,z=z
t=t
,

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NotesAboutGalileanTransformation
Equations
Thetimeisthesameinbothinertialframes
Withintheframeworkofclassicalmechanics,allclocks
runatthesamerate
ThetimeatwhichaneventoccursforanobserverinSis
thesameasthetimeforthesameeventinS
Thisturnsouttobeincorrectwhenv iscomparabletothe
speedoflight

Dr. Ihab Obaidat

Physics
Department-UAEU

15

The Postulate of the Ether

Classically, it was established that light is a wave.
Sound was established as waves of compression in a medium (for example in
air). It also travels through liquids, and solids.
It is found experimentally that: a) sound travels faster through a medium that is
harder to compress, b) for media of equal stiffness, the sound goes faster
through the less heavy medium.
It was natural to suppose that light must propagate in a mysterious material
surrounding everything (a universal frame of reference). It was called the
ether.
Properties of ether:
a) it must fill the whole space, out to the stars,
b) it must be very light and very hard to compress since light travels so fast.
c) it must allow solid bodies to pass through it freely, without resistance.

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 InMaxwellstheory,thespeedoflight,intermsofthepermeability
andpermittivityoffreespace,wasgivenby:

v
Thus the velocity of light is a constant in free space. But according to which
observer?

Ether was proposed as an absolute reference system in which the speed

of light is this constant and from which other measurements could be
made.

The Michelson-Morley experiment was an attempt to show the existence of

ether.
Dr. Ihab Obaidat

Physics
Department-UAEU

17

Michelson-Morley Experiment
Michelson's idea was to construct a race for pulses of
light in the ether wind.
A pulse of light is directed at an angle of 45 degrees
at a half-silvered, half transparent mirror, so that half
the pulse goes on through the glass, half is reflected.
They both go on to distant mirrors which reflect them
back to the half-silvered mirror. At this point, they are
again half reflected and half transmitted. Half of each
half-pulse will arrive at the telescope, point d.
If there is an ether wind blowing, the halves of the two
half-pulses will arrive at slightly different times, since
one would have gone more upstream and back, one
more across stream in general.
To maximize the effect, the whole apparatus,
including the distant mirrors, was placed on a large
turntable so it could be swung around.
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MichelsonMorleyEquipment
UsedtheMichelson
interferometer
Arm2isalignedalongthe
directionoftheEarthsmotion
throughspace
Theinterferencepatternwas
observedwhilethe
interferometerwasrotated
through90
Theeffectshouldhavebeento
showsmall,butmeasurable,
shiftsinthefringepattern
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The speed of light is c relative to the ether, and the ether is flowing at a
speed v through the laboratory.
To go a distance L along the flow of ether will take L/(c + v) seconds, then to
come back will take L/(c - v) seconds. The total roundtrip time upstream and
downstream is the sum of these = 2Lc/(c-v),
This can be written as (2L/c)/(1-v/c).
What about the cross-stream time?
The actual cross-stream speed must be figured out using a rightangled triangle, with the hypotenuse equal to the speed c, the shortest
side the is ether flow speed v, and the other side is the cross-stream
speed which we need to find the time to get across.
From Pythagoras' theorem, the cross-stream speed is the square root
of (c-v).
Since this will be the same both ways, the roundtrip cross-stream time
will be 2L/sqrt(c-v). This can be written in the form (2L/c).1/sqrt(1v/c).
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MichelsonMorleyExperiment:Details
If light requires a medium, then its velocity depends on the velocity of the
medium. Velocity vectors add.

Parallel
velocities

vlight v aether

vtotal

Anti-parallel
velocities

v aether vtotal

vlight

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ResultofMichelsonMorley
Experiment
Noeffecttotheetherdriftwasobserved
Whatdoesitmean?
Etherdoesnotexist(Noabsolutemotionrelativetoether)
Thespeedoflightisthesameforallobservers

In 1905 Albert Einstein showed how measurements of time and space are
affected by motion between an observer and what is being observed

Relativity connects space and time, matter, electricity and magnetism-links

that are crucial to our understanding of the physical universe.

The theory of relativity deals with the consequences of the lack of a

universal frame of reference.

Special relativity, published in 1905,treats problems that involve inertial

frames of reference.

General relativity, published decade later, describe the relationship

between gravity and the geometrical structure of space and time.

1.1SpecialRelativity

All motion is relative; the speed of light in free space is the same for
all observers.
No problems in finding the Length, time, mass for rest object
relative to the observer
Objects in motion have different values

Observer is on the plane

observer

Framesofreference
Ispartofthedescriptionofthemotion
InertialframeofreferenceistheoneinwhichNewtons1stlaw
holds
Movingframeofreferencewitha=0,isagoodinertialframe.

Is the car moving or the

man???
Special relativity treats problems that involve inertial frames of
reference.
It has had an enormous impact on physics

PostulatesofSpecialrelativity

Thefirstpostulate,principleofrelativity,
Thelawsofphysicsarethesameinallinertialframesof
reference.

Thesecondpostulateis:
Thespeedoflightinfreespacehasthesamevalueinallinertial
framesofreferences.
c=2.998 108 m/s