CTTT PH1016

Inertial Reference Frame

Chapter 6 Special Relativity
• Frame in which Newton’s Laws Work
• Moving is OK but….
– No Accelerating
– No Rotating
Inertial Reference Frame • Technically Earth is not inertial, but it’s
and Transformations close enough.

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Galileo's challenge Galileo's space and time

z
• Galileo argued that there z' v
 Every inertial observer could
is no such thing as declare themselves "the Prime
"Absolute Rest". In his Mover", and measure the position
view: (x,y,z)
(x',y',z') of everything with respect to their
own set of (x, y, z)
• The mechanical laws of
physics are the same for y y'
every observer moving with  The time is still measured by
looking at the Prime Mover's clock!
a constant speed along a
Galileo Galilei straight line (this is called x x'
1564 -1642 "inertial observer" for
short).

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Newton's laws of mechanics

Galileo's transformations • Newton's laws of mechanics are
z z' • We have two frames of in agreement with Galileo's
v A reference, K and K', and K' is
K K' relativity
moving along axis y with some 1. A body, not acted upon by any
y y
constant speed v. force, stays at rest or remains
y' y' • Something happened at point A. in uniform motion, whichever it
vt was doing to begin with
• According to Galileo, there is no
x x' 2. To get an object to change its
one special reference frame --
velocity, we need a force
if we know where A happened in
y  y'vt one frame, we are done! That's Force = mass x acceleration
x  x' because:
Galileo transformations: (acceleration = change in velocity)
know what happened in one frame,  
z  z' Sir Isaac Newton  v
can tell what happened in another
1642-1727 F  ma  m
t  t' t

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Newton’s laws are the same in all

inertial frames The clouds start to gather…
• We know how positions of an object transform when we
go from one inertial frame of reference to another
y  y '  vt
• For more than two centuries after its
x  x '; z  z '; t  t '
inception the Newtonian view of the world
ruled supreme
• What about velocities?
 y  ( y ' vt )  y '  ( vt ) velocity of an object in K
• However, at the end of the 19th century
uy 
t

t

t

t
 u y ' v
is equal to its velocity in K', problems started to appear
ux  u x '; uz  uz ' plus the velocity of K’ • The problematic issue can be reduced to
with respect to K
• What about accelerations? these questions:
Accelerations are the same – What is light? How does it propagate?
u y  (u y ' v ) u y 'v
ay      ay ' in both K and K’ frames!
t t t t
So Newtonian forces will be
the same in both frames

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Galilean Relativity
• “Relativity” refers in general to the way physical measurements made in a Experiment at rest Experiment in moving frame
given inertial frame are related to measurements in another frame.
• An inertial observer is one whose rest frame is inertial
• A quantity is invariant if all inertial observers obtain the same value
• Under Galilean relativity, measurements are transformed simply by adding
or subtracting the velocity difference between frames:
• vball(measured on ground)=vtrain (measured on ground)+vball(measured on
train)
12 m/s = 10m/s + 2 m/s
• Vball(measured on train)=vground(measured on train)+ vball(measured on
ground)
2 m/s = 10m/s + 12 m/s
2 m/s
10 m/s
Same result. Ball rises and ends up in the thrower’s hand. Ball
12 m/s
in the air the same length of time.
Experiment looks different from ground observer (parabolic
trajectory, speed as a function of time) and observer on the
truck. However, they both agree on the validity of Newton’s
laws.
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Event – Galilean transformation

Here comes Maxwell
x  x  vt  Laws of mechanics invariant under • Maxwell brought together the
Galilean transformation knowledge of electricity and
y  y magnetism known in his day in a
t  t set of four elegant equations
known as Maxwell's equations
• In the process, he introduced a
CLOCKS new concept: electromagnetic
SYNCHRONIZED AT
t=0 (t=t’=0) AND
waves, and found that they
ORIGINS COINCIDE traveled at the speed of light
– Light is an electromagnetic
phenomenon!
James C. Maxwell
1831-1879

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Electromagnetic waves Waves in general

• The waves we are all familiar with require
something to propagate in
Sound waves are compressions
of air (water, etc.)
electric field

magnetic field Spring compressions in a slinky

• What about light?

– The most natural assumption would be that it requires a
medium, too!
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Aether Michelson-Morley experiment

• Michelson and Morley
used a very sensitive
• This mysterious medium for light was called aether interferometer to
detect the difference in
• What would its properties be?
the speed of light
– We see light from distant starts, so aether must depending on the
permeate the whole universe direction in which it
– Must be very tenuous, or else the friction would have stopped travels.
the Earth long ago
Aether would be like a ghostly wind blowing through the Universe!
Michelson and Morley attempted to detect aether by measuring
the speed of light in two different directions: “upwind” and • NO such dependence
“downwind” with respect to aether. was found!

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Another problem
• Maxwell's equations introduce the
speed of light, c
– But they don't say with respect to what
this velocity is to be measured!
• So what can we conclude?
– That light must move at speed c in all
reference frames?
• But this contradicts Newtonian
mechanics!
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What do we know so far?
• Newton's mechanics based on Galileo's
relativity
– All laws of mechanics are the same in different
inertial reference frames (frames moving with a
constant speed along a straight line relative to one
another)
• Maxwell's electrodynamics
– There is a fundamental constant of nature, the
speed of light (c) that is always the same
• The fact that there is such a constant is
inconsistent with Newton’s mechanics!
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Maybe that’s fine?
• Suppose that addition of velocities does work for light, too.
Then imagine the following experiment:
I think the speed of light is v-c!
v
• If the car is moving with speed v, and light from the rear of
the car is moving with speed c, we should measure speed of
light = v - c.
– Then if we know c (and we do from other experiments), we should
derive v.
• Numerous experiments tried to measure the speed of Earth
based on this general idea -- with NO results whatsoever!!!
Speed of light seemed always to be the same!
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Einstein's choices
• Einstein was faced with the following choices:
– Maxwell's equations are wrong. The right ones
would be consistent with Galileo's relativity
• That's unlikely. Maxwell's theory has been so well
confirmed by numerous experiments!
– Galileo's relativity was wrong when applied to
electromagnetic phenomena. There was a special
reference frame for light.
• This was more likely, but it assumed light was like any
other waves and required a medium for propagation. That
medium was not found!
– There is a relativity principle for both mechanical
and electromagnetic phenomena, but it's not
Galileo's relativity.
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The Solution??? INVARIANCE OF SPEED OF LIGHT

The speed of light in vacuum has the same

value, c=300000000 m/s, in all inertial reference
frames, regardless of the velocity of the
observer or the velocity of the source emitting
the light.

Oh my
goodness…how
can that be
right???

All the laws of physics have the same form in all inertial reference frames.
Alright…we know that Newtonian mechanics worked in all inertial reference frames under
Galilean transformations, but does the same hold true for Maxwell’s equations of
electromagnetism?

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Einstein's relativity postulates Postulates of Relativity

• It required the genius and the
courage of Einstein to accept • Laws of physics are the same in every
the third alternative. His
special relativity is based on two
inertial frame
postulates: – Perform experiment on train going east
gives same results as on train going west.
• All laws of nature are the
same in all inertial frames • Speed of light in vacuum is c for
– This is really Galileo's relativity everyone
• The speed of light is – Measure c=3x108 m/s if you are on train
independent of the motion going east or on train going west, even if
light source isn’t on the train.
Albert Einstein of its source
1879-1955 – This simple statement requires a Weird!
truly radical re-thinking about the
nature of space and time!
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What's so radical about it? Simultaneous?

• It was Galileo who finished off the concept of A flash of light is emitted from the exact center of a box.
Does the light reach all the sides at the same time?
Absolute Space.
At Rest
• Einstein added that there is no Absolute
Time, either.
1. From the point of view of
– Simultaneity is relative!
Jack, lightning struck both
John
train cars at the same time
A Jack B Moving

2. From the point of view of

John, lightning struck first car
A and then car B

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Simultaneous? Time Dilation

A flash of light is emitted from the exact center of a box.
Does the light reach all the sides at the same time?
D
At Rest

YES

ct0  2 D
Moving
2D
t0 
NO c
t0 is proper time
Because it is rest
Simultaneous depends on frame! frame of event
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Time Dilation L=v t

What does this mean?

p • Time in a moving
D D
system slows down
8m comparing to a
½ vt No time dilation stationary system!

p
vt 
2
• E.g., charged pions have a
ct0  2 D ct  2 D   2
 lifetime of t = 2.56 x 10-8 s,
 2  so most of them would
2D 300 m
t0  decay after traveling ct = 8
c 2D 1 With time dilation
t  m.
t0 c v2
t0 is proper time t  2 1  • But we have no trouble
v c2 transporting them by
Because it is rest 1 2
c hundreds of meters!
frame of event
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Muon Experiment Muon experiment, again

• The Muon Experiment
– Muons are created in upper atmosphere from cosmic ray
hits
– Typical muon travel speeds are 0.99995c, giving =100
– Half-life of muons in their own rest frame (measured in
lab) is th= 2 microseconds =0.000002s
– Travelling at 0.99995c for th=0.000002s, the muons
would go only 600 m
– But travelling for  th= 0.0002s, the muons can go 60 km
– They easily reach the Earth’s surface, and are detected!
– Half-life can be measured by comparing muon flux on a
mountain and at sea level; result agrees with  th
• Consider atmospheric muons again, this
time from point of view of the muons
– i.e. think in frame of reference in which muon is at rest
– Decay time in this frame is 2 s (2/1000,000 s)
– How do they get from top of mountain to sea level before
decaying?
• From point of view of muon, mountain’s
height contracts by factor of  to 600 m
– Muons can then travel reduced distance (at
almost speed of light) before decaying.

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Some consequences: space contraction

Examples of time
dilation
The Muon Experiment • Consider our light clock again, only in this case we
consider the clock on its side such that the motion of the
clock pulse is parallel to the clock's velocity
Stationary clock: Moving clock:

h0 h h
t0  2 t 
c cv cv

h  h0  1v2 / c2

Fig. 1-11, p. 17

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More consequences : addition of velocities

• Knowing now time and space behave, we can now derive
how velocities transform when we go from one inertial
system to another:

 y y  t ' u ' v
uy     y
t t ' t u 'v
1 y 2
c
ux  ux ';uz  uz '

• It is only different from our familiar law of addition of

velocities by a factor of (1 + uy' v/c2) in the
denominator, but what a difference that makes!
• If v = c and uy' = c, then uy = 2c / (1+c2/c2) = c
Speed of light really is the same in all frames!
Fig. 1-14, p. 20

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Lorentz transformations A comment on geometry…

These are Lorentz • It is hard for us to think of going from one inertial system
to another as a hyperbolic rotation. Partly this is because
y'vt' transformations we are not used to thinking in terms of pseudo-Euclidean
y geometry.
1  v2 / c2 • They show how space and time are
• The familiar three-dimensional world around us is Euclidean,
related for two different inertial
so it's very natural for us to imagine circles and spheres
t '(v / c 2 ) y' observers in special relativity
that do not change under rotations (x2 + y2 stays the same)
t
1  v2 / c2 • They are reduced to Galilean
transformations when v << c • But space-time is pseudo-Euclidean (minus instead of plus in
x  x' what stays the same under rotations).
• Maxwell's equations are invariant under
z  z' these transformations • Thus, Einstein's special theory of relativity is not about how
"everything is relative" -- it's about the deepest connection
•They are really a rotation in hyperbolic between space and time, and the nature of space-time.
space formed by space and time – Our understanding of space and time was further revolutionized in
coordinates! General Relativity…

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Space-time Light cone

• There are no such things as "space" and "time", there
ct • It is very convenient to represent
is only four-dimensional space-time! future space-time as a diagram with one
• How does one visualize such a thing? B axis being space and the other,
time time
world line C • Because the speed of light is the
• It's hard, so people usually upper limit for all velocities, the
imagine a three-dimensional x space time is divided into three
event "space" with one coordinate elsewhere
regions by a cone called the "light
being the time coordinate cone":
space • this is called a space-time
past – Past, Future, Elsewhere
diagram
light A light • A path on this diagram is called a
world line
world line

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Twin Paradox Twin Paradox

Preflight 28.2 Preflight 28.2
Twins decide that one will travel to Alpha Centauri Twins decide that one will travel to Alpha Centauri
and back at 0.95c, while the other stays on earth. and back at 0.95c, while the other stays on earth.
Compare their ages when they meet on earth. Compare their ages when they meet on earth.

Earth twin thinks it takes 2 x 4.5 = 9 years

Traveling twin thinks it takes 2 x 1.4 = 2.8 years

Traveling twin will be younger!

Note: Traveling twin is NOT in inertial frame!

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Length Contraction Length Contraction

Sue is carrying a pole 10 meters long. Paul is on a barn
People on ship and on earth agree on relative velocity v which is 8 meters long. If Sue runs quickly v=.8 c, can
= 0.95 c. But they disagree on the time (4.5 vs 1.4 she ever have the entire pole in the barn?
years). What about the distance between the planets?
Paul:
Earth/Alpha d0 = v t v2
L  L0 1 
c2

Ship d=vt Sue:

Length in moving
v2
frame
v2 L  L0 1 
L  L0 1  2 c2
Length in object’s c
rest frame

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Length Contraction Length Contraction Gifs

People on ship and on earth agree on relative velocity v
v=0.1 c
= 0.95 c. But they disagree on the time (4.5 vs 1.4
years). What about the distance between the planets?

Earth/Alpha d0 = v t= .95 (3x108 m/s) (4.5 years)

= 4x1016m (4.3 light years) v=0.8 c

Ship d = v t = .95 (3x108 m/s) (1.4 years)

= 1.25x1016m (1.3 light years)
Length in moving
frame
v2 v=0.95 c
L  L0 1 
Length in object’s c2
rest frame

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Preflight 28.3 Preflight 28.3

You’re eating a burger at the interstellar café in outer You’re eating a burger at the interstellar café in outer
space - your spaceship is parked outside. A speeder space - your spaceship is parked outside. A speeder
zooms by in an identical ship at half the speed of zooms by in an identical ship at half the speed of
light. From your perspective, their ship looks: light. From your perspective, their ship looks:

(1) longer than your ship (1) longer than your ship
(2) shorter than your ship (2) shorter than your ship
(3) exactly the same as your ship (3) exactly the same as your ship
In the speeder’s reference frame
v2
L  L0 1  2 Lo > L
c In your reference frame

Always <1

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Comparison:
Time Dilation vs. Length Relativistic Momentum
Contraction Relativistic Momentum p
mv
• to = time in same reference frame as event v2
1 2
– i.e. if event is clock ticking, then to is in the c
Note: for v<<c p=mv
reference frame of the clock (even if the clock is in a
moving spaceship). Note: for v=c p=infinity
v2 Time seems longer
t0  t 1  2 t > to
from “outside” mc 2
c Relativistic Energy E
v2
1 2
Note: for v=0 E = mc2 c
• Lo = length in same reference frame as object Note: for v<<c E = mc2 + ½ mv2
– length of the object when you don’t think it’s moving.
Note: for v=c E = infinity (if m<> 0)
v2 Length seems shorter
L  L0 1  Lo > L from “outside” Objects with mass can’t go faster than c!
c2
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Summary Gook Luck on the Exam!

• Physics works in any inertial frame
– Simultaneous depends on frame
• Proper frame is where event is at same
place, or object is not moving.
– Time dilates
– Length contracts
– Energy/Momentum conserved
• For v<<c reduce to Newton’s Laws

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