Light Propagation In Vacuum Research Articles

The motion of massless “object” and the physical essence and motion law of light

In this paper, the vacuum absolute static reference system is established by analyzing the motion law of massless “object.” Through the understanding of the physical nature of light, this paper reveals three basic laws of motion of light: First, light always moves in a uniform straight line, independent of the motion of the light source. Second, the speed of light propagation in vacuum is constant relative to the absolute reference system of vacuum. Third, the speed of light propagation in the medium remains constant relative to the inertial frame of the medium. Based on this, we have successfully explained the phenomenon of Michelson‐Morley experiment, Fizeau experiment, and light aberration phenomenon that have long troubled the academic community. Finally, we prove that the two basic assumptions on which special relativity is based are wrong, so the Lorentz transformation and its series of inferences, as the core content of special relativity, are not tenable.

Discrete Topology of a Critical State of Inert Gases

The results of topological characteristics for the cases of a critical state of inert gases and a two-stage condensation of low-temperature helium are obtained. The unsatisfiability of Trouton’s rule is proven for the critical state of helium. The results of calculations of the velocity of light propagation in vacuum and the formulas for calculating the largest and smallest sizes of nano- and microparticles of a substance, at which their extraordinary properties are manifested compared to a bulk body, are reported.

The Theory of Relativity is an

Physicists measured the propagation of light in vacuum and matter through experiments with light over the course of several centuries. ......

Gravitational lensing in the presence of plasmas and strong gravitational fields

The theory of gravitational lensing is well developed for light propagation in vacuum in the approximation of weak deflection. We discuss two ways of extending the studies of usual gravitational lens theory which were recently theoretically developed. One way is to go beyond the weak deflection approximation and consider relativistic images formed by the photons performing one or several revolutions around the central object. Another way is to consider the propagation of light in a plasma instead of vacuum, in the presence of gravity. In this case the lensing angle depends on the plasma distribution and the photon frequency. The gravitational deflection of a light ray even in a homogeneous plasma differs from the vacuum (Einstein) angle and depends on the photon frequency. We also discuss the recent results on the influence of a plasma on positions and magnifications of relativistic images.

WHAT THINKS THE UNIVERSITY'S STUDENTS ABOUT PROPAGATION OF LIGHT IN THE VACUUM?

This study aims to study the conceptions of university students related to the notion of propagation of light in a vacuum. In order to fulfill our aim, a case study research method was used in the study, whose sample consisted of 321 Algerian undergraduates in different levels at science faculty (before and after the optics courses). The data were collected through a test comprising three questions. The results have indicated two students’ misconceptions concerning propagation of light in vacuum. The first one is that the light does not propagate in a vacuum. The second is that the light propagates according the horizontal direction (new misconception). The possible origins of these misconceptions are discussed and suggestions for how to prevent them are given. Also, our results suggest that university students who had a higher level of physics knowledge than their counterparts who studied only geometrical optics, they still held of the same misconceptions. Formal or traditional teaching seems helpless to facing these misconceptions.

A new look at the quantum mechanics of the harmonic oscillator

AbstractIn classical mechanics the harmonic oscillator (HO) provides the generic example for the use of angle and action variables and I > 0 which played a prominent role in the “old” Bohr‐Sommerfeld quantum theory. However, already classically there is a problem which has essential implications for the quantum mechanics of the (φ,I)‐model for the HO: the transformation is only locally symplectic and singular for (q,p) = (0,0). Globally the phase space {(q,p)} has the topological structure of the plane ℝ2, whereas the phase space {(φ,I)} corresponds globally to the punctured plane ℝ2 ‐(0,0) or to a simple cone with the tip deleted. From the properties of the symplectic transformations on that phase space one can derive the functions h0 = I, h1 = Icos φ and h2 = ‐Isin φ as the basic coordinates on {(φ,I)}, where their Poisson brackets obey the Lie algebra of the symplectic group of the plane. This implies a qualitative difference as to the quantum theory of the phase space {(φ,I)} compared to the usual one for {(q,p)}: In the quantum mechanics for the (φ,I)‐model of the HO the three hj correspond to the self‐adjoint generators Kj, j = 0,1,2, of certain irreducible unitary representations of the symplectic group or one of its infinitely many covering groups, the representations being parametrized by a (Bargmann) index k > 0. This index k determines the ground state energy of the (φ,I)‐Hamiltonian . For an m‐fold covering the lowest possible value for k is k = 1/m, which can be made arbitrarily small by choosing m accordingly! This is not in contradiction to the usual approach in terms of the operators Q and P which are now expressed as functions of the Kj, but keep their usual properties. The richer structure of the Kj quantum model of the HO is “erased” when passing to the simpler (Q,P)‐model! This more refined approach to the quantum theory of the HO implies many experimental tests: Mulliken‐type experiments for isotopic diatomic molecules, experiments with harmonic traps for atoms, ions and BE‐condensates, with charged HOs in external electric fields and the (Landau) levels of charged particles in external magnetic fields, with the propagation of light in vacuum, passing through strong external electric or magnetic fields. Finally it may lead to a new theoretical estimate for the quantum vacuum energy of fields and its relation to the cosmological constant.

A new look at the quantum mechanics of the harmonic oscillator

In classical mechanics the harmonic oscillator (HO) provides the generic example for the use of angle and action variables and I > 0 which played a prominent role in the “old” Bohr-Sommerfeld quantum theory. However, already classically there is a problem which has essential implications for the quantum mechanics of the (φ,I)-model for the HO: the transformation is only locally symplectic and singular for (q,p) = (0,0). Globally the phase space {(q,p)} has the topological structure of the plane ℝ2, whereas the phase space {(φ,I)} corresponds globally to the punctured plane ℝ2 -(0,0) or to a simple cone with the tip deleted. From the properties of the symplectic transformations on that phase space one can derive the functions h0 = I, h1 = Icos φ and h2 = -Isin φ as the basic coordinates on {(φ,I)}, where their Poisson brackets obey the Lie algebra of the symplectic group of the plane. This implies a qualitative difference as to the quantum theory of the phase space {(φ,I)} compared to the usual one for {(q,p)}: In the quantum mechanics for the (φ,I)-model of the HO the three hj correspond to the self-adjoint generators Kj, j = 0,1,2, of certain irreducible unitary representations of the symplectic group or one of its infinitely many covering groups, the representations being parametrized by a (Bargmann) index k > 0. This index k determines the ground state energy of the (φ,I)-Hamiltonian . For an m-fold covering the lowest possible value for k is k = 1/m, which can be made arbitrarily small by choosing m accordingly! This is not in contradiction to the usual approach in terms of the operators Q and P which are now expressed as functions of the Kj, but keep their usual properties. The richer structure of the Kj quantum model of the HO is “erased” when passing to the simpler (Q,P)-model! This more refined approach to the quantum theory of the HO implies many experimental tests: Mulliken-type experiments for isotopic diatomic molecules, experiments with harmonic traps for atoms, ions and BE-condensates, with charged HOs in external electric fields and the (Landau) levels of charged particles in external magnetic fields, with the propagation of light in vacuum, passing through strong external electric or magnetic fields. Finally it may lead to a new theoretical estimate for the quantum vacuum energy of fields and its relation to the cosmological constant.

Non-linear electrodynamics and the gravitational redshift of highly magnetized neutron stars

The idea that the nonlinear electromagnetic interaction, i. e., light propagation in vacuum, can be geometrized was developed by Novello et al. (2000) and Novello & Salim (2001). Since then a number of physical consequences for the dynamics of a variety of systems have been explored. In a recent paper Mosquera Cuesta & Salim (2003) presented the first astrophysical study where such nonlinear electrodynamics (NLEDs) effects were accounted for in the case of a highly magnetized neutron star or pulsar. In that paper the NLEDs was invoked {\it a l\`a} Euler-Heisenberg, which is an infinite series expansion of which only the first term was used for the analisys. The immediate consequence of that study was an overall modification of the space-time geometry around the pulsar, which is ``perceived'', in principle, only by light propagating out of the star. This translates into an significant change in the surface redshift, as inferred from absorption (emission) lines observed from a super magnetized pulsar. The result proves to be even more dramatic for the so-called magnetars, pulsars endowed with magnetic ($B$) fields higher then the Schafroth quantum electrodynamics critical $B$-field. Here we demonstrate that the same effect still appears if one calls for the NLEDs in the form of the one rigorously derived by Born & Infeld (1934) based on the special relativistic limit for the velocity of approaching of an elementary particle to a pointlike electron [From the mathematical point of view, the Born & Infeld (1934) NLEDs is described by an exact Lagrangean, whose dynamics has been successfully studied in a wide set of physical systems.].

Testing ofCP,CPT,and causality violation with light propagation in vacuum in the presence of uniform electric and magnetic fields

We have considered the structure of the fundamental symmetry violating part of the photon refractive index in vacuum in the presence of constant electric and magnetic fields. This part of the refractive index can, in principle, contain CPT symmetry breaking terms. Some of the terms violate Lorentz invariance, whereas the others violate locality and causality. Estimates of these effects, using laser experiments are considered.

Relativistic acoustic Doppler effect in the optical limit

It is shown that the relativistic acoustic Doppler effect is a function only of the relative source/observer velocity if, and only if, the acoustic speed equals the speed of light. In this limit, the acoustic formula reduces to the well-known optical Doppler equation. This clearly demonstrates the superfluity of a material medium for light propagation in vacuum and provides yet another illustration of the unique status of the speed of light within the framework of special relativity.

On experiments to detect possible failures of relativity theory

Two recently proposed experiments by Kolen and Torr (K-T), designed to detect possible failures of Einstein's special relativity (SR) are analyzed. Imprecisions in these papers are pointed out. Computation in Lorentz aether theory (LAT), with the K-T violation of SR, of the theoretical prediction for the proposed K-T clock experiment prove their results to be incorrect. Analytical computation of the proposed K-T rotor Doppler experiment using LAT confirms the order of magnitude of their prediction by numerical computation. For LAT in the K-T form, this experiment, using a turntable, is shown to give results which could be detected with the technology of 20 years ago. Another LAT model is considered which leads to deviations of SR smaller than in the K-T model. The central point of the approach adopted in this paper is the use of Einstein's coordinates in the comoving frame, even when SR is violated, leading always to isotropic propagation of light in vacuum; the anisotropy usually obtained in LAT is only a coordinate effect.