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    Special Theory of Relativity Special Theory of Relativity Lorentz Transformation

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    Mrinal Tak
    1) The Lorentz transformations provide the relationships between the coordinate systems of two inertial reference frames in motion relative to each other. 2) According to these transformations, simultaneity is relative - two events that occur at the same time in one reference frame may occur at different times when viewed from another frame in motion. 3) Length contraction occurs such that objects appear shorter when measured in a reference frame in which they are moving relative to the observer.

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    Special Theory of Relativity Special Theory of Relativity Lorentz Transformation

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    Mrinal Tak
    58 views9 pages
    1) The Lorentz transformations provide the relationships between the coordinate systems of two inertial reference frames in motion relative to each other. 2) According to these transformations, simultaneity is relative - two events that occur at the same time in one reference frame may occur at different times when viewed from another frame in motion. 3) Length contraction occurs such that objects appear shorter when measured in a reference frame in which they are moving relative to the observer.

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    1) The Lorentz transformations provide the relationships between the coordinate systems of two inertial reference frames in motion relative to each other. 2) According to these transformations, simultaneity is relative - two events that occur at the same time in one reference frame may occur at different times when viewed from another frame in motion. 3) Length contraction occurs such that objects appear shorter when measured in a reference frame in which they are moving relative to the observer.

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    Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    58 views9 pages

    Special Theory of Relativity Special Theory of Relativity Lorentz Transformation

    Uploaded by

    Mrinal Tak
    1) The Lorentz transformations provide the relationships between the coordinate systems of two inertial reference frames in motion relative to each other. 2) According to these transformations, simultaneity is relative - two events that occur at the same time in one reference frame may occur at different times when viewed from another frame in motion. 3) Length contraction occurs such that objects appear shorter when measured in a reference frame in which they are moving relative to the observer.

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    of 9

    Lecture-XIX

    Special Theory of Relativity Special Theory of Relativity


    Lorentz transformation
    The question is how (x, y, z; t) and (x
    0
    ; y
    0
    ; z
    0
    ; t
    0
    ) are related?
    If both coordinate systems are inertial (that is, no relative acceleration), then a particle moving
    along a straight line in one system must move along a straight line in the other. Otherwise we
    would introduce spurious forces into the system with a curved trajectory. Hence we require
    linear transformations.
    A reasonable assumption:
    The most general, linear transformation between (x, t) and (x, t) can be written as
    where a ; a ; b ; b are constants that can only depend on v, the velocity between the where a
    1
    ; a
    2
    ; b
    1
    ; b
    2
    are constants that can only depend on v, the velocity between the
    coordinate systems, and on c.
    Step 1: note that the origin of the primed frame (x
    0
    = 0) is a point that moves with speed v as
    seen in the unprimed frame. Therefore,
    and hence
    Step 2:
    The only way this is consistent with is if,
    solving we get,
    Then substituting a
    1
    , we get
    Inverse Transformation
    So Galilean transformations are a limiting case of the Lorentz transformations
    when
    Alternate method
    ( )
    ( ) ( )
    ( )
    , , b u t .
    1
    ,
    A t 0 , t h e o r i g i n s o f t h e t w o s y s t e m s c o i n c i d e .
    a n d
    1
    1
    1
    1 1
    x x v t y y z z t t
    x x v t x v t v t t t x
    v
    t t
    x c t x c t
    v
    c
    x v t c t x x c t
    v c
    v


    = = =
    | |
    = + = + = +
    |

    \
    =
    = =
    (
    +
    ( | |

    = + =
    ( |

    \


    `


    )

    (
    (
    (
    (
    v
    )

    2
    2
    2
    1 1
    H e n c e , 1 1 1 ,
    1
    d e p e n d s o n a n d n o t o n , t h e r e l a t i v e v e l o c i t y o f S ' w i t h
    r e s p e c t t o S . O n e c a n n o t d i s t i n g u i s h S a n d S ' e x c e p t f o r t h e s i g n
    o f w h i c h d o e s n o t e f f e c t
    v c
    c v
    v
    c
    v v
    v




    + = =
    `

    2 2
    2
    2 2 2 2
    t h e d e p e n d e n c e o f .
    1
    H e n c e , .
    1
    , , , .
    1 1
    v c
    x v t t v x c
    x t y y z z
    v c v c

    = =


    = = = =

    Some consequences of Lorentz Transformations
    Simultaneity:
    Consider a railway-man standing at the middle of a freight car of length 2L. He flicks on his
    lantern and a light pulse travels out in all directions with the velocity c. Light arrives at the
    two ends of the car after a time interval L/c. In this system, the freight car's rest system, the
    light arrives simultaneously.
    Now let us observe the same situation from a different frame, one moving to the right with
    velocity v.
    In the rest frame: Take the origin of coordinates at the
    center of the car, and take t = 0 at the instant the lantern
    flashes. The two events are flashes. The two events are
    In this system, the freight car's rest system, the light arrives simultaneously at A and B.
    Same events in the moving frame:
    Message: It makes no sense to say that one event happens at the same time as another, unless
    you state which frame youre talking about. Simultaneity depends on the frame in which the
    observations are made.
    Two events A and B have the following coordinates in the x, y system.
    Event A: Event B: The distance L and time T separating the
    events in the x, y system
    The coordinates in the x', y' system,
    with L > 0 and T > 0.
    The distance L' between the events in primed frame:
    Length Contraction: Imagine that a rod is lying at rest along the x-axis in the S frame. Its
    end points are measured to be at x
    A
    and x
    B
    , therefore its rest or proper length is x
    B
    x
    A
    = l
    0
    .
    Now what is the rods length as measured by the S frame observer, for whomthe rod moves
    with the relative speed v? Suppose the two end points of the rod are at x
    A
    and x
    B
    as measured
    at the same instant of time t fromS.
    Example: A rod of length lies in the x'y' plane of its rest system and makes an angle with
    the x' axis. What is the length and orientation of the rod in the lab system x, y in which the rod
    moves to the right with velocity v?
    The coordinates of the end points A and B in rest frame:
    The coordinates of the end points A and B in Lab frame:
    The angle that the rod makes with the x axis is:

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