Little drops of water, Little drops of water, little grains of sand, little grains of sand,

make the mighty make the mighty ocean and the ocean and the

pleasant land. Little pleasant land. Little minutes, small though minutes, small though they may be, make the they may be, make the

mighty ages of mighty ages of eternity.eternity.

SPECIAL RELATIVITYSPECIAL RELATIVITY

REFERENCE FRAMESREFERENCE FRAMES

Inertial reference frameInertial reference frame Galilean relativityGalilean relativity Accelerated reference Accelerated reference

framesframes

THE SPEED OF LIGHTTHE SPEED OF LIGHT Maxwell’s equationsMaxwell’s equations

– magnetic and electric field magnetic and electric field symmetrysymmetry

– accelerating/oscillating accelerating/oscillating chargescharges

Michelson-Morley experimentMichelson-Morley experiment

POSTULATES OF POSTULATES OF SPECIAL RELATIVITYSPECIAL RELATIVITY

The postulate of relativity The postulate of relativity (reference frames)(reference frames)

The speed of lightThe speed of light The problem of simultaneityThe problem of simultaneity

RELATIVE RELATIVE MEASUREMENTSMEASUREMENTS

Proper time Proper time – single clock at restsingle clock at rest

RELATIVE RELATIVE MEASUREMENTSMEASUREMENTS

Time dilationTime dilation– two synchronized clockstwo synchronized clocks

RELATIVE RELATIVE MEASUREMENTSMEASUREMENTS

Time dilationTime dilation– the speed parameterthe speed parameter– the Lorentz factorthe Lorentz factor– muon experimental muon experimental

confirmationconfirmation– the twin paradoxthe twin paradox

RELATIVE RELATIVE MEASUREMENTSMEASUREMENTS

Proper lengthProper length– no time constraintsno time constraints

Length contractionLength contraction– Simultaneous position Simultaneous position

measurementsmeasurements The Lorentz transformationsThe Lorentz transformations

– displacementdisplacement– time periodtime period

Relative Relative MeasurementsMeasurements

VelocityVelocity MassMass

– classical momentumclassical momentum– relativistic momentum and relativistic momentum and

massmass Relativistic kinetic energyRelativistic kinetic energy

Relative Relative MeasurementsMeasurements

Total energy, momentum, Total energy, momentum, and kinetic energy and kinetic energy relationshiprelationship

Space-time diagramsSpace-time diagrams– vertical linesvertical lines– horizontal lineshorizontal lines