- #1
indigojoker
- 246
- 0
i have just a question that came to my mind. do photons have to accelerate to the speed of light every time a light bulb is turned on?
Do photons have to accelerate to the speed of light
- Thread starter indigojoker
- Start date
In summary, the conversation discusses the question of whether photons have to accelerate to the speed of light every time a light bulb is turned on. The participants also touch upon the concepts of rest mass, wave nature, and the instantaneous creation of photons. The conclusion is that photons are always created at the speed of light and there is no need for them to accelerate to reach that speed.
- #2
saket
- 168
- 0
good question! 
well.. answer these, and i hope your doubt will be cleared.
1. when you say, "do photons have to accelerate to the speed of light", what are you assuming the initial speed of the photon?
2. do u know that rest mass of a photon is zero?
3. try to calculate, if you know relevant formula, mass of a photon at any speed other than the speed of light.. and you will surely get the answer.
indigojoker said:
well.. answer these, and i hope your doubt will be cleared.
1. when you say, "do photons have to accelerate to the speed of light", what are you assuming the initial speed of the photon?
2. do u know that rest mass of a photon is zero?
3. try to calculate, if you know relevant formula, mass of a photon at any speed other than the speed of light.. and you will surely get the answer.
- #3
indigojoker
- 246
- 0
1. i don't know the initial speed of the photon, that is part of my question
2. yes
3. photons always has to travel a the speed of light due to special reletivity
basically, how do photons accelerate instantaneously to the speed of light? as in, you are in a dark room... thus no photos (in the visible spectrum). Then you turn on the light... electricity excites the filaments in a bulb and photons are produces, are you saying they are produced at the speed of light?
2. yes
3. photons always has to travel a the speed of light due to special reletivity
basically, how do photons accelerate instantaneously to the speed of light? as in, you are in a dark room... thus no photos (in the visible spectrum). Then you turn on the light... electricity excites the filaments in a bulb and photons are produces, are you saying they are produced at the speed of light?
- #4
saket
- 168
- 0
well... i am a student only, and i haven't done a full-fledged course on relativity and/or quantum physics. i think, if u want to discuss it thoroughly, u shud check in higher levels.. this introductory physics won't help u.
still.. what i think is.. consider here the wave nature of the photon.. it will move with the same speed as soon as it is created! (like sound waves emanating from any source: they move with a constant wave speed, they do not accelerate to that speed.)
and, look at the third part of ur answer.. photons always have to travel at the speed of light! so where comes the question of, "accelerating".
still.. what i think is.. consider here the wave nature of the photon.. it will move with the same speed as soon as it is created! (like sound waves emanating from any source: they move with a constant wave speed, they do not accelerate to that speed.)
and, look at the third part of ur answer.. photons always have to travel at the speed of light! so where comes the question of, "accelerating".
- #5
indigojoker
- 246
- 0
well, how did they originally get to the speed of light if they did not accelerate to it? or maybe it's instantaneous acceleration... maybe i shouldn't post this in the HW section since this was just a thought...
- #6
saket
- 168
- 0
think: what was being accelerated? (if u even think that there was an instantaneous acceleration!)
There can be no photon below the speed of light! It's created with the speed of light only.
There can be no photon below the speed of light! It's created with the speed of light only.
1. Do photons have mass?
No, photons do not have mass. They are considered to be massless particles because they do not have a rest mass. This allows them to travel at the speed of light without needing to accelerate.
2. How do photons travel at the speed of light?
According to the theory of relativity, photons do not accelerate to reach the speed of light. They are always traveling at the speed of light, and their energy and momentum increase as their frequency and wavelength decrease.
3. Can photons be slowed down?
No, photons cannot be slowed down. They always travel at the speed of light in a vacuum. However, they can be absorbed and re-emitted, which may give the appearance of slowing down.
4. Are photons affected by gravity?
Yes, photons are affected by gravity. According to Einstein's theory of general relativity, gravity bends the fabric of space-time, which affects the path of photons. This is known as gravitational lensing.
5. Can photons travel through any medium?
Photons can travel through a vacuum at the speed of light. However, in other mediums such as air, water, or glass, photons may interact with the particles in the medium, causing them to slow down. This is why light appears to bend when passing through different mediums.
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