The Unruh effect and light beams

In summary: MooijIn summary, according to the Unruh effect, an accelerating observer will find himself surrounded by a "warm bath" of particles (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unruh_effect ). Now consider two observers, A and B, one accelerating (B) and the other (A) in constant motion (or rest). Let the accelerated observer now shine a beam of light away from him. This beam of light can now be scattered by the particles surrounding him (which exist only to him and not to A). This means that the observer A will see some strange deviations of the light leaving the accelerated observer (even when the effect would be very small). This would look even more strange, considering the
  • #1
notknowing
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According to the Unruh effect, an accelerating observer will find himself surrounded by a "warm bath" of particles (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unruh_effect ). Now consider two observers,A and B, one accelerating (B) and the other (A) in constant motion (or rest). Let the accelerated observer now shine a beam of light away from him. This beam of light can now be scattered by the particles surrounding him (which exist only to him and not to A). This means that the observer A will see some strange deviations of the light leaving the accelerated observer (even when the effect would be very small). This would look even more strange, considering the fact that A sees no particles at all (from which the light could scatter). To observer A, it would appear that the light is scattered by the vacuum itself. I was wondering whether such effects could also have implications for the observation of other stars, galaxies, the cosmic background, etc. Does anyone know of such considerations being taking into account in cosmology ?
 
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  • #2
Suggest reposting this question in sci.physics.research

Hi again, notknowing, you might try reposting this question in sci.physics.research with a subject line such as "A question for Ted Jacobson" (see http://www.glue.umd.edu/~jacobson/) [Broken]. He sometimes posts in that group and has discussed the Unruh effect in the past. Steve Carlip is another poster who could probably help you out better than I can.

You might also be interested in two recent arXiv eprints, http://www.arxiv.org/abs/gr-qc/0611062 and http://www.arxiv.org/abs/gr-qc/0611067, but as always remember that physics is hard, possibly even too hard for humans :-/

Chris Hillman
 
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  • #3
Chris Hillman said:
Hi again, notknowing, you might try reposting this question in sci.physics.research with a subject line such as "A question for Ted Jacobson" (see http://www.glue.umd.edu/~jacobson/) [Broken]. He sometimes posts in that group and has discussed the Unruh effect in the past. Steve Carlip is another poster who could probably help you out better than I can.

You might also be interested in two recent arXiv eprints, http://www.arxiv.org/abs/gr-qc/0611062 and http://www.arxiv.org/abs/gr-qc/0611067, but as always remember that physics is hard, possibly even too hard for humans :-/

Chris Hillman

Hi Chris,
Nice to see a response to my question. I'll look further into this.
PS : The (first) link to Jacobson did not work.
I'm glad to hear that, even to an expert, physics is hard !

Rudi
 
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1. What is the Unruh effect?

The Unruh effect is a phenomenon in theoretical physics that predicts that an accelerating observer will perceive a vacuum as containing particles, due to the equivalence principle between acceleration and gravity.

2. How does the Unruh effect relate to light beams?

The Unruh effect can manifest in the behavior of light beams when they are accelerated or undergo changes in their trajectory. This can lead to the perception of virtual particles in the vacuum, which can affect the properties of the light beam.

3. Can the Unruh effect be observed experimentally?

Currently, there is no direct experimental evidence for the Unruh effect. However, there have been theoretical proposals and experiments involving analog systems, such as sound waves in a fluid, that aim to mimic the Unruh effect and its effects on light beams.

4. How does the Unruh effect impact our understanding of fundamental physics?

The Unruh effect is a consequence of the fundamental principles of quantum field theory and general relativity. It highlights the connection between acceleration and gravity and provides insight into the nature of virtual particles and the vacuum. It also has implications for the study of black holes and the nature of time and space.

5. Are there any practical applications of the Unruh effect?

At this time, there are no known practical applications of the Unruh effect. However, further research and understanding of this phenomenon could potentially lead to new insights and technologies, such as improved understanding of quantum systems and potential advancements in gravitational wave detection.

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