Gravity: A Dual Role as a Lens and a Prism for Light?

redtree
Messages
335
Reaction score
15
Does gravity function as a lens, a prism or both?
 
Physics news on Phys.org
redtree said:
Does gravity function as a lens, a prism or both?
Sort of like a lens since the gravitational effect of matter converges timelike and null curves.

You might want to lookup the Raychaudhuri equation, it shows how nearby curves relate to each other in terms of expansion. You also might want to look up vorticity and shear in this context.
 
Thats a very interesting question.
It can definitely act as a lens (see gravitational lensing).
And i haven't heard about it before explicitly, but thinking about it - you would have a diffraction gradient effect because higher energy light would be less deflected than lower energy light. Can anyone back this up? (or counter it?)
 
Thread 'Can this experiment break Lorentz symmetry?'

Thread 'Can this experiment break Lorentz symmetry?'

1. The Big Idea: According to Einstein’s relativity, all motion is relative. You can’t tell if you’re moving at a constant velocity without looking outside. But what if there is a universal “rest frame” (like the old idea of the “ether”)? This experiment tries to find out by looking for tiny, directional differences in how objects move inside a sealed box. 2. How It Works: The Two-Stage Process Imagine a perfectly isolated spacecraft (our lab) moving through space at some unknown speed V...
View full post »

Thread '1-Way Speed of Light'

Does the speed of light change in a gravitational field depending on whether the direction of travel is parallel to the field, or perpendicular to the field? And is it the same in both directions at each orientation? This question could be answered experimentally to some degree of accuracy. Experiment design: Place two identical clocks A and B on the circumference of a wheel at opposite ends of the diameter of length L. The wheel is positioned upright, i.e., perpendicular to the ground...
View full post »

Thread 'How can a black hole absorb matter?'

According to the General Theory of Relativity, time does not pass on a black hole, which means that processes they don't work either. As the object becomes heavier, the speed of matter falling on it for an observer on Earth will first increase, and then slow down, due to the effect of time dilation. And then it will stop altogether. As a result, we will not get a black hole, since the critical mass will not be reached. Although the object will continue to attract matter, it will not be a...
View full post »

Similar threads

I Does gravity bend gravitational waves?
Replies
14
Views
1K
I Bending of Light Along the Sun: Explaining Half w/ Equivalence Principle
Replies
15
Views
2K
Is this an oversimplification? (treating a lens as a set of prisms)
Replies
10
Views
198
I Bending of light - Newton vs. Einstein
Replies
22
Views
3K
B Does Spacetime Have Physical Existence?
2
Replies
58
Views
3K
I Bending of light - caused by gravity or relativity?
Replies
10
Views
2K
I The light from Mercury, the Sun's corona and gravity
Replies
3
Views
1K
I The bending of starlight is twice the Newtonian prediction
2
Replies
90
Views
7K
B Spacetime curvature due to acceleration causing gravity?
Replies
41
Views
5K
B Proposed Experiment - Speed of Light
Replies
30
Views
3K

Hot Threads

Recent Insights

Back
Top