Could photons emitted by high velocity electrons have a specific emission angle?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Skeptick
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Photon
Click For Summary
Photons emitted by high-velocity electrons may have specific emission angles due to relativistic effects. When an electron moves at speeds close to the speed of light, the angle of photon emission differs from that of stationary or low-velocity electrons. The discussion suggests that at high velocities, photons could potentially re-enter the electron, limiting emission angles. Additionally, the resistance to emission could create a Doppler effect, impacting lasers operating at high velocities. The concept of Cherenkov radiation is mentioned as a phenomenon that occurs when particles exceed the speed of light in a medium, but this does not apply in free space.
Skeptick
Messages
18
Reaction score
0
Assumptions
A photon exist in three dimensions so it has length, width and height.

In fig 2 I show and electron that is stationary so it is in a moving frame of reference with a very small velocity say 10 m/sec. This fig is snapshots taken of the electron a times 1,2,3,4 etc as a photon is emitted by the electron and as can be seen the photon is emitted perpendicular to the average body of the electron.

In fig 1 I show the same set of snapshots except now the electron is in a moving frame of reference traveling at say 0.99 C. A t1 the photon has just started to be emitted from the electron, at t2 it is a little further out, as the photon has a finite length and so forth until it is completely emmitted.

I predict that at high velocities photons will emit at a different angle as opposed to photon emitted by a stationary or low velocity electron.

Is I possible at high velocity the photon may actually double back on itself and re-enter the electron? In which case electrons at high velocity will only be able to emit photons at specific angles ?

If there is resistance to the emmission then this would somehow create a doppler effect to wouldn't it?
 

Attachments

  • fig 1.JPG
    fig 1.JPG
    7.1 KB · Views: 383
  • fig 2.JPG
    fig 2.JPG
    6.1 KB · Views: 406
Physics news on Phys.org
if this is right what effects would this have on a laser at very high velocity ?
 
If the emmission angle of the laser was at and angle to the direction of travle of the MFR
 
Skeptick said:
A photon exist in three dimensions so it has length, width and height.
A photon is a quantum of an EM wave, so since the wave propagates in all three spatial dimensions I think it is OK to say a photon exists in all three spatial dimensions in some sense. However, I doubt that you can assign unique values for the length, width, and height of a photon.

Skeptick said:
I predict that at high velocities photons will emit at a different angle as opposed to photon emitted by a stationary or low velocity electron.
If you boost the EM field equations you will indeed see that the angle of propagation changes. I think this idea is simplified in the wave-4-vector notation.

Skeptick said:
Is I possible at high velocity the photon may actually double back on itself and re-enter the electron? In which case electrons at high velocity will only be able to emit photons at specific angles ?
Only if the velocity of the particle is greater than the speed of light in the medium. When this happens you get Cherenkov radiation which is the EM equivalent of a bow wake or sonic boom. Of course, this is not possible in free space.
 
MOVING CLOCKS In this section, we show that clocks moving at high speeds run slowly. We construct a clock, called a light clock, using a stick of proper lenght ##L_0##, and two mirrors. The two mirrors face each other, and a pulse of light bounces back and forth betweem them. Each time the light pulse strikes one of the mirrors, say the lower mirror, the clock is said to tick. Between successive ticks the light pulse travels a distance ##2L_0## in the proper reference of frame of the clock...

Similar threads

  • · Replies 111 ·
4
Replies
111
Views
10K
  • · Replies 25 ·
Replies
25
Views
692
  • · Replies 38 ·
2
Replies
38
Views
6K
  • · Replies 13 ·
Replies
13
Views
3K
Replies
1
Views
2K
  • · Replies 4 ·
Replies
4
Views
2K
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
2K
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
1K
  • · Replies 23 ·
Replies
23
Views
4K
  • · Replies 5 ·
Replies
5
Views
2K