- #1
dsoodak
- 24
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In order for the light to take the same amount of time for both paths in the interferometer, simple geometry implies that the ratio between length and width will have to decrease. A straightforward derivation gives L/W=Sqrt(1-v^2/c^2) where the velocity v is in the direction of the length.
However, I can't figure out a way to show that the width remains constant using only this experimental result. Precise measurements of time dilation (example: every time a gps satellite is used) demonstrates that width is unchanging (as would 2 high speed spacecraft flying past each other and verifying that their wing tips touch exactly), but I thought that the MM result by itself was supposed to pretty much imply all of SR.
Dustin Soodak
However, I can't figure out a way to show that the width remains constant using only this experimental result. Precise measurements of time dilation (example: every time a gps satellite is used) demonstrates that width is unchanging (as would 2 high speed spacecraft flying past each other and verifying that their wing tips touch exactly), but I thought that the MM result by itself was supposed to pretty much imply all of SR.
Dustin Soodak