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kelly0303
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Hello! If I have an atom traveling with a given velocity and I ionize it in flight, will the electron remain at the place of ionization, or it will travel at the same speed along with the resulted ion? Thank you!
Depends on how you peform this miraculous actand I ionize it in flight
will the electron remain at the place of ionization, or it will travel at the same speed along with the resulted ion?
Hello! If I have an atom traveling with a given velocity and I ionize it in flight, will the electron remain at the place of ionization, or it will travel at the same speed along with the resulted ion? Thank you!
@kelly0303 -- Are you doing this on Earth? In a vacuum or in the atmosphere? If in a vacuum, say the two stay close together at first, what effect would the Earth's magnetic field have on those oppositely charged particles?You do realize those are not your only two choices?
An electron being at rest depends on your reference frame. What you ask is, therefore, physically meaningless.Hello! If I have an atom traveling with a given velocity and I ionize it in flight, will the electron remain at the place of ionization, or it will travel at the same speed along with the resulted ion? Thank you!
"Rest" is a concept dependant on frame of reference. There is no such thing as an object with energy at rest, only rest relative to other objects.An electron being at rest depends on your reference frame. What you ask is, therefore, physically meaningless.
I do not understand your comment. The question is quite carefully framed and the references to motion obviously refer to the lab frame. It seems unnecessarilly didactic to me.An electron being at rest depends on your reference frame. What you ask is, therefore, physically meaningless.
If the original atom were at rest in the lab frame, then it would make some sense. But, you can't have a process that depends on the lab frame. The original velocity is arbitrary.I do not understand your comment. The question is quite carefully framed and the references to motion obviously refer to the lab frame. It seems unnecessarilly didactic to me.
Doe the electron "remains at the place of ionization" have an ambiguity I am not seeing?
If the atom has a velocity of vA in one frame and the electron has velocity zero, then wouldn't the velocity of the electron also be vA if the atom were at rest (v = 0)? So the same would be true of lab B, and velocity vB - it would have a velocity of 0 while the electron would have the velocity vB (relative to the atom), then the electron's velocity would be the difference of vA and vB, correct? Or am I doing the math wrong? Or is it not possible to use the atom as the frame of reference instead of the electron in a workable manner?If the original atom were at rest in the lab frame, then it would make some sense. But, you can't have a process that depends on the lab frame. The original velocity is arbitrary.
In lab A the atom has velocity ##v_A## and the electron has velocity ##0##.
In lab B the atom has velocity ##v_B## and the electron has velocity ##0##.
The two experiments are identical, only the lab frame varies and yet the electron must be at rest in both frames?
That makes no physical sense to me