Electron annihilation - what happens to gravity

Click For Summary

Discussion Overview

The discussion centers around the implications of electron-positron annihilation on gravitational interactions, particularly focusing on whether the resulting photons interact with gravity and the nature of gravitational waves produced during the process. The scope includes theoretical considerations and conceptual clarifications regarding gravity and energy in particle physics.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants propose that photons resulting from electron-positron annihilation do not react with gravity, questioning the conservation of this property.
  • Others argue that gravitation acts on energy, indicating that photons, despite having zero mass, are still affected by gravity.
  • A participant presents a hypothetical scenario involving a particle-antiparticle pair and questions whether gravitational waves produced during annihilation contain binding energy or rest mass fractions.
  • There is a query about the presence of a quadrupole moment in the context of the annihilation process.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express disagreement regarding the interaction of photons with gravity, with some asserting that photons are not affected while others maintain that they are. The discussion remains unresolved with multiple competing views on the nature of gravitational effects during annihilation.

Contextual Notes

There are limitations in the assumptions made about the interaction of photons with gravity and the nature of gravitational waves, which are not fully explored or resolved in the discussion.

Pjpic
Messages
235
Reaction score
1
It is my understanding (?) that, when an electron is annihilated, the resulting photons do not react with gravity. Why isn't that quality conserved?
 
Physics news on Phys.org
Your understanding is incorrect. Where did you read that?
 
Gravitation acts on energy. An electron+positron-annihilation produces photons, which have energy, too.
 
Vanadium 50 said:
Your understanding is incorrect. Where did you read that?

I must be misinterpretating the thing about photons not having mass - that electrons interact with gravitons but photons do not.
 
As mfb said, "gravitation acts on energy". The fact that photons have 0 mass does NOT mean they are not affected by gravity.
 
The title of the thread stands as an interesting question.

A particle-antiparticle pair is hald apart by a magic thread. The system has an almost exactly spherical gravitational field.

At the moment of anhiliation, a pair of photons fly away is opposite directions to preserve momentum, spin, charge and everything else.

A gravity wave should expand spherically outward from the moment of anhilation to terminate the gravitation from the defunct particles.

Does this wave contain the binding energy of the particle pair or is it a fraction of their rest masses? Or does it coincide with and somehow represent the outgoing electromagnetic front which is also spherical (even though the two photons will eventually be detected in some colinear trajectory.)

I think I know the answer but I'd like an expert opinion.
 
Antiphon said:
The title of the thread stands as an interesting question.

A particle-antiparticle pair is hald apart by a magic thread. The system has an almost exactly spherical gravitational field.

At the moment of anhiliation, a pair of photons fly away is opposite directions to preserve momentum, spin, charge and everything else.

A gravity wave should expand spherically outward from the moment of anhilation to terminate the gravitation from the defunct particles.

Does this wave contain the binding energy of the particle pair or is it a fraction of their rest masses? Or does it coincide with and somehow represent the outgoing electromagnetic front which is also spherical (even though the two photons will eventually be detected in some colinear trajectory.)

I think I know the answer but I'd like an expert opinion.

Is there a quadrupole moment in this case?
 

Similar threads

High School Could energy be destroyed during particle annihilation?
  • · Replies 16 ·
Replies
16
Views
1K
High School 1-photon emission possible from electron-positron annihilation?
  • · Replies 23 ·
Replies
23
Views
4K
Graduate Conservation of angular momentum in positron-electron annihilation
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
3K
Undergrad High Energy Physics: Positron-Electron Annihilation
  • · Replies 23 ·
Replies
23
Views
4K
Graduate Confusion about creation/annihilation operators with interaction
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
1K
Graduate QFT Superposition of Final States
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
1K
High School Entanglement and pair-production and annihilation
  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
3K
Undergrad Creation/annihilation operators question
  • · Replies 5 ·
Replies
5
Views
3K
Undergrad Constructive Interference of Light
  • · Replies 15 ·
Replies
15
Views
2K
High School Regarding electron-positron annihilation
  • · Replies 5 ·
Replies
5
Views
2K