How do I find the velocity that an electron must acquire

In summary: Hi! What I mean is that when I saw your hints, I quickly solve the problem - knowing that my first idea is correct... but I did not confront your answer... I just saw that I got the correct solution.. same as yours.But I thank you for helping me.
  • #1
irony of truth
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How do I find the velocity that an electron must acquire, if its mass is to be equal to the rest mass of a proton?

I know that the masses of electron and proton are 9.11 X 10^-31 kg and 1.67 X 10^-27 kg, respectively.

Am I going to use the formula m = m_0 / (1 - v^2/c^2)^(1/2) ?

How do I continue from here?
 
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  • #2
irony of truth said:
How do I find the velocity that an electron must acquire, if its mass is to be equal to the rest mass of a proton?

I know that the masses of electron and proton are 9.11 X 10^-31 kg and 1.67 X 10^-27 kg, respectively.

Am I going to use the formula m = m_0 / (1 - v^2/c^2)^(1/2) ?

How do I continue from here?

Let's approximate this number,okay??
[tex]\frac{9.11\cdot 10^{-31}}{1.67\cdot 10^{-27}}\sim \frac{1}{1836} [/tex]

I'll give u the final answer and let u work out your way through to it.
[tex] v=\frac{\sqrt{1836^{2}-1}}{1836} c [/tex]

Good luck!
 
  • #3
Hmm, I just got your reply.. seems like it is almost the same as the speed of light... amazing!
 
  • #4
irony of truth said:
Hmm, I just got your reply.. seems like it is almost the same as the speed of light... amazing!

Judging it in the context of SR,it's not surprising,let alone amazing.So,by "I just got your reply" does it mean you solved the problem and confronted the result with mine ??Hopefully so,it would mean that the PF community did its job and got u happy and satisfied... :approve: :approve:
 
  • #5
So,by "I just got your reply" does it mean you solved the problem and confronted the result with mine ??

Hi! What I mean is that when I saw your hints, I quickly solve the problem - knowing that my first idea is correct... but I did not confront your answer... I just saw that I got the correct solution.. same as yours.

But I thank you for helping me.
 

1. What is the formula for calculating the velocity of an electron?

The formula for calculating the velocity of an electron is v = √(2KE/m), where v is the velocity in meters per second, KE is the kinetic energy in joules, and m is the mass of the electron in kilograms.

2. How do I determine the kinetic energy of an electron?

The kinetic energy of an electron can be determined using the formula KE = 1/2 mv^2, where m is the mass of the electron and v is the velocity in meters per second.

3. What is the mass of an electron?

The mass of an electron is approximately 9.109 x 10^-31 kilograms.

4. How does the charge of an electron affect its velocity?

The charge of an electron does not directly affect its velocity. However, the electric force exerted on an electron by an electric field can affect its velocity.

5. Can the velocity of an electron be greater than the speed of light?

No, according to Einstein's theory of relativity, the speed of light is the maximum speed at which anything in the universe can travel. Therefore, the velocity of an electron cannot exceed the speed of light.

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