Light Speed Photon: Everywhere at Once?

Click For Summary
SUMMARY

A photon traveling at light speed does not experience time and can only be considered "everywhere at once" along its projected path in a vacuum, assuming no external influences. Gravity affects both time and space, but it does not alter the intrinsic path of a photon, which is defined by the curvature of space-time rather than any force acting upon it. The concept of a photon's trajectory is inherently probabilistic, as defined by quantum mechanics, and is not well-defined in classical terms. In General Relativity (GR), light follows straight lines in space-time, with perceived curvature being a result of the observer's non-inertial reference frame.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of General Relativity (GR) principles
  • Familiarity with quantum mechanics and photon behavior
  • Knowledge of time dilation and its implications
  • Basic grasp of space-time curvature concepts
NEXT STEPS
  • Research General Relativity and its implications on light paths
  • Study quantum mechanics, focusing on photon probability distributions
  • Explore time dilation effects in various gravitational fields
  • Examine the relationship between gravity and space-time curvature
USEFUL FOR

Physicists, students of theoretical physics, and anyone interested in the intersection of quantum mechanics and relativity, particularly regarding the behavior of light and gravity.

Tom Phillippe
Messages
2
Reaction score
0
A photon traveling from its source at light speed is said to not experience time and therefore be everywhere at once. Well not exactly, it can only be everywhere at once along its projected path assuming the photon's path in a vacuum is not altered by anything. Time itself cannot alter the path. Gravity however, affects both time and space and therefore could alter the path of a photon that exists everywhere at once along a path unaffected by time. Is this correct?
 
Physics news on Phys.org
A photon traveling from its source at light speed is said to not experience time and therefore be everywhere at once.
By whom is this said?
Can you provide a link to an authoritive source?

The reason I ask is because what relativity and QFT tells us is that there is no meaningful way to talk about the reference frame of a photon.
The sentence suggests a misunderstanding of time dilation too ... so it is hard to know what the author is trying to say without access to the reference.

Well not exactly, it can only be everywhere at once along its projected path assuming the photon's path in a vacuum is not altered by anything.
Similarly - the trajectory of a photon is not a well defined concept.
The "photon" belongs to quantum models where position and momentum are uncertain. Photons are understood in terms of probabilities.
In Relativity, we do not use photons.

Time itself cannot alter the path.
Time is a dimension, not a force.
But, by definition, nothing can alter the path of anything. The path that something takes is the path that it takes.

Gravity however, affects both time and space and therefore could alter the path of a photon that exists everywhere at once along a path unaffected by time. Is this correct?
As you are probably figuring out, the short answer is "no". But only because it sounds too confused to give any other answer.

Curvature of space-time is gravity - not an effect of gravity.

In GR, all light rays are straight lines in space-time. The curved paths for light in gravity is an artifact of the observer's reference frame - which is no longer inertial..
 

Similar threads

  • · Replies 42 ·
2
Replies
42
Views
4K
  • · Replies 7 ·
Replies
7
Views
3K
  • · Replies 90 ·
4
Replies
90
Views
4K
  • · Replies 6 ·
Replies
6
Views
2K
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
1K
  • · Replies 23 ·
Replies
23
Views
3K
  • · Replies 18 ·
Replies
18
Views
3K
  • · Replies 6 ·
Replies
6
Views
2K
  • · Replies 64 ·
3
Replies
64
Views
12K
Replies
82
Views
5K