Show these two equations are equivalent (involves sines and cosines)

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around demonstrating the equivalence of two equations involving trigonometric functions, specifically sine and cosine, within the context of the relativistic reflection law. The first equation relates the sine of two angles to a term involving the velocity of a mirror and the speed of light, while the second equation expresses cosine in terms of these variables and angles.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Assumption checking, Problem interpretation

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • The original poster attempts to manipulate the first equation using trigonometric identities and algebraic transformations to derive the second equation. Some participants question whether the equivalence holds without additional relationships between the variables involved. Others explore the implications of the relationships depicted in a diagram associated with the problem.

Discussion Status

The discussion is ongoing, with participants exploring various approaches to verify the equivalence of the equations. Some have suggested testing specific values for the angles to investigate the relationship further, while others have raised concerns about the assumptions underlying the problem.

Contextual Notes

Participants note that the only relationships between the variables v, c, and the angles are those illustrated in a diagram, indicating potential degrees of freedom in the variables that may affect the equivalence of the equations.

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Homework Statement


Show that
sin(\alpha)-sin(\beta)=-\frac{v}{c}sin(\alpha+\beta)

is equivalent to

cos(\beta)=\frac{-2\frac{v}{c}+(1+\frac{v^2}{c^2})cos(\alpha)}{1-2\frac{v}{c}cos(\alpha)+\frac{v^2}{c^2}}

Homework Equations


This is the last step in the derivation of the relativistic reflection law. The first equation was derived using the principle of least time and the second is from Einstein's paper on special relativity.
\alpha = angle of incidence
\beta = angle of reflection
v = velocity of mirror away from light
c = speed of light

link to diagram

The Attempt at a Solution


I used the identity sin(\alpha+\beta = sin(\alpha)cos(\beta)+cos(\alpha)sin(\beta) on the RHS, squared both sides, changed by the squared sines into cosines squared - some more algebra and this is the best I've got at the moment:

2c^2(1-sin(\alpha)sin(\beta))-(c^2-v^2)(cos^2(\alpha)+cos^2(\beta))=-2v^2cos^2(\alpha)cos^2(\beta)+2sin(\alpha)cos(\beta)sin(\beta)cos( \alpha)

How do I get rid of the sines?
 
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Is this supposed to be true without any further relationship between v/c and the two angles? Doesn't seem to be to me.
I tried writing v/c as tan(phi). The second eqn becomes
##\sin(2\phi) = \frac{\cos(\alpha)-\cos(\beta)}{1-\cos(\alpha)\cos(\beta)}##
Plugging in 0.5 and 1 for the two angles did not give the same phi as given by the first eqn.
 
The only relations between v, c and the angles are the ones on the diagram

cos( \alpha) = \frac{d_0 + vt_a}{ct_a} = \frac{d_0+vt_a}{ \sqrt{(d_0+vt_a)^2+x^2)}}
cos( \beta) = \frac{d_0 + vt_a}{ct_b} = \frac{d_0+vt_a}{\sqrt{(d_0+vt_a)^2+(l-x)^2)}}
 
chipotleaway said:
The only relations between v, c and the angles are the ones on the diagram

cos( \alpha) = \frac{d_0 + vt_a}{ct_a} = \frac{d_0+vt_a}{ \sqrt{(d_0+vt_a)^2+x^2)}}
cos( \beta) = \frac{d_0 + vt_a}{ct_b} = \frac{d_0+vt_a}{\sqrt{(d_0+vt_a)^2+(l-x)^2)}}

From that, it would appear that there are 2 degrees of freedom for the variables, so effectively no constraints beyond the eqn in the OP. I would try plugging in some numbers for the variables and check that the equations really are equivalent.
 

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