Special relativity and velocity of a particle

[matpo39]

hi, I am having a little trouble figuring this problem out.

Two particles in a high-energy accelerator experiment are approaching each other head-on. Each has a speed which is f times the speed of light, as measured in the laboratory. What is the magnitude of the velocity of one particle relative to the other? Give your answer as a fraction of the speed of light.

I believe that you will have to use the lorentz velocity transformation equation which is v_1= v_2+u/(1+u*v_2/c^2) . but the answer doesn't involve u so I am not sure where to go with this problem.

thanks

 

[Andrew Mason]

hi, I am having a little trouble figuring this problem out.

Two particles in a high-energy accelerator experiment are approaching each other head-on. Each has a speed which is f times the speed of light, as measured in the laboratory. What is the magnitude of the velocity of one particle relative to the other? Give your answer as a fraction of the speed of light.

I believe that you will have to use the lorentz velocity transformation equation which is v_1= v_2+u/(1+u*v_2/c^2) . but the answer doesn't involve u so I am not sure where to go with this problem.

The velocity of the one particle relative to the other is:

u = \frac{v_1 - v_2}{1 - v_1v_2/c^2}

Where v_2 = - v_1 = fc, you get:

u = 2fc/ (1 + f^2)

AM

 

[wais]

for any help

Based on the information given, it seems that both particles have a speed of f times the speed of light, so we can assume that u (the relative velocity between the two particles) is also f times the speed of light. Using the Lorentz velocity transformation equation, we can find the magnitude of the velocity of one particle relative to the other:

v_1 = v_2 + u/(1+u*v_2/c^2)

Since both particles have the same speed, v_2 is also f times the speed of light. Plugging in the values, we get:

v_1 = f*c + f*c/(1+f^2*c^2/c^2)

Simplifying and solving for v_1, we get:

v_1 = f^2*c/(1+f^2)

Therefore, the magnitude of the velocity of one particle relative to the other is f^2 times the speed of light, which is still greater than the speed of light. This is a result of special relativity, which states that the speed of light is the maximum speed at which any object can travel. So even though the particles have a speed greater than the speed of light, their relative velocity is still limited by the speed of light. I hope this helps clarify the problem for you.