What are the key principles of special relativity?

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around the principles of special relativity, specifically focusing on the behavior of light in different media, such as water and air. Participants are exploring the implications of light's speed in various contexts.

Discussion Character

  • Conceptual clarification, Assumption checking

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • Some participants question the nature of light's speed when transitioning between media, particularly whether it returns to its original speed after exiting water. Others discuss the concept of the refractive index and its relation to light propagation.

Discussion Status

The conversation includes attempts to clarify the behavior of light in different media, with some participants providing insights into the physics behind light's speed and the concept of refractive index. However, there is no explicit consensus on the broader implications of these principles within the context of special relativity.

Contextual Notes

Participants are encouraged to adhere to a specific question format, indicating potential constraints in how discussions are framed. There is also a suggestion that the original question may lack clarity.

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Please post the question in the required format. It's not even clear what the question is.
 
The speed of light is slowed in water. Does it return to its former speed when emerging from the water?
 
Fysiks Phan said:
The speed of light is slowed in water. Does it return to its former speed when emerging from the water?
The short answer is yes, the propagation speed of light in air is greater than in water both before and after it goes through the water. But the actual speed of a photon, is always c.

The reason light appears to slow down in air and travel even slower in water is that the photons do not take a straight uninterrupted path through a medium. Each photon is absorbed and re-emitted many times along the way, so that the average propagation speed of light in a medium is less than c.

The ratio between c and the speed that light propagates through a medium is its refractive index, which is about 1.0003 for air and about 1.333 for water for visible light, hence the slower propagation speed of light in water than in air.
 

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