INTRODUCTION TO RELATIVITY LECTURE 5
1 Minkowski diagrams
2 of Lorentz transformations
Consequences
3 Geometric interpretation of the interval Minkowski spacetime
i
1 MINKOWSKI DIAGRAMS
We have seen that Lorentz transformations
8 X B et V
x
with P
et dict p x
are the appropriate coordinate transformations that connect inertial
frames in special relativity They also leave invariant the interval
As C SE AF
There is a useful graphic representation of Lorentz
transform tions
due to Minkowski 1908 The idea is to represent
in a plane the axis X et x et
Suppose we consider K inertial frame at rest
k inertial frame moving with velocity T with
respect to k
Frame K is simply represented as
y X
To draw the axis x we use the fact that it is the set of
all points with et o
2
Using the Lorentz transformation we have
ra't pet Ox
x
to X P
at rat't px et op
this is a line with
cat x slope p
at
px
Ige B X
To draw the axis at we use that these points are identified by
X 0
8 x't pct x 8pct
It
x
rat't px's lot ret agfiniteine
cat act
X
Ight
y tga P
An Event is a point in the spacetime To identify its coordinates
it is necessary to project parallel to the axis
cat act
cta
Eta
A
f the bisector satisfies
represents a
Ctx
ray of light
The axis x must always be below
to P x the light line Cct mustalways be
XI
above
2 CONSEQUENCES OF LORENTZ TRANSFORMATIONS
Using the explicit form of Lorentz transformations and Minkowski
diagrams we can deduce a list of elementary but important
conseque ces
a From 8 conclude that
we Vcc there is no
Age
inertial frame travelling exactly at the speed of light
b time is not absolute More specifically events that are
simult neous
in an inertial frame won't in general be simultaneous
in another inertial frame This is clear from the Minkowski
diagram
cta dB
ctncth A.B
EYE
XA XB x
Exercise compute at ta tis using the expression
for the
Lorentz transformation 4
c
Causality let's consider an event A that emits a signal and
causes the event B Do all inertial observers
agree on the causal
chain of events
Let's use Minkowski diagrams to understand what happens
B
Ex Ex
g
pÉB
CASE I CASE 2
In case 2 we canfind a value of vac such that x passes throng
A B in this frame A B are simultaneous and causality is lost
We could even find an inertial frame K in which B happens before
A see figure
X
X
SE IF
B
A
CASE 2
These events are connected by signals for which V
sign
C
On the contrary CASE 1 does not admit this situation the axis x
must always be below the light line
We introduce the idle
5
of
LIGHTC P E E
A CASUALLY CONNECTED
d Time dilation and tonights contraction
Two definitions of fundamental importance are the following
PROPER TIME time measured by a clock at rest
PROPER LENGHT
lenght of a body at rest measured at a unique
time
Suppose a clock in motion measures a time de between two events
proper time The reference attached to the clock is K
What is the time between the same two events measured in the frame
cta act K'in which the clock
Cdt Jok y
moves with velocity
toy
I Obs in K events A
and B happens in the
same place
We clearly have dt de time dilation
6
Even if it seems an exotic phenomenon time dilation has
some
very important applications For instance subatomic partie
produced at the top of the atmosphere have typical lifetimes
i.e average time before decaying much smaller than a second
Still as measured from Earth approximately an inertial frame
these lifetimes are much longer
Time dilation can be easily made quantitative using Lorentz
transformations exercise or using the invariance of the
interval
ds Edt de Cdt der
T I eat a Edt
I eat a
E
at de
gtfo
as expected
We now show that there is also a contraction of lenghts Suppose
we measure the lenght of a body at rest in K The measurement is
done with St o and the proper lenght measured is l Ist l
In the frame k the body is moving with velocity T off What
is the lenght of the body measured
This result is not easily obtained from the interval but can be easily
deduced from the Lorentz transformation
7
Ax 8 SX post with Ax L
At J Cst PAX
The measurement in K must be done with at 0 cat
pl
Using this in DX we obtain
Ax r f pl a
pye Apte c e
p
contraction of
heights
e Composition of velocities
We now analize how velocities transform among inertial frames
From the Lorentz transformation
dx 8 ok p cdt
at 8 Colt Edt
dy dy
dz dz
we obtain
GI H MEEEEE YEE
4 Y MEET TIE
off Vz
YET jÉ
These equations must leave c invariant
a Take F c o o Then
I o o C 90
Eg
b take t o c o Then
I V
FLI c o in such a
way that
IF't MEET Met c
the angle changes in the new frame aberration but the
norm of the velocity continues to be C
3 Geometric interpretation of the interval Minkowski spacetime
We can draw a parallel between what happens in Newtonian mechani
and in special relativity
Newtonian mechanics Special relativity
ds Iftar 15 Edt dt2
left invariant by left invariant by
translations translations
rotations rotations
Lorentz tr boosts
this is a norm can we promote this to
in 1123 a harm
YES the interval can be interpreted as a
type of norm in
a 4 dimensional space called Minkowski space.MY
A point in Mh is an event in space time
x F ft called a 4 Vector
We declare that the norm of X is
X EE F XX
g
contravariant
XM
components Ect x y z
metric
p Tutin
1 2 1 a
gnu diag
We can also define the covariant components
Xu gmt at x y z
We will frequently use the notation
x
Et x E
Notice that unlike what happens in R in 1144
the norm is not
positive definite it is in fact celled a PSEUDO norm
We have
v2 0 Timelike 4 vectors
v2 o Null 4 vectors
co Spacelike 4 vectors
