UNIT 5: SPECIAL THEORY OF RELATIVITY
1. Frames of Reference (Inertial & Non-Inertial)
What is a Frame of Reference?
A frame of reference is a coordinate system + a clock used to
measure the position, velocity, acceleration, time, and other
physical quantities of an event or body.
You can imagine it as the “point of view” from which an observer
measures motion.
A. Inertial Frames of Reference
An inertial frame is:
A frame that moves with constant velocity (or is at rest).
No acceleration & no rotation.
Newton's laws of motion are valid without modification.
Examples:
A passenger sitting inside a train that moves at constant speed.
A person standing on the ground.
A spacecraft drifting in space with no thrust.
Key Features
No pseudo force acts.
All physical laws including Newton’s, Maxwell’s,
thermodynamics, work exactly as usual.
Time flows uniformly.
Why Inertial Frames Are Important?
Einstein's Special Relativity applies only to inertial frames.
B. Non-Inertial Frames of Reference
A non-inertial frame is:
Accelerating or rotating.
Newton’s laws fail unless we add pseudo (fictitious) forces.
Examples:
A car accelerating forward → passengers feel pushed backward
(pseudo force).
A rotating merry-go-round → centrifugal force appears.
A lift going upward → people feel heavier.
Key Features:
Motion observed appears distorted.
Additional forces must be artificially introduced to explain
motion.
2. Galilean Transformations (Classical
Transformations)
Galilean transformations show how position and time change
between two inertial frames at low speeds.
Situation
Two frames:
Frame S (stationary)
Frame S′ (moving at velocity v along the x-axis)
Transformation Equations:
' ' ' '
x =x−vt y = y z =zt =t
Key Points:
1. Time is absolute → same for all observers.
2. Velocities simply add:
'
u=u + v
3. Works only when v ≪ c.
Why Galilean Transformations Fail?
They cannot explain why:
Speed of light is constant.
Maxwell's equations do not change in different frames.
Michelson–Morley experiment gave a null result.
Therefore, Einstein replaced them with Lorentz Transformations.
3. Michelson–Morley Experiment
(Foundation stone of Relativity)
This experiment was conducted to detect “aether”, a hypothetical
medium thought to carry light waves.
Aether Concept
Before Einstein, scientists believed:
Light must travel through a medium (like sound through air).
Earth moves through this medium → so speed of light should
change depending on Earth’s motion.
Experimental Setup
It used:
Interferometer (splits light into two beams at 90°)
One beam travels parallel to Earth’s motion
Another travels perpendicular
Then the beams rejoin → if speeds differ → interference pattern
shifts.
Expected Result
Shift in fringes showing different speeds → proving aether exists.
Actual Result (Null Result)
No shift observed.
Light speed was EXACTLY the same in all directions.
Earth’s motion had no effect.
Conclusion
Aether does NOT exist.
Light speed remains constant regardless of the motion of
source or observer.
Classical physics assumptions fail → new theory needed.
This led Einstein to develop Special Theory of Relativity.
4. Postulates of Special Theory of Relativity (Einstein’s Foundation)
Einstein proposed two postulates that revolutionized physics:
Postulate 1: Principle of Relativity
"The laws of physics are the same in all inertial frames."
Meaning:
No experiment can distinguish absolute rest from constant
velocity.
There is no special or preferred frame in the universe.
Postulate 2: Constancy of Speed of Light
"The speed of light in vacuum is always constant (c = 3×10⁸ m/s)
irrespective of the motion of source or observer."
This was shocking because:
It contradicts everyday experience with sound or moving
objects.
But experiment after experiment proved it.
5. Length Contraction (Lorentz Contraction)
Objects moving at high speed appear shorter in the direction of
motion.
√
L=L0 1−
v2
c
2
Where:
L0 = length at rest
L= contracted length (as seen by observer)
Important Concepts
Only length parallel to motion contracts.
Perpendicular length remains the same.
Contraction increases with velocity.
Extreme Case:
If v=c :
L=0
Meaning: Light has zero length in direction of motion.
6. Time Dilation
A moving clock runs slower compared to a stationary one.
If:
Δ t 0= proper time (time measured in the clock's own frame)
Δt= time measured by moving observer
Then:
Δ t0
Δ t=
√
2
v
1− 2
c
Real-Life Proofs
1. Atomic clock experiment on airplanes → moving clock lagged.
2. GPS satellites → their clocks run faster due to weak gravity and
slower due to high speed → both must be corrected.
3. Muon decay → Muons created in the atmosphere live longer
due to time dilation.
4.
7. Relativistic Velocity Transformation
Classical velocity addition:
'
u=u + v
fails at high speeds.
Einstein’s velocity addition formula:
'
u +v
u= '
uv
1+ 2
c
Effect:
Even if both velocities are close to c, the result is LESS than c.
Example:
If:
A spaceship fires a laser forward
Spaceship speed = 0.9c
Laser speed = c
Then:
c +0.9 c
u= =c
1+0.9
This confirms:
Nothing can exceed speed of light.
8. Relativistic Mass
Mass increases as speed increases.
m0
m=
√
2
v
1− 2
c
Where:
m 0= rest mass
m= mass when moving
Consequences:
At high speeds, objects become heavier.
More and more force is needed to continue accelerating.
At v=c , mass becomes infinite → impossible.
This is why:
No object with mass can reach speed of light.
Photons (light particles) must be massless.