- #1
sci-guy
- 47
- 0
I just read the following innocent sounding statement, which got me thinking:
"An electron in motion relative to an observer generates a magnetic field..."
This implies that, for an observer moving alongside at the same speed as the electron, there is no magnetic field. I understand the basic concept of relativistic motion, but I'd be interested in comments explaining what's going on here. I'm no scientist, but as I understand it, an electron in motion essentially implies an electric current. So there's no current and no field for our observer. Since energy is never created or destroyed, in what form is it here?
We could reframe the statement and say simply that, from its own perspective, the traveling electron generates neither a current, nor charge, nor magnetic field (since, relative to itself, it is never in motion). In fact, from the electron's perspective, the entire universe is spinning in a "positive" direction around it.
Wow.
"An electron in motion relative to an observer generates a magnetic field..."
This implies that, for an observer moving alongside at the same speed as the electron, there is no magnetic field. I understand the basic concept of relativistic motion, but I'd be interested in comments explaining what's going on here. I'm no scientist, but as I understand it, an electron in motion essentially implies an electric current. So there's no current and no field for our observer. Since energy is never created or destroyed, in what form is it here?
We could reframe the statement and say simply that, from its own perspective, the traveling electron generates neither a current, nor charge, nor magnetic field (since, relative to itself, it is never in motion). In fact, from the electron's perspective, the entire universe is spinning in a "positive" direction around it.
Wow.