Can C be measured in MeV? If so is this per photon?

[EMFsmith]

Can C be measured in MeV?? If so is this per photon?

Basically as the title states, can you measure C in MeV, i read ALICE was nearing Acceleration of C at 14 MeV (These numbers are what i can remember from a while ago).

Then is that measure of 14 MeV for say a single atom, or does it apply for larger objects (More mass needs more energy to move it so i think not but i may as well ask)?

Oh wait, nothing can move at C can it because it hass mass.

Im starting to think, bad things usually ensue.

Any help would be great folks.

 

[f95toli]

No, not really.
MeV is a unit of energy, with the dimension of joule and c is a speed and has the dimension of meters per second.

However, the whole point of a particle accelerator is to accelerate particles to high speeds. The reason is that high speeds means high energy (kinetic energy) and this energy can then be used to for example create other particles.

Hence, if you know the energy of a particle (in for example MeV) and you know its mass you can quite easily calculate its speed.
This is why particle physicists talk about accelerating particles to a certain energy.

Also, note that the equations break down if you try to set the speed of a particle to c, this means that there is no energy that corresponds to c.

 

[ZapperZ]

Basically as the title states, can you measure C in MeV, i read ALICE was nearing Acceleration of C at 14 MeV (These numbers are what i can remember from a while ago).

Then is that measure of 14 MeV for say a single atom, or does it apply for larger objects (More mass needs more energy to move it so i think not but i may as well ask)?

Oh wait, nothing can move at C can it because it hass mass.

Im starting to think, bad things usually ensue.

Any help would be great folks.

You are confusing energy (i.e. the kinetic energy) with speed (c).

Zz.

 

[EMFsmith]

So the heavier elements need higher MeV to reach higher acceleration, is this why you can't just keep combining elements like ununoctium to create super heavy elements?
Im guessing they would be ridiculously unstable anyway but that's for another post i think.

 

[sardar]

Yes, C (the speed of light) can be measured in MeV (megaelectronvolts). MeV is a unit of energy, so it is not directly related to photons. However, it is often used in particle physics to measure the energy of particles, including photons. So, in that sense, you can indirectly measure C in MeV per photon by measuring the energy of photons.

The measurement of 14 MeV for the ALICE experiment is likely referring to the energy of the particles being accelerated, not the speed of light itself. As you mentioned, nothing can move at the speed of light because it has mass. So, the 14 MeV measurement is for the energy of the particles, not the speed of light.

In general, the speed of light is a constant and does not change based on the mass of an object. However, the energy required to accelerate an object to the speed of light will depend on its mass. This is why it is not possible for larger objects with more mass to reach the speed of light.

I hope this helps clarify things for you. It's always good to ask questions and seek understanding in science. Keep exploring and learning!