A New Experimental Test of Special Relativity

Cedarholm, J. P.; Townes, C. H.

doi:10.1038/1841350a0

Cited by 29 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…In some cases a particular technical advance motivated a specific experiment. For example, by 1955 Townes's group had a working ammonia beam maser (Gordon et al 1955); Møller (1957) acknowledged "stimulating discussions" with Townes "on problems of general relativity in connection with the maser;" and a year after that Townes's group published a variant of the Kennedy-Thorndike aether drift experiment (Cedarholm et al 1958; as discussed below in Sect. 6.2).…”

Section: General Relativity and Experimental Gravity Physics In The 1mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Cedarholm et al (1958) used ammonia beam masers for an aether drift test based on Møller's (1956Møller's ( , 1957 considerations of how atomic clocks might test relativity. The experiment compared the frequencies of two masers with ammonia beams that moved in opposite (antiparallel) directions at beam velocity u 0.6 km s −1 .…”

Section: Tests For Preferred Motionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…• was bounded to Δν/ν < ∼ 10 −12 , in trials repeated for a year (Cedarholm and Townes 1959). Møller (1957) and Cedarholm et al (1958) argued for the expression in equation (11), without the parameter , from a consideration of the Doppler effect on radiation reflected by the walls of a resonant cavity moving through an effective aether.…”

Section: Tests For Preferred Motionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Møller (1957) and Cedarholm et al (1958) argued for the expression in equation (11), without the parameter , from a consideration of the Doppler effect on radiation reflected by the walls of a resonant cavity moving through an effective aether. But it seems best to follow Turner and Hill (1964) in going directly to the model in equation (11), including , as a fitting function.…”

Section: Tests For Preferred Motionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…High energy physics papers often acknowledged support from military agencies. In experimental gravity physics the development of the maser used in the Cedarholm et al (1958) aether drift test (Sect. 6.2) was supported "jointly by the Signal Corps, the Office of Naval Research, and the Air Research and Development Command".…”

Section: Support For Curiosity-driven Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Robert Dicke and the naissance of experimental gravity physics, 1957–1967

Peebles

2016

EPJ H

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The experimental study of gravity became much more active in the late 1950s, a change pronounced enough be termed the birth, or naissance, of experimental gravity physics. I present a review of developments in this subject since 1915, through the broad range of new approaches that commenced in the late 1950s, and up to the transition of experimental gravity physics to what might be termed a normal and accepted part of physical science in the late 1960s. This review shows the importance of advances in technology, here as in all branches of natural science. The role of contingency is illustrated by Robert Dicke's decision in the mid-1950s to change directions in mid-career, to lead a research group dedicated to the experimental study of gravity. The review also shows the power of nonempirical evidence. Some in the 1950s felt that general relativity theory is so logically sound as to be scarcely worth the testing. But Dicke and others argued that a poorly tested theory is only that, and that other nonempirical arguments, based on Mach's Principle and Dirac's Large Numbers hypothesis, suggested it would be worth looking for a better theory of gravity. I conclude by offering lessons from this history, some peculiar to the study of gravity physics during the naissance, some of more general relevance. The central lesson, which is familiar but not always well advertised, is that physical theories can be empirically established, sometimes with surprising results.

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Section: General Relativity and Experimental Gravity Physics In The 1mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Tests For Preferred Motionmentioning

confidence: 99%