Inertial reference frames

Special Relativity and Electrodynamics (Spring, 2008)

April 14, 2008
The laws of physics are the same in any inertial reference frame.
The Lorentz transformation is the transformation between two inertial frames.
Galilean transformation is appropriate for small velocities.
Proper time is the time an observer measures with a clock traveling with the observer, and is an invariant under a Lorentz transformation.
Topics: 
  • The principle of relativity
  • Reference frames
  • Lorentz transformation
  • Length contraction and time dilation
  • Proper time