Tagged Questions

4
votes
1answer
102 views

Mass gap for photons

I am puzzled by the answers to the question: What is a mass gap? There, Ron Maimon's answer gives a clear-cut definition, which I suppose applies to any quantum field theory with Hamiltonian $H$, ...
4
votes
3answers
117 views

Precision of Coulomb's law

Up to which precision has the coulomb law proven to be true? I.e. if you have two electrons in a vacuum chamber, 5 meters appart, have the third order terms been ruled out? Are there any theoretical ...
1
vote
1answer
115 views

Why does Lorentz factor not hold for relativistic mass when we apply it to photons? [duplicate]

We know that the photon itself is massless particle $m_0=0$. But we also know, that the mass of the objects does increase with their energy. And we know that under certain circumstances (gravity, ...
1
vote
2answers
88 views

Do photons have mass? [duplicate]

As a student in a highschool physics class, my teacher has repeatedly told me that photons are massless. Yet, I have also heard from other sources that photons have momentum. If photons were to have ...
8
votes
1answer
155 views

How the inverse square law in electrodynamics is related to photon mass?

I have read somewhere that one of the tests of the inverse square law is to assume nonzero mass for photon and then, by finding a maximum limit for it , determine a maximum possible error in ...
0
votes
2answers
98 views

What is the mass of a photon moving at the speed of light? [duplicate]

What is the mass of a photon moving at the speed of light? And if it does not have mass, how is it affected by gravity? Also why does Einstein's general relativity support that a gravitational wave ...
-3
votes
3answers
217 views

Does a photon have mass? [duplicate]

I have seen questions assume photons have no mass. But I have not seen any questions that directly ask whether or not photons have mass. If photons have no mass, then how do they occupy space? How ...
0
votes
0answers
24 views

Why photons can't escape black hole? [duplicate]

Photons do not have (rest) mass. Then why are they attracted by the black hole? And is it possible that a photon crossing a black hole from a little distance could get accelerated due to the force?
1
vote
2answers
103 views

Do photons actually generate a slight kinetic force?

My question is even though photons have no (rest) mass, do they emit a external force due to EM radiation causing electrons to be excited and jump to higher energy shells which electrons have mass ...
0
votes
1answer
33 views

Speed of light and lorentzian factors [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: How can a photon have no mass and still travel at the speed of light? If light travels at the speed of light, and anything with rest mass will experience relativistic ...
0
votes
2answers
191 views

Photons in a gravitational field

I have been really staring for a while in a MP-Beiser book and I totally disagree with a statement he does there. On a page 85 he states that photons act as they have a mass $m$. He derives this by ...
1
vote
1answer
107 views

Photons and Relativity

Consider a Photon from Sun and travels with a velocity $c$. Now think we are that photon. For us, it looks like Sun is moving away from us with a velocity $c$. So, why don't we get attracted back ...
0
votes
1answer
53 views

Non-conversion of mass & energy?

This article is certainly an interesting alternative perspective, but is it factual or does it contain fallacies? http://www.circlon-theory.com/HTML/EmcFallacies.html Are mass and energy not ...
1
vote
2answers
245 views

Why do photons add mass to a black hole?

Why do photons add mass to a black hole? When photons are taken irreversibly into a black hole does the mass of the BH increase?
0
votes
3answers
981 views

How is light affected by gravity?

Light is clearly affected by gravity, just think about a black hole, but light supposedly has no mass and gravity only affects objects with mass. On the other hand, if light does have mass then ...
0
votes
0answers
37 views

What gives photons their energy? [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: Does $E = mc^2$ apply to photons? I've been to a presentation by a CERN scientist, and he briefly talked about photons. It was stated that photons have different energy ...
8
votes
4answers
2k views

Why don’t photons interact with the Higgs field?

Why don’t photons interact with the Higgs field and hence remain massless?
3
votes
1answer
388 views

What happens to a photon in a black hole?

Assume a photon enters the event horizon of a black hole. The gravity of the black hole will draw the photon into the singularity eventually. Doesn't the photon come to rest and therefore lose it's ...
1
vote
1answer
379 views

If photons are deflected by a strong gravitational field, then how come photons do not have mass? [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: Explain how (or if) a box full of photons would weigh more due to massless photons It has been proved and showed through experiments that light can be bent by the Sun or ...
3
votes
4answers
585 views

What if we could give photons some mass?

I was reading an article and these paragraphs got me wondering... Before I list the replies, here is some background. The Higgs mechanism describes an invisible field that, it is argued, split one ...
1
vote
3answers
208 views

Formation of black holes

If stars start with a finite density and light can escape from them, how can they be compacted to form a mass with infinite density which light cannot escape? The black hole will have the same mass as ...
3
votes
1answer
383 views

How does a particle of light reach the max speed of light? [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: How can a photon have no mass and still travel at the speed of light? First of all I am not a professional physicist. I was curious as to how a particle of light can ...
-5
votes
3answers
296 views

Could a bubble of photons make a spaceship massless?

I'm not sure how theoretically possible this is but my question is... If we could somehow make a perfect bubble of photons (a massless bubble) and put a spaceship inside it, could it therefore ...
8
votes
2answers
706 views

Does $E = mc^2$ apply to photons?

Photons are massless, but if $m = 0$ and $E = mc^2$ then $E = 0c^2 = 0$. This would say that photons have no energy, which is not true. However, given the formula $E = ℎf$, a photon does have energy ...
2
votes
5answers
2k views

Why can't photons have a mass

Why can't photons have a mass? Could you explain this to me in a short and mathematical way?
16
votes
7answers
10k views

How can a photon have no mass and still travel at the speed of light?

I've read a number of the helpful Q&As on photons that mention the mass/mass-less issue. Do I understand correctly that the idea of mass-less (a rest mass of 0) may be just a convention to make ...
23
votes
8answers
13k views

If photons have no mass, how can they have momentum?

As an explanation of why a large gravitational field (such as a black hole) can bend light, I have heard that light has momentum. This is given as a solution to the problem of only massive objects ...
19
votes
5answers
2k views

Do photons gain mass when they travel through glass?

Please correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe that photons slow down when travelling through glass. Does this mean they gain mass? Otherwise, what happens to extra kinetic energy? I understand now ...