# All Questions

78 views

### Intereference rings by light transmission?

Recently I recorded UV-Vis spectra of liquids with a two-beam spectrometer (Perkin Elmer 900). Lack of proper racks for cells of 0.5 cm optical path length let me use a stack consisting of a 0.2 cm ...
853 views

### effect of atmospheric pressure on reading of a weighing scale

Let us consider a completely sealed weighing scale such that the air pressure above and below the pan of the scale are equal and is equal to 1 atm. pressure. The scale initially reads zero. Now if ...
64 views

### Mass frequency problem

For Dispersion relation , according to Gaussian profile, the author in the equation 3 wrote as $\omega= \left(k^2+\omega_{mass}^2\right)^{1/2}$ My question is what is mass frequency and how it arose ...
63 views

### What do I need to know to calculate the price per km for plug-in hybrid or electric cars? [closed]

Knowing the per kWh price of electricity, what other factors are needed to calculate how much would one pay per km traveled on electric power compared to gasoline power? EDIT: For example, the ...
133 views

### Do photoelectrons move fast enough to use special relativity? (+ homework)

What are the speeds of the photoelectrons which are knocked out of the metal during photoeffect? Do i have to use special relativity? I am having trouble solving a homework using relativity. But if ...
486 views

### What is the geometry of our universe?

I have some questions about the notion of space in current cosmological theories. I have been trying to decipher a few papers written on this topic such as this one, but I keep running into some ...
250 views

### What happens to the wave function after applying the D'Alembert operator?

Is the result of applying the D'Alembert operator on a wave function always zero? Or are there exceptions?
1k views

### How is energy extracted from fusion?

I understand that combining deuterium and tritium will form helium and a neutron. There are three methods to do this (1) tokamak (2) lasers and (3) cold fusion. I would like to know after helium is ...
124 views

### relative phase/sign in $\Psi$ after exchange of composite particles with angular momenta

I'm reading Quantum Liquids by A.J. Leggett and became confused by the following statement in the first chapter. Consider now a pair of such identical atoms. In the absence of appreciable coupling ...
821 views

### Meaning of terms and interpretation in the electric multipole expansion

In section 3.4.1 of Griffiths' Introduction to Electrodynamics, he discusses electric multipole expansion. He derives the formula or the electric potential of a dipole, which I follow, but right ...
530 views

### What is the most general expression for the coordinate representation of momentum operator?

I have a question about deriving the coordinate representation of momentum operator from the commutation relation, $[x,p]= i$. One derivation (ref W. Greiner's Quantum Mechanics: An Introduction, 4th ...
357 views

### Atomic gravitational field?

This might be a silly question, but if every atom has its own gravitational force could atoms or molecules be attracted to each other over vast distances in the void of space if there were no other ...
2k views

### Why electrons can't radiate in their atoms' orbits?

It's an old-new question (I found only one similar question with unsatisfactory (for me) answer: Where did Schrödinger solve the radiating problem of Bohr's model?) It's strange for me how all books ...
90 views

### Is this the strongest steel?

I found this link where it described steel with UTS at 5200 MPa (755kpsi), is this the strongest steel or just a typo because value is seemed to be unreal?
186 views

### Diffusion of gases in the atmosphere

Suppose that the atmosphere is composed of 21% $O_2$ and 78% $Kr$ (instead of $N_2$). Since the density of $Kr$ is greater than the density of $O_2$, the lower atmosphere (where we live) should be ...
204 views

### Timelike/null generic condition in general relativity

My question concerns the following definition Definition: The timelike (resp. null) generic condition in GR is fulfilled if $$u_{[\alpha} R_{\rho]\mu \nu [\sigma}u_{\beta]}u^\mu u^\nu \ne 0$$ ...
111 views

### History of the elementary particles [closed]

The current model for the elementary particles is the standard model. I understand its basics It is for me however, difficult to wrap my mind around it without having some kind of knowledge of the ...
2k views

### Are Newton's “laws” of motion laws or definitions of force and mass?

If you consider them as laws, then there must be independent definitions of force and mass but I don't think there's such definitions. If you consider them as definitions, then why are they still ...
261 views

### Operator norm of creation and annihilation operators

Are the creation and the annihilation operators $a(f)$ and $a^{\dagger}(f)$ for the bosonic Fock space bounded? What is their norm? So far I did not have found any note about this in the linked ...
57 views

### Harmonics of an infinite cylinder

If a hypothetical cylinder was infinitely long, could it vibrate at any frequency, since any frequency would be a harmonic of it? And (less hypothetically) if a cylinder was only really long, would it ...
2k views

### Time Reversal Operator

I know that time reversal operator is an antiunitary operator. How does it work on wavefunctions? I believe in this way: $$T \psi (k,+)=e^{i\pi S_y/\hbar} K \psi (k,+) = \psi^*(-k,-),$$ but I am not ...
304 views

### A correct explanation for the levitation of a superconductor above a magnet [duplicate]

I teach high school physics and I'm trying to put together a correct explanation for the levitation of a superconductor above a magnet without a high level of quantum mechanics (but consistent). I ...
796 views

### Can water pressure ever be high enough to trap gas bubbles or keep them from surfacing?

Can water pressure ever become high enough to trap gas bubbles and/or keep them from surfacing?
133 views

### Position vector, length/modulus function and differentials

If $\vec r$ and is the position vector of a point in motion and $r$ is its length/modulus/magnitude/size, then: Can it be true that: $$\|\mbox{d} \vec r\| \neq \mbox{d}r?$$ I think that this is ...
553 views

### Why does tachyon arise in bosonic string theory?

I am looking for precise mathematical and physical reasons which cause the presence of tachyon in bosonic string theory(specially closed bosonic string theory). Has it to do with the specific form of ...
191 views

### Could plasma be pressurized? Is there a state of matter beyond plasma?

I would like to know if it is possible to pressurize plasma with electromagnetic force. if you wanted to pressurize any plasma it could not be done with a solid container as the plasma would lose ...
156 views

### Time to immerse in a fluid

Whenever you drop an object in water, it takes some time to get fully immersed. I was wondering if this depends upon the buoyant force of the water on the object, slowing it down. However, I was not ...
132 views

### Revolution of Earth [duplicate]

If all motion is relative, how do we know that the Earth revolves around the sun? Or we are just making the above statement from the frame of reference in which Sun is at the origin?
82 views

### Why do cosmic bodies revolve? [duplicate]

Why do cosmic bodies such as planets, stars, satellites revolve? What made them to revolve after the formation of universe?
215 views

### How to know electron and muon neutrinos are different except measuring mass

Before the discovery of neutrino mass, how did people aware electron and muon neutrinos are different?
1k views

### Are Electromagnetic Waves The Only Means of Transmitting Information?

We've been using EMF to transmit energy (information) for over a century. I was wondering is there any other way to send a message on long distances, even faster than EMF waves can travel? For example ...
373 views

### Does general relativity fail in conditions with very large gravitational forces?

It is said in this wikipedia article (in the 7th paragraph) that where there exists huge masses and very large gravitational forces (like around binary pulsars), general relativistic effects can be ...
2k views

### A rope attaches the Moon to the Earth. What happens?

Consider the Earth (mass $M$, radius $R$, rotating about its own axis at $\Omega$) and the moon (mass $m$, radius $r$, with axial rotation equal to $\omega_m$), whose centre of masses are $d$ apart. ...
77 views

### Can a submerged place in the sea have huge air pockets? [duplicate]

I know that air can be under water if there is something to contain it that prevents its escape. But can a place such as buildings or ancient ruins submerged totally under water hold air pockets as ...
1k views

### Trivial and Non-trivial topology of band structure

I don't understand the meaning of the expression "trivial topology" or "non-trivial topology" for an electronic band structure. Does anybody have a good explanation?
162 views

### Is there a phenomenon where physicists are only interested in the standard deviation of the quantity to be measured?

or a phenomenon where we can only measure the standard deviation ($\sigma_w$) of a variable $w$ and not the mean $\overline{w}$
2k views

### Are two thin blankets significantly warmer than a single thick blanket?

Almost every source I can find online maintains that two 0.5 cm blankets are significantly warmer than a single 1cm blanket due to air trapped between the thin blankets. However, the thermal ...
355 views

### Continuous phase transition only hold for infinite systems. Real systems are finite, hence, a paradox

Second-order or continuous transitions are usually identified with non-analyticies within the free energy (which is proportional to the logarithm of the sum of exponentials). Such singularities are ...
2k views

### Why do quarks have a fractional charge?

I am aware that evidence exists that strongly suggests the existence of quarks and do not doubt it. It is just simply really weird to me that they can have a fractional charge. While other ...
68 views

### Does the particle number in the universe need to increase?

Can someone give me an example of a physical process - some (realistic) scattering process - in which one can observe that the particle number has decreased? I was wondering, because it is relatively ...
359 views

### The “stationary potential energy” condition for static equilibrium in mechanical systems

I've often read that, for a mechanical system which can be described by $n$ generalized coordinates $q_1,...,q_n$, a point $\mathbf{Q}=(Q_1,...,Q_n)$ is a point of equilibrium if and only if the ...
319 views

### Is ch. 2, sect. 4 of The Feynman Lectures on Physics, Vol. 1 still accurate?

The chapter 2 section 4 of volume 1 is on nuclei and particles. Here are a few things that trouble me. Dr. Feynman says that Another most interesting change in the ideas and philosophy of science ...
2k views

### What is band filling effect?

Could anyone tell me what is band filling effect? I have search Physics.stackexchange and Google, but didn't find any useful information. I'll appreciate it if anyone can tell me the physical image of ...
827 views

### quantum mechanics current operators

How to derive the charge current and the energy current operators in second quantized form in Quantum mechanics ? Also if you could comment in a similar way on the entropy current operator, that will ...
134 views

### Original paper on Lorentz representation theory

Which was the original paper on the representations of the Lorentz group? Is there even one paper on this, or was this knowledge gained iteratively in a series of papers?
272 views

### Coupling oscillator

I am currently doing the following problem: Two identical undamped oscillators, A and B, each of mass m and natural (angular) frequency $\omega_0$, are coupled in such a way that the coupling ...
223 views

### What object is quantized in quantum gravity?

In theories of quantum gravity, which object is it that is quantized? Working on field theories, I expect the quantization to mean the promotion of a classical field to an operator valued field that ...
165 views

### how do they rip one single atom from something?

this is simple. what i actually want to ask is, when they do the subatomic particle collision experiments, how do they produce one single subatomic particle, e.g proton, neutron? how do they rip one ...