Charge conservation and special relativity

In summary, the conversation discusses the implications on relativity if conservation of charge were to be violated in future experiments. The possibility of photons having non-zero rest mass is mentioned, as well as the question of whether special relativity necessitates conservation of charge. It is also noted that charge conservation is predicted by our current theories of electromagnetism and quantum physics. Possible modifications to these theories and their effects on relativity are also mentioned.
  • #1
Ahmed1029
109
40
If conservation of charge gets violated in future experiments, what would be the implications on relativity? I have some faint idea that this will cause photons to have non-zero rest mass, but does this affect special relativity at all? Also, does special relativity make conservation of charge necessary?
 
Physics news on Phys.org
  • #2
Ahmed1029 said:
I have some faint idea that this will cause photons to have non-zero rest mass
Do you have a valid reference that suggest this? Or is it personal speculation...?
 
  • Like
Likes topsquark
  • #3
berkeman said:
Do you have a valid reference that suggest this? Or is it personal speculation...?
No, a physics professor told me so but I'm not so sure.
 
  • #4
berkeman said:
Do you have a valid reference that suggest this? Or is it personal speculation...?
I'm mainly curious whether SR necessitates that charge is conserved.
 
  • #5
Ahmed1029 said:
No, a physics professor told me so but I'm not so sure.
But you are not in school; you are self-studying. Where did you happen to have a technical discussion with a university physics professor?

Ahmed1029 said:
I'm learning physics on my own.
 
  • #6
berkeman said:
But you are not in school; you are self-studying. Where did you happen to have a technical discussion with a university physics professor?
A website just like this one
 
  • Skeptical
Likes PeroK
  • #7
berkeman said:
But you are not in school; you are self-studying. Where did you happen to have a technical discussion with a university physics professor?
Also as an aside, I'm actually in school; I'm a medical student but physics is my side gig, so I can visit other departments if I want to. I however found the internet more helpful.
 
  • #8
Ahmed1029 said:
I'm mainly curious whether SR necessitates that charge is conserved.
SR in itself is not a theory of electromagnetism, so this question is unanswerable.

Our best current classical theory of electromagnetism is Maxwell electrodynamics, and our best current quantum theory of electromagnetism is QED, and both of those theories predict that charge is conserved. So those theories would have to be modified if charge conservation were found to be violated. Whether the resulting theories would still obey Lorentz invariance is a separate question that could only be answered if experiment forced us to develop such modified theories.
 
  • Like
Likes vanhees71, PeroK, Orodruin and 2 others
  • #9
Worth noting that you can modify electromagnetic theory so that light does not travel at ##c##, which corresponds to massive photons in the quantised theory. This would have no effect on relativity except that we wouldn't be able to call the constant ##c## "the speed of light" any more. And we'd have to re-write textbooks to always derive the theory without using light signals. So all bureaucracy, really, no actual physics change to relativity (electromagnetic theory would have changed, of course).

As far as I know charge is still conserved in this theory.
 
  • Like
Likes vanhees71 and Ahmed1029
  • #10
This thread is closed.
 

FAQ: Charge conservation and special relativity

What is charge conservation?

Charge conservation is a fundamental principle in physics that states that the total electric charge in a closed system remains constant over time. This means that charge cannot be created or destroyed, only transferred from one object to another.

How does special relativity relate to charge conservation?

In special relativity, the laws of physics are the same for all observers in uniform motion. This means that charge conservation must hold true for all observers, regardless of their relative motion. This is known as the principle of charge conservation invariance.

Can charge be converted into mass or vice versa?

According to Einstein's famous equation, E=mc², mass and energy are equivalent. However, charge is not directly related to mass or energy, so it cannot be converted into either. Charge conservation still holds true, even in situations involving high energies and relativistic speeds.

Is charge conservation violated in any situations?

So far, there is no evidence to suggest that charge conservation is violated in any situations. In fact, it has been tested and confirmed in numerous experiments, including those involving high-energy particle collisions.

How does charge conservation affect the behavior of charged particles?

Charge conservation plays a crucial role in determining the behavior of charged particles. For example, if an electrically neutral particle decays into two charged particles, the total charge of the system must remain zero. This means that the two particles must have equal and opposite charges to conserve the total charge of the system.

Similar threads

I Compatibility of Classical Electromagnetism & Relativity
Replies
5
Views
1K
I Special Theory of Relativity & Conservation of Mass
Replies
4
Views
1K
I Energy conservation in general relativity
Replies
12
Views
1K
I Conservation of momentum in a collision
2
Replies
67
Views
5K
I SR-time dilation vs GR-time dilation on rotating Earth
3
Replies
79
Views
3K
I Noether's second theorem: two questions
Replies
7
Views
2K
I Symmetry of motion in the special theory of relativity
2
Replies
36
Views
713
I Co- and Contravariance
Replies
5
Views
185
I Forces and gravitational time dilation
Replies
11
Views
2K
Is Net Charge Conserved in Special Relativity with Current Flowing in a Wire?
2
Replies
41
Views
5K

Hot Threads

Recent Insights

Back
Top