[论文解读] What and how does a Michelson interferometer measure

V.V. Demjanov|arXiv (Cornell University)|Mar 15, 2010

Geophysics and Sensor Technology被引用 5

一句话总结

本文证明，只有当光在折射率 n > 1 的介质中传播时，迈克尔逊干涉仪才能测量地球相对于假设以太的绝对速度，而在真空中则不能。通过实验控制干涉仪光路中气体的密度，作者表明当粒子密度降低时，条纹位移消失，从而实现了对地球绝对运动速度的可靠测量，范围为 140–480 km/s，同时提出了经过修正的相对论不变公式，用于描述以太风速，该公式与 n < 1.8 介质中的光学实验结果一致。

ABSTRACT

Proposed by Maxwell in 1879 detector of aether seems, at a superficial glance, a simple device. For example, Michelson in 1881 thought that he built an instrument that (when you turn it in the horizontal plane) will measure in vacuum (refractive index n=1) the harmonic shift of the interference fringe. In reality the case is much more involved. Not at once it was understood (the misunderstanding lasted about 90 years) that the shift of interference fringe occurs only when the carriers of light contain particles, i.e. have n>1. In 1968-1975 I have demonstrated experimentally that during the pumping of the gas from the zones where the light propagates, i.e. with decreasing the number of particles of the light's carrier, along with the reduction of noise disturbances always necessarily vanishes the harmonic shift of the interference fringe. As soon as the correlation of the observability of the fringe shift with the concentration of particles in the light's carrier has been taken into account, I was able to reliably measure the speed of absolute motion of the Earth as a few hundred km/s. In the sixth version I corrected the slip in formula (21). There is suggested for experimenters the advice how to diminish below the measurable level of the sought-for signal the harmful influence of the noise and false interferences, and for interpreters of measurements of non-zero fringe shift the derivation is given of a relativistically invariant formula of the aether wind speed that agrees with the experiments in optical media with 1<n<1.8. In the publication Phys.Lett.A 374 (2010) 1110 I reported about measuring the horizontal projection of absolute velocity of the Earth at the latitude of Obninsk as 140-480 km/s depending on the time of day and night. This experimental result became possible only owing to that I was able to overcome the above mentioned methodical and interpretational artifacts.

研究动机与目标

• 解决长期以来关于为何迈克尔逊干涉仪仅在介质中检测到条纹位移而不在真空中检测的困惑。
• 消除先前掩盖绝对运动检测的实验方法和解释性误差。
• 通过实验表明，条纹位移与光传播介质中粒子密度相关。
• 推导出与 n < 1.8 介质中光学实验结果一致的以太风速的相对论不变公式。
• 为未来寻求绝对运动信号的实验提供降低噪声和虚假干涉的实用指导。

提出的方法

• 在逐渐从光路中抽出气体以降低粒子密度的条件下，对迈克尔逊干涉仪进行实验。
• 监测随着气体密度降低，谐波条纹位移的消失，表明其依赖于传播介质的折射率。
• 使用公式 (21) 的修正版本，以考虑相对论效应并确保与实验数据的一致性。
• 应用噪声抑制技术，将干扰降低至目标信号可测量阈值以下。
• 基于光学介质中观测到的条纹位移，推导出以太风速的相对论不变公式。
• 将实验结果与不同折射率（1 < n < 1.8）下的理论预测进行比较。

实验结果

研究问题

• RQ1 为何迈克尔逊干涉仪仅在光通过 n > 1 的介质时检测到条纹位移，而在真空中不检测？
• RQ2 如何最小化实验误差和噪声，以可靠检测地球的绝对速度？
• RQ3 与光学介质实验观测一致的正确相对论不变以太风速公式是什么？
• RQ4 条纹位移可观测性与光传播介质中粒子浓度之间的相关性如何影响测量可靠性？
• RQ5 能否使用干涉测量技术独立于相对论约定，测量地球的绝对速度？

主要发现

• 随着气体从干涉仪光臂中被抽出，条纹位移消失，证实条纹位移依赖于光传播介质中粒子的存在。
• 在奥布宁斯克纬度，地球绝对速度的水平分量被实验测得为 140–480 km/s，其值随昼夜时间变化。
• 只有在克服长期存在的干涉测量方法和解释性误差后，实验结果才得以实现。
• 推导出公式 (21) 的修正版本，实现了以太风速的相对论不变描述。
• 所推导的以太风速公式与折射率在 1 到 1.8 之间的光学介质中的实验数据一致。
• 本研究提供了实用的实验建议，可将噪声和虚假干扰抑制至目标信号检测阈值以下。