Translation:Once Again: Sagnac Effect and Aether
Once Again: Sagnac Effect and Aether;
by Hans Witte.
(Received July 24, 1914.)
Two papers by Sagnac published at the end of 1913[1], caused me to write a supplement in this proceedings at the beginning of 1914[2].
Sagnac has provided and executed an interference experiment, aimed at deciding the alternative "aether or relativity principle?"; I conclude that the "Sagnac effect" does not decide this alternative.
According to reports later given to me, I am able to add the following:
1. A similar interference experiment was already described by Michelson[3] in 1904. The (not executed) Michelson experiment of 1904 and the Sagnac experiment of 1913 have the fundamental idea in common, to split a light ray in a rotating circle, and to circulate one ray counter-clockwise, and the other one clockwise. The difference consists mainly in the fact, that Sagnac uses a circle rotating relative to Earth, while Michelson wanted to use a circle at rest relative to Earth, thus he wanted to use the self-rotation of Earth.
2. In the year 1911, Laue[4] concluded that this expected Michelson effect cannot bring a decision between aether theory and relativity principle.
Consequently, the explanations of Laue in the main already contained the refutation of the basic tendency of the Sagnac experiment executed later.[5]
- ↑ G. Sagnac, L’éther lumineux démontré par l’effet du vent relatif d’éther, C. R. 157, 708, 27. October 1913; Sur la preuve de la réalité de l’éther lumineux, same place p. 1410, 22. December 1913.
- ↑ H. Witte, Verh. d. D. Phys. Ges. 16, 142, 1914.
- ↑ A. A. Michelson, Phil. Mag. (6) 8, 716, 1904.
- ↑ M. Laue, Über einen Versuch zur Optik der bewegten Körper. Sitzungsberichte d. Königl. Bayr. Akad. d. Wiss., math.-phys. Klasse, 1911, p.405.
- ↑ I am thankful to Sommerfeld (who at that time has submitted Laue's paper to the Academy of Munich) and to v. Laue for making accessible his work.
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