Einstein’s 1905 Paper on E=mc2

Abstract

It is well-known that Einstein’s first paper on E=mc2 as published in the Annalen der Physik in 1905 is problematic in that it suffers from the error of circular reasoning. This means that it uses as one of its premises a statement which is equivalent to the conclusion of the paper, namely, that E=mc2. This difficulty with the paper has been pointed out by many writers including Max Planck, Herbert Ives, Max Jammer and also biographers of Einstein including Gerald Holton and Arthur I. Miller. Unfortunately, the derivation is repeated today as being correct without any mention of the above criticisms of it. In view of this it seems to us worthwhile to have a clear and as simple as possible explanation of the logical difficulties associated with Einstein’s 1905 derivation, and it is to this end that this paper is written. Herewith we present a very simple treatment of the problem which makes absolutely clear the logical difficulties in Einstein’s first published work on E=mc2. KEYWORDS: History of Science; Origins of Special Relativity