Fundamentals of Special Relativity

Abstract

The theory of Special Relativity formulated by Albert Einstein in 1905 [1, 2] is, without doubt, one of the great intellectual achievements of the 20th century. Our everyday experience is about objects moving at speeds much smaller than the speed of light in vacuo, $${ c =2.99792458 \times 10^{8} \; \mathrm {m}/\mathrm {s}}$$c=2.99792458×108m/s. Newtonian mechanics was developed to describe phenomena at typical speeds $${ v \ll c}$$v≪cand fails when speeds are not negligible in comparison with $$c$$c. This situation is not infrequent; for example, it is relatively easy to accelerate electrons to speeds $${ v = 0.99 \,c}$$v=0.99cin accelerators. However, as their velocities become closer and closer to $$c$$c, it becomes harder and harder to accelerate these electrons further.