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arXiv · 1201.0501

Fizeau's "aether-drag" experiment in the undergraduate laboratory

Thierry Lahaye·Pierre Labastie·Renaud Mathevet
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Abstract

We describe a simple realization of Fizeau's "aether-drag" experiment. Using an inexpensive setup, we measure the phase shift induced by moving water in a laser interferometer and find good agreement with the relativistic prediction or, in the terms of nineteenth century physics, with Fresnel's partial-drag theory. This appealing experiment, particularly suited for an undergraduate laboratory project, not only allows a quantitative measurement of a relativistic effect on a macroscopic system, but also constitutes a practical application of important concepts of optics, data acquisition and processing, and fluid mechanics.

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Thierry Lahaye, Pierre Labastie, Renaud Mathevet. 2012-01-02. Fizeau's "aether-drag" experiment in the undergraduate laboratory. https://doi.org/10.1119/1.3690117

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