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Binary Star System with Lorentz Symmetry Violating Effects
written by Madeline Clyburn
The EJS Binary Star System with Lorentz Symmetry Violating Effects 3D Model illustrates the effects of violations in Lorentz symmetry to any detached binary star system. Lorentz symmetry is defined as the similar observation of the laws of physics within different inertial reference frames. The Standard-Model-Extension (SME) is used to search for violations of Lorentz symmetry with the hopes of discovering evidence of new laws within physics. A detection of Lorentz symmetry violation would come when an accepted law of physics is broken after a frame's orientation is rotated or accelerated. We can visualize these effects as though there is a background tensor field permeating through space that will change the fundamental physical laws we currently hold as true.

This simulation allows the user to input any initial conditions (i.e. masses, orbital periods, etc.) for a binary star system and observe the evolution of the stars' orbits. Similarly, the user can alter the values of the SME coefficients (c_jk background tensor field values). Whenever these coefficients are zero, the binary star system will behave as predicted, effected only by the gravitational force they exert on each other. However, when the SME coefficients are nonzero the orbits of the stars evolve in a way such that the net force on the stars is no longer parallel to the acceleration of the stars. Additionally, with nonzero c_jk values, the total angular momentum of the system is no longer conserved.
1 source code document is available
Subjects Levels Resource Types
Astronomy
- Stars
= Binary Stars
Relativity
- Beyond Relativity
- Upper Undergraduate
- Graduate/Professional
- Instructional Material
= Interactive Simulation
Intended Users Formats Ratings
- Learners
- Educators
- General Publics
- application/java
- application/zip
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Access Rights:
Free access
License:
This material is released under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 license.
Rights Holder:
Madeline Clyburn
Keywords:
Binary Stars, Lorentz symmetry, Standard Model Extension
Record Creator:
Metadata instance created September 16, 2020 by Madeline Clyburn
Record Updated:
October 2, 2020 by Wolfgang Christian
Last Update
when Cataloged:
September 16, 2020
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