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From relativity to the photon

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Abstract

Two widely different conceptions of electromagnetic radiation were compared by Einstein in his 1916 papers, namely, the classically diffuse form and the fully directional form. The emission process of each kind of radiation is examined hereafter from a relativistic point of view. The necessary covariance of any physical description, further specifying the original directional property, points to a strictly quantized form of radiation as the only one consistent with relativity, thus showing a deep relationship between this latter and quantum theory.

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Cormier-Delanoue, C. From relativity to the photon. Found Phys 19, 1171–1190 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00731878

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00731878

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