Emission, propagation, and reflection of light as mechanical phenomena applied to the Majorana experiment

Abstract

Emission, propagation, and reflection of light as mechanical phenomena applied to the Michelson‐Morley experiment offer a zero-fringe shift in Earth's inertial frame. Differently, in the Majorana experiment, the light from a fixed source reflected by moving and fixed mirrors enters the Michelson interferometer with unequal arms and offers a noticeable fringe shift. According to Majorana's interpretation, the fringe shift is proof of the constancy of light velocity. In contrast to Majorana's conclusion, the light reflected by a moving mirror has a different speed, wavelength, and frequency from the incident light, and the fringe shift observed in Majorana's experiment indicates that the velocity of light depends on its source velocity. Majorana's derivation predicts a 0.71 fringe shift, and this study predicts a 0.27 fringe shift.