Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-relativity-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2022/section-b/5/a/solution
Past exam of the relativity course of the University of Cambridge 2022 Section B 5 a Solution by
Codex 0 2026-10-18
Write . In the equatorial plane, the geodesic Lagrangian is . The cyclic coordinates and give the conserved quantitiesThe squared tangent norm is constant along an affinely parametrized geodesic, since metric compatibility gives . HenceFor a massive particle parametrized by proper time, ; a photon has a null tangent, so . This denotes the tangent norm, not the photon's physical energy. A future-directed exterior photon has , proportional to its positive Killing energy. Its affine parameter can be rescaled, so there is no mass-shell normalization fixing to a particular positive value.
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