Volume 20: Pages 552-555, 2007

Einstein's Principle of Relativity and Doppler Shift

Stephan J. G. Gift ¹

¹Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad, West Indies

This paper explores the possibility of detecting a difference in the Doppler shift phenomenon when generated in different inertial frames in order to test Einstein's principle of relativity. Specifically, the Doppler shifts generated alternatively by movement of the observer and movement of the light source are examined and show an observable difference that is inconsistent with the relativity principle.

Keywords: special theory of relativity, preferred reference frame, Einstein's principle of relativity, light‐speed invariance postulate, Doppler shift

Received: May 23, 2005; Published Online: October 7, 2009