IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/nat/nature/v429y2004i6987d10.1038_nature02586.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Superluminal speed of information?

Author

Listed:
  • Günter Nimtz

    (Universität zu Köln, II Physikalisches Institut)

Abstract

Arising from: M. D. Stenner, D. J. Gauthier & M. A. Neifeld Nature 425, 695–698 (2003); Stenner et al. reply The theory of special relativity limits signal velocity to the velocity of light in a vacuum. A faster-than-light (superluminal) signal velocity would violate causality1,2. However, there are some experimental data and theoretical arguments that a causality violation does not necessarily happen if a signal velocity becomes superluminal3. Stenner et al.4 claim to have measured the speed of information in a fast-light optical medium by using a novel experimental set-up. The measured information (its front) travelled at a speed that did not exceed c (the velocity of light in vacuum). Their experimental result is correct but the interpretation is misleading because the information did not travel in the range of fast-light frequencies, as I explain here.

Suggested Citation

  • Günter Nimtz, 2004. "Superluminal speed of information?," Nature, Nature, vol. 429(6987), pages 40-40, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:nature:v:429:y:2004:i:6987:d:10.1038_nature02586
    DOI: 10.1038/nature02586
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/nature02586
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1038/nature02586?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:nat:nature:v:429:y:2004:i:6987:d:10.1038_nature02586. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.nature.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.