Muons are sub-atomic particles that are similar to electrons (except with much more mass). They are inherently unstable, meaning that after a very short time they decay (fall apart) into an electron and two other particles (called 'neutrinos'). When moving slowly relative to our laboratory reference frame, the lifetime of a muon is only 2.2 us (2.2 x 10-6 s). How long would a muon last (before decaying) if it is moving at a speed relative to the laboratory frame of 0.987 c (where c is the speed of light in a vacuum = 3.0 x 108 m/s)? Decay time = us (note the units of microseconds) What relative speed of a muon would result in a lifetime of 9.00 us? Express your answer as a fraction of c. Vrel C

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Muons are sub-atomic particles that are similar to electrons (except with much more mass). They
are inherently unstable, meaning that after a very short time they decay (fall apart) into an electron
and two other particles (called 'neutrinos'). When moving slowly relative to our laboratory
reference frame, the lifetime of a muon is only 2.2 μs (2.2 x 10-6 s).
How long would a muon last (before decaying) if it is moving at a speed relative to the laboratory
frame of 0.987 c (where c is the speed of light in a vacuum = 3.0 x 108 m/s)?
Decay time =
us (note the units of microseconds)
What relative speed of a muon would result in a lifetime of 9.00 us? Express your answer as a
fraction of c.
Vrel
=
C
Transcribed Image Text:Muons are sub-atomic particles that are similar to electrons (except with much more mass). They are inherently unstable, meaning that after a very short time they decay (fall apart) into an electron and two other particles (called 'neutrinos'). When moving slowly relative to our laboratory reference frame, the lifetime of a muon is only 2.2 μs (2.2 x 10-6 s). How long would a muon last (before decaying) if it is moving at a speed relative to the laboratory frame of 0.987 c (where c is the speed of light in a vacuum = 3.0 x 108 m/s)? Decay time = us (note the units of microseconds) What relative speed of a muon would result in a lifetime of 9.00 us? Express your answer as a fraction of c. Vrel = C
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