0

Can a force, which has magnitude of an irrational number or does not end (ex : 1/3), act upon any particle?

If photon of particular wavelength lambda has some energy say E, then can the photon/group of photons exert a force which is irrational in its magnitude. If yes, then how?

If the desired force is pi(3.1415...), how can this force be attained by sum of force in a finite amount of time.

pi = 3 + 0.1 + 0.04 + 0.001 + 0.0005 + 0.00009 + ....... The above sequence does not end; And if a photon can exert a finite amount at a time, we would either require infinite amount of time or infinite amount of photons to create an infinitesimally small force.

My teacher says that the forces which are of magnitude of any irrational number are exerted on bodies. And it is just the incapability of humans that we cannot image that particular magnitude.

Qmechanic
  • 220,844
Parth Maske
  • 323

1 Answers1

0

The irrationallity of numbers is just a mathematical concept. It makes it hard to display, but nothing more.

Remember that the world works in continuous ways. Not discreet ways. If you have a force at 100 N and you decrease it gradually to 0 N, you will pass over each and every value in between. And both $1/3$ as well as $\pi$ and $e$ and $\sqrt 2$ etc. are in between.

If we must go to the deepest core of things, everything is split into quantas and does position itself in discrete values of energy etc. This should be so negligibly tiny at our size scale, though, that the effect will be so far out on a far, far decimal that I can't even guess how far.

Steeven
  • 53,191