A limit on the variation of the speed of light arising from quantum gravity effects

A.A. Abdo; M. Ackermann; M. Ajello; K. Asano; W.B. Atwood; M. Axelsson; L. Baldini; J. Ballet; G. Barbiellini; M. G. Baring; D. Bastieri; K. Bechtol; R. Bellazzini; B. Berenji; P.N. Bhat; E. Bissaldi; E. D. Bloom; E. Bonamente; J. Bonnell; A.W. Borgland; A. Bouvier; J. Bregeon; A. Brez; M.S. Briggs; M. Brigida; P. Bruel; J. M. Burgess; T. H. Burnett; G.A. Caliandro; R.A. Cameron; P.A. Caraveo; J.M. Casandjian; C. Cecchi; Oe Celik; V. Chaplin; E. Charles; C. C. Cheung; J. Chiang; S. Ciprini; R. Claus; J. Cohen-Tanugi; L. R. Cominsky; V. Connaughton; J. Conrad; S. Cutini; C. D. Dermer; A. de Angelis; F. de Palma; S.W. Digel; B. L. Dingus; E. do couto silva; P.S. Drell; R. Dubois; D. Dumora; C. Farnier; C. Favuzzi; S. J. Fegan; J. Finke; G. Fishman; W.B. Focke; L. Foschini; Y. Fukazawa; S. Funk; P. Fusco; F. Gargano; D. Gasparrini; N. Gehrels; S. Germani; L. Gibby; B. Giebels; N. Giglietto; F. Giordano; T. Glanzman; G. Godfrey; J. Granot; J. Greiner; I.A. Grenier; M. -H. Grondin; J. E. Grove; D. Grupe; L. Guillemot; S. Guiriec; Y. Hanabata; A. K. Harding; M. Hayashida; E. Hays; E. A. Hoversten; R.E. Hughes; G. Johannesson; A.S. Johnson; R. P. Johnson; W. N. Johnson; T. Kamae; H. Katagiri; J. Kataoka; N. Kawai; M. Kerr; R.M. Kippen; J. Knoedlseder; D. Kocevski; C. Kouveliotou; F. Kuehn; M. Kuss; J. Lande; L. Latronico; M. Lemoine-Goumard; F. Longo; F. Loparco; B. Lott; M. N. Lovellette; P. Lubrano; G. M. Madejski; A. Makeev; M.N. Mazziotta; S. McBreen; J.E. McEnery; S. McGlynn; P. Meszaros; C. Meurer; P.F. Michelson; W. Mitthumsiri; T. Mizuno; A.A. Moiseev; C. Monte; M.E. Monzani; E. Moretti; A. Morselli; I.V. Moskalenko; S. Murgia; T. Nakamori; P.L. Nolan; J.P. Norris; E. Nuss; M. Ohno; T. Ohsugi; N. Omodei; E. Orlando; J. F. Ormes; M. Ozaki; W. S. Paciesas; D. Paneque; J. H. Panetta; D. Parent; V. Pelassa; M. Pepe; M. Pesce-Rollins; V. Petrosian; F. Piron; T.A. Porter; R. Preece; S. Raino; E. Ramirez-Ruiz; R. Rando; M. Razzano; S. Razzaque; A. Reimer; O. Reimer; T. Reposeur; S. Ritz; L. S. Rochester; A. Y. Rodriguez; M. Roth; F. Ryde; H.F.W. Sadrozinski; D. Sanchez; A. Sander; P. M. Saz Parkinson; J. D. Scargle; T. L. Schalk; C. Sgro; E.J. Siskind; D. A. Smith; P.D. Smith; G. Spandre; P. Spinelli; M. Stamatikos; F. W. Stecker; M.S. Strickman; D. J. Suson; H. Tajima; H. Takahashi; T. Takahashi; T. Tanaka; J. B. Thayer; J.G. Thayer; D.J. Thompson; L. Tibaldo; K. Toma; D.F. Torres; G. Tosti; E. Troja; Y. Uchiyama; T. Uehara; T.L. Usher; A. J. van der Horst; V. Vasileiou; N. Vilchez; V. Vitale; A. von Kienlin; A.P. Waite; P. Wang; C. Wilson-Hodge; B.L. Winer; K.S. Wood; X. F. Wu; R. Yamazaki; T. Ylinen; M. Ziegler

doi:10.1038/nature08574

A limit on the variation of the speed of light arising from quantum gravity effects

A.A. Abdo, M. Ackermann, M. Ajello, K. Asano, W.B. Atwood, M. Axelsson, L. Baldini, J. Ballet, G. Barbiellini, M. G. Baring, D. Bastieri, K. Bechtol, R. Bellazzini, B. Berenji, P.N. Bhat, E. Bissaldi, E. D. Bloom, E. Bonamente, J. Bonnell, A.W. BorglandA. Bouvier, J. Bregeon, A. Brez, M.S. Briggs, M. Brigida, P. Bruel, J. M. Burgess, T. H. Burnett, G.A. Caliandro, R.A. Cameron, P.A. Caraveo, J.M. Casandjian, C. Cecchi, Oe Celik, V. Chaplin, E. Charles, C. C. Cheung, J. Chiang, S. Ciprini, R. Claus, J. Cohen-Tanugi, L. R. Cominsky, V. Connaughton, J. Conrad, S. Cutini, C. D. Dermer, A. de Angelis, F. de Palma, S.W. Digel, B. L. Dingus, E. do couto silva, P.S. Drell, R. Dubois, D. Dumora, C. Farnier, C. Favuzzi, S. J. Fegan, J. Finke, G. Fishman, W.B. Focke, L. Foschini, Y. Fukazawa, S. Funk, P. Fusco, F. Gargano, D. Gasparrini, N. Gehrels, S. Germani, L. Gibby, B. Giebels, N. Giglietto, F. Giordano, T. Glanzman, G. Godfrey, J. Granot, J. Greiner, I.A. Grenier, M. -H. Grondin, J. E. Grove, D. Grupe, L. Guillemot, S. Guiriec, Y. Hanabata, A. K. Harding, M. Hayashida, E. Hays, E. A. Hoversten, R.E. Hughes, G. Johannesson, A.S. Johnson, R. P. Johnson, W. N. Johnson, T. Kamae, H. Katagiri, J. Kataoka, N. Kawai, M. Kerr, R.M. Kippen, J. Knoedlseder, D. Kocevski, C. Kouveliotou, F. Kuehn, M. Kuss, J. Lande, L. Latronico, M. Lemoine-Goumard, F. Longo, F. Loparco, B. Lott, M. N. Lovellette, P. Lubrano, G. M. Madejski, A. Makeev, M.N. Mazziotta, S. McBreen, J.E. McEnery, S. McGlynn, P. Meszaros, C. Meurer, P.F. Michelson, W. Mitthumsiri, T. Mizuno, A.A. Moiseev, C. Monte, M.E. Monzani, E. Moretti, A. Morselli, I.V. Moskalenko, S. Murgia, T. Nakamori, P.L. Nolan, J.P. Norris, E. Nuss, M. Ohno, T. Ohsugi, N. Omodei, E. Orlando, J. F. Ormes, M. Ozaki, W. S. Paciesas, D. Paneque, J. H. Panetta, D. Parent, V. Pelassa, M. Pepe, M. Pesce-Rollins, V. Petrosian, F. Piron, T.A. Porter, R. Preece, S. Raino, E. Ramirez-Ruiz, R. Rando, M. Razzano, S. Razzaque, A. Reimer, O. Reimer, T. Reposeur, S. Ritz, L. S. Rochester, A. Y. Rodriguez, M. Roth, F. Ryde, H.F.W. Sadrozinski, D. Sanchez, A. Sander, P. M. Saz Parkinson, J. D. Scargle, T. L. Schalk, C. Sgro, E.J. Siskind, D. A. Smith, P.D. Smith, G. Spandre, P. Spinelli, M. Stamatikos, F. W. Stecker, M.S. Strickman, D. J. Suson, H. Tajima, H. Takahashi, T. Takahashi, T. Tanaka, J. B. Thayer, J.G. Thayer, D.J. Thompson, L. Tibaldo, K. Toma, D.F. Torres, G. Tosti, E. Troja, Y. Uchiyama, T. Uehara, T.L. Usher, A. J. van der Horst, V. Vasileiou, N. Vilchez, V. Vitale, A. von Kienlin, A.P. Waite, P. Wang, C. Wilson-Hodge, B.L. Winer, K.S. Wood, X. F. Wu, R. Yamazaki, T. Ylinen, M. Ziegler

Centre for Astrophysics Research (CAR)

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

441 Citations (Scopus)

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Abstract

A cornerstone of Einstein's special relativity is Lorentz invariance-the postulate that all observers measure exactly the same speed of light in vacuum, independent of photon-energy. While special relativity assumes that there is no fundamental length-scale associated with such invariance, there is a fundamental scale (the Planck scale, l(Planck) approximate to 1.62 x 10(-33) cm or E-Planck = M(Planck)c(2) approximate to 1.22 x 10(19) GeV), at which quantum effects are expected to strongly affect the nature of space-time. There is great interest in the (not yet validated) idea that Lorentz invariance might break near the Planck scale. A key test of such violation of Lorentz invariance is a possible variation of photon speed with energy(1-7). Even a tiny variation in photon speed, when accumulated over cosmological light-travel times, may be revealed by observing sharp features in gamma-ray burst (GRB) light-curves(2). Here we report the detection of emission up to similar to 31GeV from the distant and short GRB090510. We find no evidence for the violation of Lorentz invariance, and place a lower limit of 1.2E(Planck) on the scale of a linear energy dependence (or an inverse wavelength dependence), subject to reasonable assumptions about the emission (equivalently we have an upper limit of l(Planck)/1.2 on the length scale of the effect). Our results disfavour quantum-gravity theories(3,6,7) in which the quantum nature of space-time on a very small scale linearly alters the speed of light.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	331-334
Number of pages	4
Journal	Nature
Volume	462
Issue number	7271
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1038/nature08574
Publication status	Published - 19 Nov 2009

Keywords

GAMMA-RAY BURSTS
HIGH-ENERGY
VIOLATION
EMISSION
PHOTONS
LORENTZ
TESTS
FOAM

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Cite this

Abdo, A. A., Ackermann, M., Ajello, M., Asano, K., Atwood, W. B., Axelsson, M., Baldini, L., Ballet, J., Barbiellini, G., Baring, M. G., Bastieri, D., Bechtol, K., Bellazzini, R., Berenji, B., Bhat, P. N., Bissaldi, E., Bloom, E. D., Bonamente, E., Bonnell, J., ... Ziegler, M. (2009). A limit on the variation of the speed of light arising from quantum gravity effects. Nature, 462(7271), 331-334. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature08574

@article{0d69c02b2e3c4312baa505631ac3ca79,

title = "A limit on the variation of the speed of light arising from quantum gravity effects",

abstract = "A cornerstone of Einstein's special relativity is Lorentz invariance-the postulate that all observers measure exactly the same speed of light in vacuum, independent of photon-energy. While special relativity assumes that there is no fundamental length-scale associated with such invariance, there is a fundamental scale (the Planck scale, l(Planck) approximate to 1.62 x 10(-33) cm or E-Planck = M(Planck)c(2) approximate to 1.22 x 10(19) GeV), at which quantum effects are expected to strongly affect the nature of space-time. There is great interest in the (not yet validated) idea that Lorentz invariance might break near the Planck scale. A key test of such violation of Lorentz invariance is a possible variation of photon speed with energy(1-7). Even a tiny variation in photon speed, when accumulated over cosmological light-travel times, may be revealed by observing sharp features in gamma-ray burst (GRB) light-curves(2). Here we report the detection of emission up to similar to 31GeV from the distant and short GRB090510. We find no evidence for the violation of Lorentz invariance, and place a lower limit of 1.2E(Planck) on the scale of a linear energy dependence (or an inverse wavelength dependence), subject to reasonable assumptions about the emission (equivalently we have an upper limit of l(Planck)/1.2 on the length scale of the effect). Our results disfavour quantum-gravity theories(3,6,7) in which the quantum nature of space-time on a very small scale linearly alters the speed of light.",

keywords = "GAMMA-RAY BURSTS, HIGH-ENERGY, VIOLATION, EMISSION, PHOTONS, LORENTZ, TESTS, FOAM",

author = "A.A. Abdo and M. Ackermann and M. Ajello and K. Asano and W.B. Atwood and M. Axelsson and L. Baldini and J. Ballet and G. Barbiellini and Baring, {M. G.} and D. Bastieri and K. Bechtol and R. Bellazzini and B. Berenji and P.N. Bhat and E. Bissaldi and Bloom, {E. D.} and E. Bonamente and J. Bonnell and A.W. Borgland and A. Bouvier and J. Bregeon and A. Brez and M.S. Briggs and M. Brigida and P. Bruel and Burgess, {J. M.} and Burnett, {T. H.} and G.A. Caliandro and R.A. Cameron and P.A. Caraveo and J.M. Casandjian and C. Cecchi and Oe Celik and V. Chaplin and E. Charles and Cheung, {C. C.} and J. Chiang and S. Ciprini and R. Claus and J. Cohen-Tanugi and Cominsky, {L. R.} and V. Connaughton and J. Conrad and S. Cutini and Dermer, {C. D.} and {de Angelis}, A. and {de Palma}, F. and S.W. Digel and Dingus, {B. L.} and {do couto silva}, E. and P.S. Drell and R. Dubois and D. Dumora and C. Farnier and C. Favuzzi and Fegan, {S. J.} and J. Finke and G. Fishman and W.B. Focke and L. Foschini and Y. Fukazawa and S. Funk and P. Fusco and F. Gargano and D. Gasparrini and N. Gehrels and S. Germani and L. Gibby and B. Giebels and N. Giglietto and F. Giordano and T. Glanzman and G. Godfrey and J. Granot and J. Greiner and I.A. Grenier and Grondin, {M. -H.} and Grove, {J. E.} and D. Grupe and L. Guillemot and S. Guiriec and Y. Hanabata and Harding, {A. K.} and M. Hayashida and E. Hays and Hoversten, {E. A.} and R.E. Hughes and G. Johannesson and A.S. Johnson and Johnson, {R. P.} and Johnson, {W. N.} and T. Kamae and H. Katagiri and J. Kataoka and N. Kawai and M. Kerr and R.M. Kippen and J. Knoedlseder and D. Kocevski and C. Kouveliotou and F. Kuehn and M. Kuss and J. Lande and L. Latronico and M. Lemoine-Goumard and F. Longo and F. Loparco and B. Lott and Lovellette, {M. N.} and P. Lubrano and Madejski, {G. M.} and A. Makeev and M.N. Mazziotta and S. McBreen and J.E. McEnery and S. McGlynn and P. Meszaros and C. Meurer and P.F. Michelson and W. Mitthumsiri and T. Mizuno and A.A. Moiseev and C. Monte and M.E. Monzani and E. Moretti and A. Morselli and I.V. Moskalenko and S. Murgia and T. Nakamori and P.L. Nolan and J.P. Norris and E. Nuss and M. Ohno and T. Ohsugi and N. Omodei and E. Orlando and Ormes, {J. F.} and M. Ozaki and Paciesas, {W. S.} and D. Paneque and Panetta, {J. H.} and D. Parent and V. Pelassa and M. Pepe and M. Pesce-Rollins and V. Petrosian and F. Piron and T.A. Porter and R. Preece and S. Raino and E. Ramirez-Ruiz and R. Rando and M. Razzano and S. Razzaque and A. Reimer and O. Reimer and T. Reposeur and S. Ritz and Rochester, {L. S.} and Rodriguez, {A. Y.} and M. Roth and F. Ryde and H.F.W. Sadrozinski and D. Sanchez and A. Sander and Parkinson, {P. M. Saz} and Scargle, {J. D.} and Schalk, {T. L.} and C. Sgro and E.J. Siskind and Smith, {D. A.} and P.D. Smith and G. Spandre and P. Spinelli and M. Stamatikos and Stecker, {F. W.} and M.S. Strickman and Suson, {D. J.} and H. Tajima and H. Takahashi and T. Takahashi and T. Tanaka and Thayer, {J. B.} and J.G. Thayer and D.J. Thompson and L. Tibaldo and K. Toma and D.F. Torres and G. Tosti and E. Troja and Y. Uchiyama and T. Uehara and T.L. Usher and {van der Horst}, {A. J.} and V. Vasileiou and N. Vilchez and V. Vitale and {von Kienlin}, A. and A.P. Waite and P. Wang and C. Wilson-Hodge and B.L. Winer and K.S. Wood and Wu, {X. F.} and R. Yamazaki and T. Ylinen and M. Ziegler",

year = "2009",

month = nov,

day = "19",

doi = "10.1038/nature08574",

language = "English",

volume = "462",

pages = "331--334",

journal = "Nature",

issn = "0028-0836",

publisher = "Nature Research",

number = "7271",

}

Abdo, AA, Ackermann, M, Ajello, M, Asano, K, Atwood, WB, Axelsson, M, Baldini, L, Ballet, J, Barbiellini, G, Baring, MG, Bastieri, D, Bechtol, K, Bellazzini, R, Berenji, B, Bhat, PN, Bissaldi, E, Bloom, ED, Bonamente, E, Bonnell, J, Borgland, AW, Bouvier, A, Bregeon, J, Brez, A, Briggs, MS, Brigida, M, Bruel, P, Burgess, JM, Burnett, TH, Caliandro, GA, Cameron, RA, Caraveo, PA, Casandjian, JM, Cecchi, C, Celik, O, Chaplin, V, Charles, E, Cheung, CC, Chiang, J, Ciprini, S, Claus, R, Cohen-Tanugi, J, Cominsky, LR, Connaughton, V, Conrad, J, Cutini, S, Dermer, CD, de Angelis, A, de Palma, F, Digel, SW, Dingus, BL, do couto silva, E, Drell, PS, Dubois, R, Dumora, D, Farnier, C, Favuzzi, C, Fegan, SJ, Finke, J, Fishman, G, Focke, WB, Foschini, L, Fukazawa, Y, Funk, S, Fusco, P, Gargano, F, Gasparrini, D, Gehrels, N, Germani, S, Gibby, L, Giebels, B, Giglietto, N, Giordano, F, Glanzman, T, Godfrey, G, Granot, J, Greiner, J, Grenier, IA, Grondin, M-H, Grove, JE, Grupe, D, Guillemot, L, Guiriec, S, Hanabata, Y, Harding, AK, Hayashida, M, Hays, E, Hoversten, EA, Hughes, RE, Johannesson, G, Johnson, AS, Johnson, RP, Johnson, WN, Kamae, T, Katagiri, H, Kataoka, J, Kawai, N, Kerr, M, Kippen, RM, Knoedlseder, J, Kocevski, D, Kouveliotou, C, Kuehn, F, Kuss, M, Lande, J, Latronico, L, Lemoine-Goumard, M, Longo, F, Loparco, F, Lott, B, Lovellette, MN, Lubrano, P, Madejski, GM, Makeev, A, Mazziotta, MN, McBreen, S, McEnery, JE, McGlynn, S, Meszaros, P, Meurer, C, Michelson, PF, Mitthumsiri, W, Mizuno, T, Moiseev, AA, Monte, C, Monzani, ME, Moretti, E, Morselli, A, Moskalenko, IV, Murgia, S, Nakamori, T, Nolan, PL, Norris, JP, Nuss, E, Ohno, M, Ohsugi, T, Omodei, N, Orlando, E, Ormes, JF, Ozaki, M, Paciesas, WS, Paneque, D, Panetta, JH, Parent, D, Pelassa, V, Pepe, M, Pesce-Rollins, M, Petrosian, V, Piron, F, Porter, TA, Preece, R, Raino, S, Ramirez-Ruiz, E, Rando, R, Razzano, M, Razzaque, S, Reimer, A, Reimer, O, Reposeur, T, Ritz, S, Rochester, LS, Rodriguez, AY, Roth, M, Ryde, F, Sadrozinski, HFW, Sanchez, D, Sander, A, Parkinson, PMS, Scargle, JD, Schalk, TL, Sgro, C, Siskind, EJ, Smith, DA, Smith, PD, Spandre, G, Spinelli, P, Stamatikos, M, Stecker, FW, Strickman, MS, Suson, DJ, Tajima, H, Takahashi, H, Takahashi, T, Tanaka, T, Thayer, JB, Thayer, JG, Thompson, DJ, Tibaldo, L, Toma, K, Torres, DF, Tosti, G, Troja, E, Uchiyama, Y, Uehara, T, Usher, TL, van der Horst, AJ, Vasileiou, V, Vilchez, N, Vitale, V, von Kienlin, A, Waite, AP, Wang, P, Wilson-Hodge, C, Winer, BL, Wood, KS, Wu, XF, Yamazaki, R, Ylinen, T & Ziegler, M 2009, 'A limit on the variation of the speed of light arising from quantum gravity effects', Nature, vol. 462, no. 7271, pp. 331-334. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature08574

TY - JOUR

T1 - A limit on the variation of the speed of light arising from quantum gravity effects

AU - Abdo, A.A.

AU - Ackermann, M.

AU - Ajello, M.

AU - Asano, K.

AU - Atwood, W.B.

AU - Axelsson, M.

AU - Baldini, L.

AU - Ballet, J.

AU - Barbiellini, G.

AU - Baring, M. G.

AU - Bastieri, D.

AU - Bechtol, K.

AU - Bellazzini, R.

AU - Berenji, B.

AU - Bhat, P.N.

AU - Bissaldi, E.

AU - Bloom, E. D.

AU - Bonamente, E.

AU - Bonnell, J.

AU - Borgland, A.W.

AU - Bouvier, A.

AU - Bregeon, J.

AU - Brez, A.

AU - Briggs, M.S.

AU - Brigida, M.

AU - Bruel, P.

AU - Burgess, J. M.

AU - Burnett, T. H.

AU - Caliandro, G.A.

AU - Cameron, R.A.

AU - Caraveo, P.A.

AU - Casandjian, J.M.

AU - Cecchi, C.

AU - Celik, Oe

AU - Chaplin, V.

AU - Charles, E.

AU - Cheung, C. C.

AU - Chiang, J.

AU - Ciprini, S.

AU - Claus, R.

AU - Cohen-Tanugi, J.

AU - Cominsky, L. R.

AU - Connaughton, V.

AU - Conrad, J.

AU - Cutini, S.

AU - Dermer, C. D.

AU - de Angelis, A.

AU - de Palma, F.

AU - Digel, S.W.

AU - Dingus, B. L.

AU - do couto silva, E.

AU - Drell, P.S.

AU - Dubois, R.

AU - Dumora, D.

AU - Farnier, C.

AU - Favuzzi, C.

AU - Fegan, S. J.

AU - Finke, J.

AU - Fishman, G.

AU - Focke, W.B.

AU - Foschini, L.

AU - Fukazawa, Y.

AU - Funk, S.

AU - Fusco, P.

AU - Gargano, F.

AU - Gasparrini, D.

AU - Gehrels, N.

AU - Germani, S.

AU - Gibby, L.

AU - Giebels, B.

AU - Giglietto, N.

AU - Giordano, F.

AU - Glanzman, T.

AU - Godfrey, G.

AU - Granot, J.

AU - Greiner, J.

AU - Grenier, I.A.

AU - Grondin, M. -H.

AU - Grove, J. E.

AU - Grupe, D.

AU - Guillemot, L.

AU - Guiriec, S.

AU - Hanabata, Y.

AU - Harding, A. K.

AU - Hayashida, M.

AU - Hays, E.

AU - Hoversten, E. A.

AU - Hughes, R.E.

AU - Johannesson, G.

AU - Johnson, A.S.

AU - Johnson, R. P.

AU - Johnson, W. N.

AU - Kamae, T.

AU - Katagiri, H.

AU - Kataoka, J.

AU - Kawai, N.

AU - Kerr, M.

AU - Kippen, R.M.

AU - Knoedlseder, J.

AU - Kocevski, D.

AU - Kouveliotou, C.

AU - Kuehn, F.

AU - Kuss, M.

AU - Lande, J.

AU - Latronico, L.

AU - Lemoine-Goumard, M.

AU - Longo, F.

AU - Loparco, F.

AU - Lott, B.

AU - Lovellette, M. N.

AU - Lubrano, P.

AU - Madejski, G. M.

AU - Makeev, A.

AU - Mazziotta, M.N.

AU - McBreen, S.

AU - McEnery, J.E.

AU - McGlynn, S.

AU - Meszaros, P.

AU - Meurer, C.

AU - Michelson, P.F.

AU - Mitthumsiri, W.

AU - Mizuno, T.

AU - Moiseev, A.A.

AU - Monte, C.

AU - Monzani, M.E.

AU - Moretti, E.

AU - Morselli, A.

AU - Moskalenko, I.V.

AU - Murgia, S.

AU - Nakamori, T.

AU - Nolan, P.L.

AU - Norris, J.P.

AU - Nuss, E.

AU - Ohno, M.

AU - Ohsugi, T.

AU - Omodei, N.

AU - Orlando, E.

AU - Ormes, J. F.

AU - Ozaki, M.

AU - Paciesas, W. S.

AU - Paneque, D.

AU - Panetta, J. H.

AU - Parent, D.

AU - Pelassa, V.

AU - Pepe, M.

AU - Pesce-Rollins, M.

AU - Petrosian, V.

AU - Piron, F.

AU - Porter, T.A.

AU - Preece, R.

AU - Raino, S.

AU - Ramirez-Ruiz, E.

AU - Rando, R.

AU - Razzano, M.

AU - Razzaque, S.

AU - Reimer, A.

AU - Reimer, O.

AU - Reposeur, T.

AU - Ritz, S.

AU - Rochester, L. S.

AU - Rodriguez, A. Y.

AU - Roth, M.

AU - Ryde, F.

AU - Sadrozinski, H.F.W.

AU - Sanchez, D.

AU - Sander, A.

AU - Parkinson, P. M. Saz

AU - Scargle, J. D.

AU - Schalk, T. L.

AU - Sgro, C.

AU - Siskind, E.J.

AU - Smith, D. A.

AU - Smith, P.D.

AU - Spandre, G.

AU - Spinelli, P.

AU - Stamatikos, M.

AU - Stecker, F. W.

AU - Strickman, M.S.

AU - Suson, D. J.

AU - Tajima, H.

AU - Takahashi, H.

AU - Takahashi, T.

AU - Tanaka, T.

AU - Thayer, J. B.

AU - Thayer, J.G.

AU - Thompson, D.J.

AU - Tibaldo, L.

AU - Toma, K.

AU - Torres, D.F.

AU - Tosti, G.

AU - Troja, E.

AU - Uchiyama, Y.

AU - Uehara, T.

AU - Usher, T.L.

AU - van der Horst, A. J.

AU - Vasileiou, V.

AU - Vilchez, N.

AU - Vitale, V.

AU - von Kienlin, A.

AU - Waite, A.P.

AU - Wang, P.

AU - Wilson-Hodge, C.

AU - Winer, B.L.

AU - Wood, K.S.

AU - Wu, X. F.

AU - Yamazaki, R.

AU - Ylinen, T.

AU - Ziegler, M.

PY - 2009/11/19

Y1 - 2009/11/19

N2 - A cornerstone of Einstein's special relativity is Lorentz invariance-the postulate that all observers measure exactly the same speed of light in vacuum, independent of photon-energy. While special relativity assumes that there is no fundamental length-scale associated with such invariance, there is a fundamental scale (the Planck scale, l(Planck) approximate to 1.62 x 10(-33) cm or E-Planck = M(Planck)c(2) approximate to 1.22 x 10(19) GeV), at which quantum effects are expected to strongly affect the nature of space-time. There is great interest in the (not yet validated) idea that Lorentz invariance might break near the Planck scale. A key test of such violation of Lorentz invariance is a possible variation of photon speed with energy(1-7). Even a tiny variation in photon speed, when accumulated over cosmological light-travel times, may be revealed by observing sharp features in gamma-ray burst (GRB) light-curves(2). Here we report the detection of emission up to similar to 31GeV from the distant and short GRB090510. We find no evidence for the violation of Lorentz invariance, and place a lower limit of 1.2E(Planck) on the scale of a linear energy dependence (or an inverse wavelength dependence), subject to reasonable assumptions about the emission (equivalently we have an upper limit of l(Planck)/1.2 on the length scale of the effect). Our results disfavour quantum-gravity theories(3,6,7) in which the quantum nature of space-time on a very small scale linearly alters the speed of light.

AB - A cornerstone of Einstein's special relativity is Lorentz invariance-the postulate that all observers measure exactly the same speed of light in vacuum, independent of photon-energy. While special relativity assumes that there is no fundamental length-scale associated with such invariance, there is a fundamental scale (the Planck scale, l(Planck) approximate to 1.62 x 10(-33) cm or E-Planck = M(Planck)c(2) approximate to 1.22 x 10(19) GeV), at which quantum effects are expected to strongly affect the nature of space-time. There is great interest in the (not yet validated) idea that Lorentz invariance might break near the Planck scale. A key test of such violation of Lorentz invariance is a possible variation of photon speed with energy(1-7). Even a tiny variation in photon speed, when accumulated over cosmological light-travel times, may be revealed by observing sharp features in gamma-ray burst (GRB) light-curves(2). Here we report the detection of emission up to similar to 31GeV from the distant and short GRB090510. We find no evidence for the violation of Lorentz invariance, and place a lower limit of 1.2E(Planck) on the scale of a linear energy dependence (or an inverse wavelength dependence), subject to reasonable assumptions about the emission (equivalently we have an upper limit of l(Planck)/1.2 on the length scale of the effect). Our results disfavour quantum-gravity theories(3,6,7) in which the quantum nature of space-time on a very small scale linearly alters the speed of light.

KW - GAMMA-RAY BURSTS

KW - HIGH-ENERGY

KW - VIOLATION

KW - EMISSION

KW - PHOTONS

KW - LORENTZ

KW - TESTS

KW - FOAM

U2 - 10.1038/nature08574

DO - 10.1038/nature08574

M3 - Article

SN - 0028-0836

VL - 462

SP - 331

EP - 334

JO - Nature

JF - Nature

IS - 7271

ER -

A limit on the variation of the speed of light arising from quantum gravity effects

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