Special relativity and electromagnetism

But the row of moving electrons is contracted in the lab frame, compared to what the cat sees. You can see that in your screencaps from the video too -- Derek sees 10 electrons per image width, whereas in the rest frame of the electrons there are only about 8½ electrons per image width.

What is potentially confusing is that as far as the electrons themselves are aware (electrons are not "aware" of anything, but never mind), they are not that the same mutual distance when they are moving as when the wire carried no current.

In other words, the row of electrons is not a rigid object. If each pair of neighboring electrons had been separated by a little rigid rod, the electrons would have to come closer together when the current starts flowing. But there are no such rods, and the row of electrons is free to stretch when the current begins to flow, and this stretching is exactly canceled out by the length contraction, such that in the lab it looks like the distance between the moving electrons is the same as the distance between the stationary protons.

What does the cat see? When the wire didn't carry current, the electrons and protons moved backwards together at the same speed (and with the same contracted spacing as the cat sees the protons have during the entire experiment). Then, when the current starts to flow, the electrons in front of the cat begin coming to a halt (with respect to the cat) slightly before those behind it. So from the cat's point of view the row of electrons get significantly stretched.

Meanwhile, Derek will see all the electrons begin to move at the same time. The cat and Derek do not agree whether two electrons changed their velocity at the same time or not -- this is relativity of simultaneity and is mathematically necessary to make length contraction consistent.



Yet, the video suggests that a non-moving charged cat in proximity to a current-carrying wire will experience no force one way or the other.

First, consider the current carrying wire without concern for the cat.

We stipulate that in the frame of reference in which the wire is at rest, the wire is electrically neutral.

The above is crucial. If there is a positively charged cat at rest with respect to the wire, there is no Lorentz force acting on the cat since

(1) the wire is electrically neutral in this frame

(2) the cat is at rest in this frame

Now, stipulate that the cat is moving along with the drift electrons. Then, in the frame in which the wire is at rest, the cat is acted on by a magnetic force only since, in this frame, the wire is, by stipulation, electrically neutral.

However, in the frame in which the cat is at rest, then, compared to the rest frame of the wire, we have

(1) the drift electron density is smaller

(2) the fixed positive charge density is larger

Thus, the wire is no longer electrically neutral in this frame and there is an electric force only acting on the cat.

In other relatively moving frames, there are both electric and magnetic forces acting on the cat.


Update to address edited question.

Wait...what? Why is it that in the cat's frame, the protons are moving, are contracted, and the wire is charged, but in Derek's frame, the electrons are moving, but are not contracted, and the wire is still neutral?

You're not thinking clearly here. The following three statements can all be true without logical contradiction:

(1) Electrons in the wire are moving in Derek's frame

(2) The moving electron density is greater (their spacing is contracted) in Derek's frame compared to some (but not all$^1$) relatively moving frames.

(3) The wire is electrically neutral in Derek's frame.


1: in relatively moving frames in which the mobile electrons have less speed, their density is less than in Derek's frame - in relatively moving frames in which the mobile electrons have more speed, their density is greater than in Derek's frame