The Michelson-Morley experiment in an accelerated reference frame

Abstract

We analyze the Michelson-Morley experiment in a reference frame moving with constant proper acceleration. Interestingly, we find an expected fringe shift which depends not only on the interferometer's rate of acceleration, but also on its speed relative to a preferred absolute reference frame. While it has been repeatedly shown that no experiment performed in an inertial reference frame can detect that frame's absolute speed, the analysis in this paper suggests that by considering experiments in accelerated reference frames it may be possible to measure absolute speed after all.