Eötvös experiment

E287397

physics experiment test of the equivalence principle

The Eötvös experiment is a classic physics test of the equivalence principle that measures whether different materials fall with the same acceleration in a gravitational field.

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All labels observed (3)

Label	Occurrences
Eöt-Wash experiments	1
Eötvös experiment canonical	1
Eötvös torsion balance experiment	1

How this entity was disambiguated

This entity first appeared as the object of triple T2682844 — resolving that mention is where its identity was fixed. The disambiguator weighed these candidate entities and picked the highlighted one (or “None”, minting a new entity). This is how homonymy is resolved: the same surface form can point to different entities.

NED1 Entity disambiguation (via context triple) gpt-5-mini-2025-08-07

Target entity: Eötvös experiment
Context triple: [MICROSCOPE, relatedConcept, Eötvös experiment]

A. Cavendish experiment
The Cavendish experiment was an 18th-century physics experiment by Henry Cavendish that measured the tiny gravitational attraction between lead spheres, allowing the first calculation of the gravitational constant and the mass of the Earth.
B. Ives–Stilwell experiment
The Ives–Stilwell experiment is a classic test of special relativity that measured the relativistic Doppler effect to confirm time dilation for fast-moving ions.
C. Michelson–Morley experiment
The Michelson–Morley experiment was a landmark 1887 physics experiment that attempted to detect the Earth's motion through the hypothesized luminiferous aether and whose null result helped pave the way for Einstein's theory of special relativity.
D. Trouton–Noble experiment
The Trouton–Noble experiment was an early 20th-century test of the luminiferous aether that searched for a torque on a charged capacitor in motion and, by finding no such effect, provided support for the emerging theory of special relativity.
E. Fizeau experiment
The Fizeau experiment was a pioneering 19th-century physics experiment that measured the speed of light using a rotating toothed wheel and helped establish light’s finite velocity.
F. None of above. chosen
G. Unsure - the case is ambiguous/there is not enough information to decide.

NED2 Entity disambiguation (via description) gpt-5-mini-2025-08-07

Target entity: Eötvös experiment
Target entity description: The Eötvös experiment is a classic physics test of the equivalence principle that measures whether different materials fall with the same acceleration in a gravitational field.

A. Cavendish experiment
The Cavendish experiment was an 18th-century physics experiment by Henry Cavendish that measured the tiny gravitational attraction between lead spheres, allowing the first calculation of the gravitational constant and the mass of the Earth.
B. Ives–Stilwell experiment
The Ives–Stilwell experiment is a classic test of special relativity that measured the relativistic Doppler effect to confirm time dilation for fast-moving ions.
C. Michelson–Morley experiment
The Michelson–Morley experiment was a landmark 1887 physics experiment that attempted to detect the Earth's motion through the hypothesized luminiferous aether and whose null result helped pave the way for Einstein's theory of special relativity.
D. Trouton–Noble experiment
The Trouton–Noble experiment was an early 20th-century test of the luminiferous aether that searched for a torque on a charged capacitor in motion and, by finding no such effect, provided support for the emerging theory of special relativity.
E. Fizeau experiment
The Fizeau experiment was a pioneering 19th-century physics experiment that measured the speed of light using a rotating toothed wheel and helped establish light’s finite velocity.
F. None of above. chosen

Statements (36)

Predicate	Object
instanceOf	physics experiment ⓘ test of the equivalence principle ⓘ
aimsTo	determine whether inertial mass and gravitational mass are proportional ⓘ
alsoKnownAs	Eötvös torsion balance experiment ⓘ linked to: Eötvös experiment
category	classical mechanics experiment ⓘ gravitational experiment ⓘ
demonstrates	independence of free-fall acceleration from material composition within experimental limits ⓘ
field	experimental gravitation ⓘ gravitational physics ⓘ physics ⓘ
hasEffectOn	bounds on composition-dependent forces ⓘ constraints on violations of the equivalence principle ⓘ
improvedBy	Eöt-Wash experiments ⓘ linked to: Eötvös experiment
influenced	development of general relativity ⓘ
location	Hungary ⓘ
measures	difference in acceleration of different materials in a gravitational field ⓘ possible composition dependence of gravitational acceleration ⓘ
method	measure tiny torques on a torsion balance due to differential gravitational acceleration ⓘ
namedAfter	Loránd Eötvös ⓘ
performedBy	Loránd Eötvös ⓘ Roland von Eötvös ⓘ
precision	very high sensitivity to small differences in acceleration ⓘ
relatedConcept	equivalence principle ⓘ gravitational mass ⓘ inertial mass ⓘ torsion balance ⓘ universality of free fall ⓘ
result	no detectable difference in free-fall acceleration for different materials within experimental accuracy ⓘ
supportsTheory	Einstein's general theory of relativity ⓘ linked to: theory of relativity
tests	universality of free fall ⓘ weak equivalence principle ⓘ linked to: equivalence principle
timePeriod	early 20th century ⓘ late 19th century ⓘ
usedAs	benchmark for later equivalence principle tests ⓘ
uses	carefully balanced test masses of different composition ⓘ torsion balance ⓘ

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (3)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

MICROSCOPE → relatedConcept → Eötvös experiment ⓘ

subject linked to: MICROSCOPE satellite mission

Eötvös experiment → improvedBy → Eöt-Wash experiments ⓘ

linked to: Eötvös experiment

Eötvös experiment → alsoKnownAs → Eötvös torsion balance experiment ⓘ