A CLASS OF COLLISIONS OF PLANE IMPULSIVE LIGHT-LIKE SIGNALS IN GENERAL RELATIVITY

Abstract

We present a systematic study of collisions of homogeneous, plane- fronted, impulsive light-like signals which do not interact after head-on collision. For the head-on collision of two such signals, six real parameters are involved, three from each of the incoming signals. We find two necessary conditions to be satisfied by these six parameters for the signals to be noninteracting after collision. We then solve the collision problem in the general case when these necessary conditions hold. After collision the two signals focus each other at Weyl curvature singularities on each others signal front. Our family of solutions contains some known collision solutions as special cases.