Gravitoelectromagnetic Field Strength Tensor in Flat Spacetime Frame: Dynamics of a Gyroscope in the Earth’s Gravitational Field

Abstract

In this article, we develop gravitoelectromagnetism (GEM) as a formal relativistic theory of gravitation characterized by a field potential fourvector in a flat (Minkowski) spacetime frame. By reorganizing the Lense-Thirring spacetime metric of linearized general relativity, we have determined the appropriate field potential four-vector and the field strength tensor which generates dynamics in the GEM field. The general covariant equation of motion of the spin four-vector of a gyroscope driven by the GEM field strength tensor provides the expected form of the frame-dragging and geodetic effects after introducing a gyromagnetic ratio η = 4 as an internal dynamical property of the gyroscope.