It is important to clarify that Albert Einstein did not prove the existence of the luminiferous aether from the failure of the Michelson-Morley experiment. In fact, his work on the theory of relativity was largely motivated by the abandonment of the concept of the aether, which was a hypothetical medium thought to be responsible for transmitting electromagnetic waves.
The Michelson-Morley experiment, conducted in 1887 by Albert A. Michelson and Edward W. Morley, aimed to detect the motion of the Earth through the aether by measuring the speed of light in different directions. The experiment involved splitting a beam of light and sending it along two perpendicular paths. According to the prevailing theory at the time, the speed of light should have been affected differently depending on whether it was moving with or against the motion of the aether. However, the results consistently showed no detectable difference, challenging the prevailing belief in the existence of the aether.
Einstein's work on the theory of relativity, particularly his special theory of relativity published in 1905, was a radical departure from the concept of the aether. Rather than attempting to prove its existence, Einstein's theory dispensed with the need for an aether altogether. It proposed that the laws of physics should remain the same for all observers in uniform motion relative to each other, regardless of their reference frame. In this framework, the speed of light in a vacuum is constant for all observers, regardless of their motion. This concept eliminated the need for a stationary aether and explained the results of the Michelson-Morley experiment.
Einstein's theory of relativity, with its emphasis on the constancy of the speed of light and the absence of an aether, provided a new and more comprehensive framework for understanding the nature of space, time, and the behavior of light. It revolutionized our understanding of physics and has since been supported by numerous experiments and observations.