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47 views18 pagesMaxwell Differential Recording Potentials Installation
Maxwell's equations, or Maxwell–Heaviside equations, are a set of coupled partial differential equations that, together with the Lorentz force law, form the foundation of classical electromagnetism, classical optics, and electric circuits. The equations provide a mathematical model for electric, optical, and radio technologies, such as power generation, electric motors, wireless communication, lenses, radar, etc. They describe how electric and magnetic fields are generated by charges, currents,
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47 views18 pagesMaxwell Differential Recording Potentials Installation
Maxwell's equations, or Maxwell–Heaviside equations, are a set of coupled partial differential equations that, together with the Lorentz force law, form the foundation of classical electromagnetism, classical optics, and electric circuits. The equations provide a mathematical model for electric, optical, and radio technologies, such as power generation, electric motors, wireless communication, lenses, radar, etc. They describe how electric and magnetic fields are generated by charges, currents,
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© © All Rights Reserved
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Available Formats
Download as PDF or read online on Scribd
/ 18
WixipepiA
‘The Free Encyclopedia
‘WikireDiA.
Maxwell's equations
Maxwell's equations, or Maxwell—Heaviside equations, are a set of coupled partial differential equations
that, together with the Lorentz force law, form the foundation of classical electromagnetism, classical opties, and
electric circuits. The equations provide a mathematical model for electric, optical, and radio technologies, such
as power generation, electric motors, wireless communication, lenses, radar, etc. They describe how electric and
magnetic fields are generated by charges, currents, and changes of the fields.!"°e “I ‘The equations are named
after the physicist and mathematician James Clerk Maxwell, who, in 1861 and 1862, published an early form of
the equations that included the Lorentz force law. Maxwell first used the equations to propose that light is an
electromagnetic phenomenon. The modern form of the equations in their most common formulation is credited
to Oliver Heaviside,(4]
Maxwell's equations may be combined to demonstrate how fluctuations in electromagnetic fields (waves)
propagate at a constant speed in vacuum, c (299 792 458 m/s).'2 Known as electromagnetic radiation, these
‘waves occur at various wavelengths to produce a spectrum of radiation from radio waves to gamma ra
The equations have two major variants. The microscopic equations have universal applicability but are unwieldy
for common calculations. They relate the electric and magnetic fields to total charge and total current, including,
the complicated charges and currents in materials at the atomic scale. The macroscopic equations define two
new auxiliary fields that describe the large-scale behaviour of matter without having to consider atomic-scale
charges and quantum phenomena like spins. However, their use requires experimentally determined
parameters for a phenomenological description of the electromagnetic response of materials. The term
“Maxwell's equations" is often also used for equivalent alternative formulations. Versions of Maxwell's equations
based on the electric and magnetic scalar potentials are preferred for explicitly solving the equations as a
boundary value problem, analytical mechanics, or for use in quantum mechanics. The covariant formulation (on
spacetime rather than space and time separately) makes the compatibility of Maxwell's equations with special
relativity manifest. Maxwell's equations in curved spacetime, commonly used in high-energy and gravitational
physics, are compatible with general relativity.("° 2] In fact, Albert Einstein developed special and general
relativity to accommodate the invariant speed of light, a consequence of Maxwell's equations, with the principle
that only relative movement has physical consequences.
The publication of the equations marked the unification of a theory for previously separately described
phenomena: magnetism, electricity, light, and associated radiation. Since the mid-zoth century, it has been
understood that Maxwell's equations do not give an exact description of electromagnetic phenomena, but are
instead a classical limit of the more precise theory of quantum electrodynamics.
History of the equations
Conceptual descriptions
Gauss's law
Gauss's law describes the relationship between an electric field and electric charges: an
electric field points away from positive charges and towards negative charges, and the net,
outflow of the electric field through a closed surface is proportional to the enclosed charge,
including bound charge due to polarization of material. ‘The coefficient of the proportion is, '
the permittivity of free space. Electric field from
positive to
Gauss's law for magnetism
Gauss's law for magnetism states that electric charges have no magnetic analogues, called magnetic monopole:
no north or south magnetic poles exist in isolation.!3) Instead, the magnetic field of a is attributed to a
dipole, and the net outflow of the magnetic field through a closed surface is zero. Magnetic dipoles may be represented as loops of current or inseparable pairs of equal and opposite
“magnetic charges". Precisely, the total magnetic flux through a Gaussian
surface is zero, and the magnetic field is a solenoidal vector field.2%3)
Faraday's law
induction describes how a
time-varying magnetic
field corresponds to curl of -—/ NN
an electric field 3) In Gauss aw for magnetism
integral form, it states that jpagnotc field lines never begin nor
the work per unit charge nd bu
The — Maxwell-Faraday < ~|
version of Faraday’s law of )
orm loops or extend to
required to move a charge _injniy as shown here wit the
In a goomagnotic storm, a surge in the fax of around a closed loop magnetic field ave to @ ring of
charged paricles temporarily alters Earth's magnetic equals the rate of change — current
fel, which induces electric fields in Earth's of the magnetic flux
atmosphere, thus causing surges in electrcel power through the enclosed
aris. (Not to scale.) surface.
‘The electromagnetic induction is the operating principle
behind many electric generators: for example, a rotating bar magnet creates a changing magnetic field and
generates an electric field in a nearby wire.
Ampére's law with Maxwell's addition
The original law of Ampére states that magnetic fields relate to electric
current. Maxwell's addition states that magnetic fields also relate to
changing electric fields, which Maxwell called displacement current. The
integral form states that electric and displacement currents are associated
with a proportional magnetic field along any enclosing curve.
Maxwell's addition to Ampére's law is important because the laws of Ampére
and Gauss must otherwise be adjusted for static fields."4) As a consequence,
it predicts that a rotating magnetic field occurs with a changing electric
field.SI5] A further consequence is the existence of self-sustaining
clectromagnetic waves which travel through empty space.
Magnetic-core memory (19
application of Ampére's law. Each
core stores one bit of data,
The speed calculated for electromagnetic waves, which could be predicted
from experiments on charges and currents," 4] matches the speed of light
indeed, light is one form of electromagnetic radiation (as are X-rays, radio waves, and others). Maxwell
understood the connection between electromagnetic waves and light in 1861, thereby unifying the theories of
electromagnetism and opti
Formulation in terms of electric and magnetic fields
Gnicroscopic or in vacuum version)
In the electric and magnetic ficld formulation there are four equations that determine the fields for given charge
and current distribution. A separate law of nature, the Lorentz force law, describes how, conversely, the electric
and magnetic fields act on charged particles and currents. A version of this law was included in the original
equations by Maxwell but, by convention, is included no longer. The vector calculus formalism below, the work
of Oliver Heaviside,!*ll7) has become standard. It is manifestly rotation invariant, and therefore mathematically
much more transparent than Maxwell’ al 20 equations in x,y,z components. The relativistic formulations
are even more symmetric and manifestly Lorentz invariant. For the same equations expressed using tensor
calculus or differential forms, see § Alternative formulations, The differential and integral formulations are mathematically equivalent; both are useful. The integral
formulation relates fields within a region of space to fields on the boundary and can often be used to simplify
and directly calculate fields from symmetric distributions of charges and currents. On the other hand, the
differential equations are purely local and are a more natural starting point for calculating the fields in more
complicated (less symmetric) situations, for example using finite element analysis.(*)
Key to the notation
Symbols in bold represent vector quantities, and symbols in italics represent scalar quantities, unless otherwise
indicated. The equations introduce the electric field, E, a vector field, and the magnetic field, B, a pseudovector
field, each generally having a time and location dependence. The sources are
1 the total electric charge density (total charge per unit volume), p, and
+ the total electric current density (total current per unit area), J.
The universal constants appearing in th
are:
squations (the first two ones explicitly only in the ST units formulation)
* the permittivity of free space, go, and
«= the permeability of free space, ig, and
1
+ the speed of light, ¢
veoro
Differential equations
In the differential equations,
* the nabla symbol, V, denotes the three-dimensional gradient operator, del,
* the V- symbol (pronounced "del dot") denotes the divergence operator,
* the Vx symbol (pronounced "del cross") denotes the curl operator.
Integral equations
In the integral equations,
= Qis any volume with closed boundary surface 20, and
= Eis any surface with closed boundary curve dE,
The equations are a little easier to interpret with time-independent surfaces and volumes. ‘Time-independent
surfaces and volumes are "fixed" and do not change over a given time interval. For example, since the surface is
time-independent, we can bring the differentiation under the integral sign in Faraday's law:
4 0B
a [[3-28- [[ Fs,
Maxwell's equations can be formulated with possibly time-dependent surfaces and volumes by using the
differential version and using Gauss and Stokes formula appropriately.
. df is a surface integral over the boundary surface ©, with the loop indicating the surface is closed
an
. Sf. is a volume integral over the volume 2,
in
. f is a line integral around the boundary curve GE, with the loop indicating the curve is closed.
lox . I ff is a surface integral over the surface ©,
Is
+ The total electric charge Q enclosed in {2s the volume integral over © of the charge density p (see the
“macroscopic formulation” section below)’
a= ff av,
where dV’is the volume element,
= The net electric current / is the surface integral of the electric current density J passing through a fixed
surface, 3:
1= ff. s-as,
where dS denotes the differential vector element of surface area S, normal to surface 5. (Vector area is,
sometimes denoted by A rather than S, but this conflicts with the notation for magnetic vector potential)
Formulation in SI units convention
Name Integral equations Different! equations
Gaetan fhe 8-4 fifo vpae
caunctwternoancen ff) Bas =0 vB-o
a
Maxwell_Faraday equation ate ff . xpo 2B
(Faraday's law of induction) fy, B= ae Jf BAS VxE=-3
‘Ampar's circuit aw (vith “ate asset [fp. pe me
Maxwel's addition) f> atmo ( ffs a8 +005 Ile 8) Vx B= mW (I-00
Formulation in Gaussian units convention
The definitions of charge, electric field, and magnetic field can be altered to simplify theoretical calculation, by
absorbing dimensioned factors of ¢g and jg into the units of calculation, by convention. With a corresponding
change in convention for the Lorentz force law this yields the same physics, i.e. trajectories of charged particles,
or work done by an electric motor. These definitions are often preferred in theoretical and high energy physics
where it is natural to take the electric and magnetic field with the same units, to simplify the appearance of the
electromagnetic tensor: the Lorentz covariant object unifying electric and magnetic field would then contain
components with uniform unit and dimension.(9!™# Such modified definitions are conventionally used with the
Gaussian (CGS) units. Using these definitions and conventions, colloquially "in Gaussian units","©! the Maxwell
equations become:
Name Integral equations Ditlerential equations
Gauss’ tw dt B25 <4 fff oa V-B=4np
,, I,
Gauss's law for magnetism dt B-ds V-B=0
De
tfargaystewateductor) | fo 24 [LPs
‘Ampare's circuit law (with
Maxwell's addition)
(1 [[3-48+& [[-=-+8) The equations simplify slightly when a system of quantities is chosen in the speed of light, c, is used for
nondimensionalization, so that, for example, seconds and lightseconds are interchangeable, and
Further changes are possible by absorbing factors of 4. This process, called tion, affects whether
Coulomb's law or Gauss’s law includes such a factor (see Heaviside—Lorentz units, used mainly in particle
physics).
Relationship between differential and integral formulations
‘The equivalence of the differential and integral formulations are a consequence of the Gauss divergence theorem
and the Kelvin—Stokes theorem.
Flux and divergence
According to the (purely mathematical) Gauss divergence theorem, the F.
electrie flux through the boundary surface 62 can be rewritten as
aa
op 38= ff. vay ‘
The integral version of Gauss's equation can thus be rewritten as
If], (@*-&)e"-° soa
closed boundary
2, containing (respectively
Since Q is arbitrary (e.g. an arbitrary small ball with arbitrary center), this is enclosing) a source (1) and sink (—)
satisfied if and only if the integrand is zero everywhere. This is the of a vector field F. Here, F could
differential equations formulation of Gauss equation up to a trivial the E field with source electric
rearrangement. charges, but not the B field, which
has no magnetic charges as shown.
The outward unitnermel isn.
Similarly rewriting the magnetic flux in Gauss’s law for magnetism in
integral form gives
fp,B = [[f.v-aev 0.
which is satisfied for all Q if and only if V - B = 0 everywhere.
Circulation and curl
By the Kelvin-Stokes theorem we can rewrite the line integrals of the fields
around the closed boundary curve 05 to an integral of the "circulation of the F
fields" (i.e. their curls) over a surface it bounds, i.e.
f, B-at= [fv xn)-as, aly
Hence the modified Ampere law in integral form can be rewritten as
di
[f, (0+ -m (+602) -a8=0
Is ot Surface © with closed boundary 23.
F could be the E or B fields. Again,
nis the unit normal. (The curl of a
‘vector field does nat literally look
lke the “cireulations"
Since E can be chosen arbitrarily, e.g. as an arbitrary small, arbitrary
oriented, and arbitrary centered disk, we conclude that the integrand is zero
if and only if Ampere’s modified law in differential equations form is
satisfied. The equivalence of Faraday’s law in differential and integral form
follows likewise.
hhouristc depiction.) The line integrals and curls are analogous to quantities in classical fluid dynamics: the circulation of a fluid is
the line integral of the fluid's flow velocity field around a closed loop, and the vorticity of the fluid is the curl of
the velocity field,
Charge conservation
‘The invariance of charge can be derived as a corollary of Maxwell's equations. The left-hand side of the modified
Ampere's law has zero divergence by the div-curl identity. Expanding the divergence of the right-hand side,
interchanging derivatives, and applying Gauss's
law gives:
0=V-(VxB)=V (1 (2+052)) =m (v-s+e05-0-8) =m (v-34+ 2)
ie,
op
Atv sao.
By the Gauss divergence theorem, this means the rate of change of charge in a fixed volume equals the net
current flowing through the boundary:
G00=§ [ff oav =— ff 48 = te.
In particular, in an isolated system the total charge is conserved.
Vacuum equations, electromagnetic waves and speed of light
In a region with no charges (p = 0) and no currents (J = 0), such as in a
vacuum, Maxwell's equations reduce to: é
eee
Taking the curl (V*) of the curl equations, and using the curl of the curl
identity we obtain
This a0 diagram shows a plane
linearly polarized wave propagating
{rom left to right, defined by
E=Ep sin(-ar*k- #) and
B= By sin(-wr + k- F) The
oscillating fields are detected at the
flashing point. The horizontal
wavelength is A
Ep: By =0= Ey: k=By:k
The quantity ji) has the dimension of (time/length)®. Defining
¢ = (yo€0)~"?, the equations above have the form of the standard wave equations Already during Maxwell's lifetime, it was found that the known values for € and jig give ¢ © 2.998 x 10° m/s,
then already known to be the speed of light in free space. This led him to propose that light and radio waves,
‘were propagating electromagnetic waves, since amply confirmed. In the old SI system of units, the values of
Mo =4n x10? and c= 299792458 m/s are defined constants, (which means that by definition
€9 = 8.854... x 107? F/m) that define the ampere and the metre. In the new SI system, only ¢ keeps its
defined value, and the electron charge gets a defined value.
In materials with rel
ive permittivity, ¢,, and relative permeabi
the phase velocity of light becomes
1
ViOreEOee
Up
which is usually!™°®5) Jess than c.
In addition, E and B are perpendicular to each other and to the direction of wave propagation, and are in phase
with each other. A sinusoidal plane wave is one special solution of these equations. Maxwell’s equations explain
how these waves can physically propagate through space. The changing magnetic field creates a changing
electric field through Faraday's law. In turn, that electric field creates a changing magnetic field through
Maxwell's addition to Ampére’s law. This perpetual cycle allows these waves, now known as electromagnetic
radiation, to move through space at velocity
Macroscopic formulation
‘The above equations are the microscopic version of Maxwell's equations, expressing the electric and the
magnetic fields in terms of the (possibly atomic-level) charges and currents present. This is sometimes called the
“general” form, but the macroscopic version below is equally general, the difference being one of bookkeeping.
The microscopic version is sometimes called "Maxwell's equations in a vacuum”: this refers to the fact that the
material medium is not built into the structure of the equations, but appears only in the charge and current
terms. The microscopic version was introduced by Lorentz, who tried to use it to derive the macroscopic
properties of bulk matter from its microscopic constituents."'21:5
"Maxwell's macroscopic equations", also known as Maxwell's equations in matter, are more similar to those
that Maxwell introduced himself.
Name Integral equations Differential equations | Differential equations
(Gi convention) {Sleonvention) (Gaussian convention)
Gauss’s law fps- [for V-D=m V-D = 4p,
loa
Ampére’s ciruital aw (with or) a. aD)
Maxwel's addition) VXBaSet Gp Vx ES (Aad
Gause's aw for magnetism
Maxwell-Faraday equation __B 16B
(Faraday's law of induction) VxXE=-3 co
In the macroscopic equations, the influence of bound charge Q and bound current /, is incorporated into the
displacement field D and the magnetizing field H,, while the equations depend only on the free charges Qp and
free currents /p. This reflects a splitting of the total electric charge Q and current I (and their densities p and J)
into free and bound parts: = 0+ = fff (orm) av = fff pav,
tah ff ae+4)-08- ff s-es.
The cost of this splitting is that the additional fields D and H need to be determined through phenomenological
constituent equations relating these fields to the electric field E and the magnetic field B, together with the
bound charge and current.
See below for a detailed description of the differences between the microscopic equations, dealing with total
charge and current including material contributions, useful in air/vacuum;!®*®! and the macroscopic
equations, dealing with free charge and current, practical to use within materials.
Bound charge and current
‘When an electric field is applied to a dielectric material its
molecules respond by forming microscopic electric dipoles —
their atomic nuclei move a tiny distance in the direction of the
field, while their electrons move a tiny distance in the opposite
direction. This produces a macroscopic bound charge in the
material even though all of the charges involved are bound to
individual molecules. For example, if every molecule responds Q QAO
the same, similar to that shown in the figure, these tiny
movements of charge combine to produce a layer of positive COOC
bound charge on one side of the material and a layer of negative | "P=
charge on the other side. The bound charge is most conveniently Left: schematic view of hw an assembly of
described in terms of the polarization P of the material, its dipole microscopic ciples producos opposite surface
moment per unit volume. If P is uniform, a macroscopic charges as shown at top and bottom. Right: How
separation of charge is produced only at the surfaces where P an assembly of microscopic current loops ade
enters and leaves the material. For non-uniform P, a charge is _logether to produce a macroscopically circulating
also produced in the bulk, 231 current loop. Inside the boundaries, the individual
contributions tend to cancel, but at he boundaries
elation occurs
CC
CC
1D OO O@O
1D OO @O
OD OO OO
1D OO @O
Somewhat similarly, in all materials the constituent atoms
exhibit magnetic moments that are intrinsically linked to the
angular momentum of the components of the atoms, most
notably their electrons. The connection to angular momentum suggests the picture of an assembly of
microscopic current loops. Outside the material, an assembly of such microscopic current loops is not different,
from a macroscopic current circulating around the material's surface, despite the fact that no individual charge
is traveling a large distance. These bound currents can be described using the magnetization M41
The very complicated and granular bound charges and bound currents, therefore, can be represented on the
macroscopic scale in terms of P and M, which average these charges and currents on a sufficiently large scale so
as not to see the granularity of individual atoms, but also sufficiently small that they vary with location in the
material. As such, Maxwell's macroscopic equations ignore many details on a fine scale that can be unimportant
to understanding matters on a gross scale by calculating fields that are averaged over some suitable volume.
Auxiliary fields, polarization and magnetization
The definitions of the auxiliary fields are:
D(r,t) = eoB(r,t) + P(r),
H(r,) = raat )—M(r,2), e where P is the polarization field and M is the magnetization field, which are defined in terms of microscopic
bound charges and bound currents respectively. The macroscopic bound charge density p and bound current
density J}, in terms of polarization P and magnetization M are then defined as
pm =-V-P,
ap
Sa VXM+5-.
If we define the total, bound, and fre
\t density by
Po + pes
J=K+5:,
and use the defining relations above to eliminate D, and H, the "macroscopic" Maxwell's equations reproduce
the "microscopic" equations.
Constitutive relations
In order to apply ‘Maxwell's macroscopic equations’, it is necessary to specify the relations between
displacement field D and the electric field E, as well as the magnetizing field H and the magnetic field B.
Equivalently, we have to specify the dependence of the polarization P (hence the bound charge) and the
magnetization M (hence the bound current) on the applied electric and magnetic field. The equations specifying
this response are called constitutive relations. For real-world materials, the constitutive relations are rarely
simple, except approximately, and usually determined by experiment. See the main article on constitutive
relations for a fuller description, 544-45,
For materials without polarization and magnetization, the constitutive relations are (by definition)!9/"
Deak, B= 7B,
‘Ho
where éy is the permittivity of free space and ip the permeability of free space. Since there is no bound charge,
the total and the free charge and current are equal.
‘An alternative viewpoint on the microscopic equations is that they are the macroscopic equations together with
the statement that vacuum behaves like a perfect linear “material” without additional polarization and
magnetization. More generally, for linear materials the constitutive relations are!*5!'44~«
D=cE, H=
where ¢ is the permittivity and su the permeability of the material. For the displacement field D the linear
approximation is usually excellent because for all but the most extreme electric fields or temperatures
obtainable in the laboratory (high power pulsed lasers) the interatomic electric fields of materials of the order of
10" V/m are much higher than the external field. For the magnetizing field H, however, the linear
approximation can break down in common materials like iron leading to phenomena like hysteresis. Even the
linear case can have various complications, however.
* For homogeneous materials, « and are constant throughout the material, while for inhomogeneous
materials they depend on location within the material (and perhaps time) {181483
For isotropic materials, ¢ and yu are scalars, while for anisotropic materials (e.g. due to crystal structure) they
are tensors l15)-421(16):463,
+ Materials are generally dispersive, so ¢ and j« depend on the frequency of any incident EM
waves [15]:625[16]:397 Even more generally, in the case of non-linear materials (see for example nonlinear optics), D and P are not
necessarily proportional to E, similarly H or M is not necessarily proportional to B. In general D and H depend
on both E and B, on location and time, and possibly other physical quantities.
In applications one also has to describe how the free currents and charge density behave in terms of E and B
possibly coupled to other physical quantities like pressure, and the mass, number density, and velocity of
charge-carrying particles. E.g,, the original equations given by Maxwell (see History of Maxwell's equations)
included Ohm's law in the form
J; =08.
Alternative formulations
Following is a summary of some of the numerous other mathematical formalisms to write the microscopic
Maxwell's equations, with the columns separating the two homogeneous Maxwell equations from the two
inhomogeneous ones involving charge and current. Each formulation has versions directly in terms of the
electric and magnetic fields, and indirectly in terms of the electrical potential y and the vector potential A.
Potentials were introduced as a convenient way to solve the homogeneous equations, but it was thought that all
observable physics was contained in the electric and magnetic fields (or relativistically, the Faraday tensor). The
potentials play a central role in quantum mechanies, however, and act quantum mechanically with observable
consequences even when the electric and magnetic fields vanish (Aharonov-Bohm effect)
Each table describes one formalism. See the main article for details of each formulation. SI units are used
throughout.
Vector calculus
Formulation Homogeneous equations Inhomegenoous equations
Fields ve-t
3D Euclidean space + oB
VxE+—=0 1 6E
ti VxB->— J
ime omen
Potentials (any gauge)
3D Euclidean space +
time
Potentials (Lorenz gauge)
3D Euclidean space +
time Formulation Homogeneous equations
Fields By =
space + time Yea = °
a
By +
spatial metric 21+“ op.
independent of time Vp + BE 0
Potentials
space (with §
topological
restrictions) + time
spatial metric
independent of time
Potentials (Lorenz gauge)
space (with
topological — 8p
restrictions) + time
vp
spatial metric at
independent of time
Tensor calculus
Inhomogeneous equations
1
AVE =
vi
vinta
7
1
ay tania
J
+09) =
1 eas
pp LEA, pista yi (vai 4 22) — pas
ViVi + Ge + RAE (m4 +5) =e
-V.ViAl + aoe + RIA = pod
Differential forms
Formula Homogeneous equations Inhomogeneous equations
2
= an
Fields aB=0 m £0
oB
OB 1 OE
any space + time aB+ Se =0 dB — = wos
Potentials (any gauge)
any space (with § topological restrictions) +
time
Potential (Lorenz Gauge)
any space (with topological restrictions) +
time
spatial metric independent of time
Relativistic formulations The Maxwell equations can also be formulated on a spacetime-like Minkowski space where space and time are
treated on equal footing. The direct spacetime formulations make manifest that the Maxwell equations are
relativistically invariant. Because of this symmetry, the electric and magnetic fields are treated on equal footing
and are recognized as components of the Faraday tensor. This reduces the four Maxwell equations to two, which.
simplifies the equations, although we can no longer use the familiar vector formulation. In fact the Maxwell
equations in the space + time formulation are not Galileo invariant and have Lorentz invariance as a hidden
symmetry. This was a major source of inspiration for the development of relativity theory. Indeed, even the
formulation that treats space and time separately is not a non-relativistic approximation and describes the same
physics by simply renaming variables. For this reason the relativistic invariant equations are usually called the
Maxwell equations as well.
Each table below describes one formalism.
‘Tensor caloulus
Formulation Homogeneous equations | Inhomogeneous equations
Fields =
Minkowski space pF = 9 OF! = pg J?
hinkowst space Fes = 28.49 20,8" AM = po?
Fop = 20p,4q
Potentials (Lorenz gauge)
Minkowski space a At nF AP = oJ?
Fields Fo = a9) =
any spacetime =
a Veto = 0 VaF"? = pod?
2
Potentials (any gauge) ea =a yy) =
any spacetime Fop = 20p4q (Voor An)
{its Stopological restrictions) 2VA(VEAM) = oJ?
Fap = 204g
Potentials (Lorenz gauge)
any spacetime A VaVe Al — RP A® = pod?
(wits topological restrictions) | VaA* = 0
Differential forms
Formulation Homogeneous equi
1s | Inhomogeneous equations
Fields _ 7
any spacetime ar=0 AF = pod
Potentials (any gauge)
any spacetime Pada ddA = pod
{Wh apologies restrictions)
Potent Lorenz gauge)” — “4
any spacetime - 401A = pod
{with Topological restrictions) | 4*A = 0
* In the tensor calculus formulation, the electromagnetic tensor Fy is an antisymmetric covariant order 2
tensor; the four-potential, 4,,, is a covariant vector; the current, J, is a vector; the square brackets, [ ],
denote antisymmetrization of indices; d,, is the partial derivative with respect to the coordinate, x. In
Minkowski space coordinates are chosen with respect to an inertial frame; (x) = (ct, x, y, Z), So that the
metric tensor used to raise and lower indices is 7p = diag(1, 1, -1,—1). The d'Alembert operator on
Minkowski space is 0) = 0,0 as in the vector formulation. In general spacetimes, the coordinate system x"
is arbitrary, the covariant derivative V,, the Ricci tensor, Rag and raising and lowering of indices are defined
by the Lorentzian metric, gz and the d'Alembert operator is defined as (I = V,V". The topological
restriction is that the second real cohomology group of the space vanishes (see the differential form formulation for an explanation). This is violated for Minkowski space with a line removed, which can model a
(flat) spacetime with a point-ike monopole on the complement of the line.
* In the differential form formulation on arbitrary space times, F'= 5” ,gdv“* A dv! is the electromagnetic
tensor considered as a 2-form, A = A,dx“'is the potential 1-form, J = —J_xdie* is the current 3-form, d is
the exterior derivative, and xis the Hodge star on forms defined (up to its orientation, ie. its sign) by the
Lorentzian metric of spacetime. In the special case of 2-forms such as F, the Hodge star + depends on the
metric tensor only for its local scale. This means that, as formulated, the differential form field equations are
conformally invariant, but the Lorenz gauge condition breaks conformal invariance. The operator
(C1= (—xdad — dads) is the d'Alembert-Laplace—Beltrami operator on 1-forms on an arbitrary Lorentzian
spacetime. The topological condition is again that the second real cohomology group is ‘trivial (meaning that
its form follows from a definition). By the isomorphism with the second de Rham cohomology this condition
means that every closed 2-form is exact.
Other formalisms include the geometric algebra formulation and a matrix representation of Maxwell's
equations. Historically, a quaternionic formulation" 7U8I was used.
Solutions
Maxwell's equations are partial differential equations that relate the electric and magnetic fields to each other
and to the electric charges and currents. Often, the charges and currents are themselves dependent on the
electric and magnetic fields via the Lorentz force equation and the constitutive relations. These all form a set of
coupled partial differential cquations which arc often very difficult to solve: the solutions encompass all the
diverse phenomena of classical electromagnetism. Some general remarks follow.
As for any differential equation, boundary conditions!*91[20Il2"] and initial conditions!?2) are necessary for a
unique solution. For example, even with no charges and no currents anywhere in spacetime, there are the
obvious solutions for which E and B are zero or constant, but there are also non-trivial solutions corresponding
to electromagnetic waves. In some cases, Maxwell's equations are solved over the whole of space, and boundary
conditions are given as asymptotic limits at infinity.!23] In other cases, Maxwell's equations are solved in a finite
region of space, with appropriate conditions on the boundary of that region, for example an artificial absorbing
boundary representing the rest of the universe,!41l*5] or periodic boundary conditions, or walls that isolate a
‘small region from the outside world (as with a waveguide or cavity resonator),261
Jefimenko's equations (or the closely related Liénard—Wiechert potentials) are the explicit solution to Maxwell's
equations for the electric and magnetic fields created by any given distribution of charges and currents. It
assumes specific initial conditions to obtain the so-called "retarded solution", where the only fields present are
the ones created by the charges. However, Jefimenko's equations are unhelpful in situations when the charges
and currents are themselves affected by the fields they create.
Numerical methods for differential equations can be used to compute approximate solutions of Maxwell's
equations when exact solutions are impossible. These include the finite element method and finite-difference
time-domain method. |"91l211I271[281I29] For more details, see Computational electromagnetics.
Overdetermination of Maxwell's equations
Maxwell's equations seem overdetermined, in that they involve six unknowns (the three components of FE and
B) but eight equations (one for each of the two Gauss's laws, three vector components each for Faraday’s and
Ampere's laws). (The currents and charges are not unknowns, being freely specifiable subject to charge
conservation.) This is related to a certain limited kind of redundancy in Maxwell's equations: It can be proven
that any system satisfying Faraday’s law and Ampere's law automatically also satisfies the two Gauss's laws, as,
long as the system's initial condition does, and assuming conservation of charge and the nonexistence of
magnetic monopoles.{3°(3#) This explanation was first introduced by Julius Adams Stratton in 1941.'32)
Although it is possible to simply ignore the two Gauss's laws in a numerical algorithm (apart from the initial
conditions), the imperfect precision of the calculations can lead to ever-increasing violations of those laws. By
introducing dummy variables characterizing these violations, the four equations become not overdetermined
after all. The resulting formulation can lead to more accurate algorithms that take all four laws into account. [33] Both identities V- V x B=0,V-V x
true reason of overdetermination.{41[35]
0, which reduce eight equations to six independent ones, are the
Equivalently, the overdetermination can be viewed as implying conservation of electric and magnetic charge, as
they are required in the derivation described above but implied by the two Gauss's laws.
For linear algebraic equations, one can make ‘nice’ rules to rewrite the equations and unknowns. The equations
can be linearly dependent. But in differential equations, and especially partial differential equations (PDEs), one
needs appropriate boundary conditions, which depend in not so obvious ways on the equations. Even more, if
one rewrites them in terms of vector and scalar potential, then the equations are underdetermined because of
gauge fixing.
Maxwell's equations as the classical limit of QED
Maxwell's equations and the Lorentz force law (along with the rest of classical electromagnetism) are
extraordinarily successful at explaining and predicting a variety of phenomena. However they do not account for
quantum effects and so their domain of applicability is limited. Maxwell's equations are thought of as the
classical limit of quantum electrodynamics (QED).
Some observed electromagnetic phenomena are incompatible with Maxwell's equations. These include photon—
photon scattering and many other phenomena related to photons or virtual photons, "nonclassical light” and
quantum entanglement of electromagnetic fields (see Quantum optics). E.g. quantum cryptography cannot be
described by Maxwell theory, not even approximately. The approximate nature of Maxwell's equations becomes
more and more apparent when going into the extremely strong field regime (see Euler—Heisenberg
Lagrangian) or to extremely small distances.
Finally, Maxwell's equations cannot explain any phenomenon involving individual photons interacting with
quantum matter, such as the photoelectric effect, Planck's law, the Duane—Hunt law, and single-photon light
detectors. However, many such phenomena may be approximated using a halfway theory of quantum matter
coupled to a classical electromagnetic field, either as external field or with the expected value of the charge
current and density on the right hand side of Maxwell's equations.
Variations
Popular variations on the Maxwell equations as a clas
theory of electromagnetic fields are relatively s
because the s
ndard equations have stood the test of time remarkably well.
Magnetic monopoles
Maxwell's equations posit that there is electric charge, but no magnetic charge (also called magnetic
monopoles), in the universe, Indeed, magnetic charge has never been observed, despite extensive
searches, "© 7) and may not exist. If they did exist, both Gauss's law for magnetism and Faraday's law would
need to be modified, and the resulting four equations would be fully symmetric under the interchange of electric
and magnetic fields.!91:273-275
See also
WR econ por
“We Physics portal
+ Algebra of physical space
= Fresnel equations
= Gravitoelectromagnetism
* Interface conditions for electromagnetic fields
= Moving magnet and conductor problem
+ Riemann-Silberstein vector
= Spacetime algebra «| Wheeler-Feynman absorber theory
Explanatory notes
1. Electric and magnetic fields, according to the theory of relativity, are the components of a single
electromagnetic field.
2. In general relativity, however, they must enter, through its stress~energy tensor, into Einstein field equations
that include the spacetime curvature.
3. The absence of sinks/sources of the field does not imply that the field lines must be closed or escape to
infinity. They can also wrap around indefinitely, without self-intersections, Moreover, around points where the
field is zero (that cannot be intersected by field lines, because their direction would not be defined), there
can be the simultaneous begin of some lines and end of other lines. This happens, for instance, in the
middle between two identical cylindrical magnets, whose north poles face each other. In the middle between
those magnets, the field is zero and the axial field lines coming from the magnets end. At the same time, an
infinite number of divergent lines emanate radially from this point, The simultaneous presence of lines which
end and begin around the point preserves the divergence-free characler of the field. For a detailed
discussion of non-closed field lines, see L. Zilberti "The Misconception of Closed Magnetic Flux Lines” (http
s:llzenodo.orgirecord/4518772#.YCJU_WhKjlU), IEEE Magnetics Letters, vol. 8, art. 1306005, 2017.
4, The quantity we would now call 1/449, with units of velocity, was directly measured before Maxwell's
equations, in an 1855 experiment by Wilhelm Eduard Weber and Rudolf Kohlrausch. They charged a leyden
jar (a kind of capacitor), and measured the electrostatic force associated with the potential; then, they
discharged it while measuring the magnetic force from the current in the discharge wire. Their result was
3.107 x 108 mis, remarkably close to the speed of light. See Joseph F. Keithley, The story of electrical and
magnetic measurements: from 500 B.C. to the 1940s, p. 118 (https://books.google.com/books 7id=uwgNAtq
SHuQC&pg=PA115
5, There are cases (anomalous dispersion) where the phase velocity can exceed c, but the "signal velocity" will
still be
