Modern Electrodynamics

An engaging writing style and a strong focus on the physics make this graduate-level textbook a must-have for electromagnetism students.

On June 1St 2004 the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology of the Technische Universitat Miinchen bestowed the degree of the doctor honoris causa to Leopold B. Felsen, for extraordinary achievements in the theory of electromag netic fields. On this occasion on June 1St and 2nd 2004 at the Technische Universitat Miinchen a symposium on "Fields, Networks, Computational Methods, and Systems: A Modern View of Engineering Electrodynamics" in honor of Leopold B. Felsen was organized. The symposium topic focused on an important area of Leopold Felsen research interests and, as the title emphasizes, on a modern view of applied Electro dynamics. While the fundamental physical laws of electrodynamics are well known, research in this field is experiencing a steady continuous growth. The problem -solving approaches of, say, twenty years ago may seem now fairly obsolete since considerable progress has been made in the meantime. In this monograph we collect samples of present day state of the art in dealing with electromagnetic fields, their network theory representation, their computation and, finally, on system applications. The network formulation of field problems can improve the problem formulation and also contribute to the solution methodology. Network theory systematic approaches for circuit analysis are based on the separation of the circuit into the connection circuit and the circuit elements. Many applications in science and technology rely on computations of the electromagnetic field in either man-made or natural complex structures.

This book addresses the theoretical foundations and the main physical consequences of electromagnetic interaction, generally considered to be one of the four fundamental interactions in nature, in a mathematically rigorous yet straightforward way. The major focus is on the unifying features shared by classical electrodynamics and all other fundamental relativistic classical field theories. The book presents a balanced blend of derivations of phenomenological predictions from first principles on the one hand, and concrete applications on the other. Further, it highlights the internal inconsistencies of classical electrodynamics, and addresses and resolves often-ignored critical issues, such as the dynamics of massless charged particles, the infinite energy of the electromagnetic field, and the limits of the Green’s function method. Presenting a rich, multilayered, and critical exposition on the electromagnetic paradigm underlying the whole Universe, the book offers a valuable resource for researchers and graduate students in theoretical physics alike.

The emphasis in this text is on classical electromagnetic theory and electrodynamics, that is, dynamical solutions to the Lorentz-force and Maxwell's equations. The natural appearance of the Minkowski spacetime metric in the paravector space of Clifford's geometric algebra is used to formulate a covariant treatment in special relativity that seamlessly connects spacetime concepts to the spatial vector treatments common in undergraduate texts. Baylis' geometrical interpretation, using such powerful tools as spinors and projectors, essentially allows a component-free notation and avoids the clutter of indices required in tensorial treatments. The exposition is clear and progresses systematically - from a discussion of electromagnetic units and an explanation of how the SI system can be readily converted to the Gaussian or natural Heaviside-Lorentz systems, to an introduction of geometric algebra and the paravector model of spacetime, and finally, special relativity. Other topics include Maxwell's equation(s), the Lorentz-force law, the Fresnel equations, electromagnetic waves and polarization, wave guides, radiation from accelerating charges and time-dependent currents, the Liénard-Wiechert potentials, and radiation reaction, all of which benefit from the modern relativistic approach. Numerous worked examples and exercises dispersed throughout the text help the reader understand new concepts and facilitate self-study of the material. Each chapter concludes with a set of problems, many with answers. Complete solutions are also available. An excellent feature is the integration of Maple into the text, thereby facilitating difficult calculations. To download accompanying Maple worksheets, please visit http://www.cs.uwindsor.ca/users/b/baylis

The 1988 Nobel Prize winner establishes the subject's mathematical background, reviews the principles of electrostatics, then introduces Einstein's special theory of relativity and applies it to topics throughout the book.

A Modern Introduction to Classical Electrodynamics is suitable for undergraduate students with some background knowledge of the subject and for graduate students, while more advanced topics make it a useful resource for PhD students and researchers. The book places much emphasis on the formal structure of the theory; beginning with Maxwell's equations in the vacuum, it emphasises the central role of gauge invariance and Special Relativity. After introductory chapters which include rederivations of elementary results of electrostatics and magnetostatics, and the multipole expansion, Special Relativity is introduced, and most of the subsequent derivations are performed using covariant formalism and gauge potentials, allowing for greater conceptual and technical clarity compared to more traditional treatments. The second part of the book covers electrodynamics in material media. This includes Maxwell's equations in material media, frequency dependent response of materials and Kramers-Kronig relations, electromagnetic waves in materials, and scattering of electromagnetic radiation. Finally, the text also includes advanced topics, such as the field-theoretical treatment of classical electrodynamics as a modern treatment of radiation reaction. These parts are meant for the advanced reader and are clearly marked, and can be skipped without loss of continuity.

This monograph is the first to give a comprehensive account of the theory of semiconductor cavity quantum electrodynamics for such systems in the weak-coupling and strong-coupling regimes. It presents the important concepts, together with relevant, recent experimental results.

The need for a second edition of our text on Quantum Electrodynamics has given us the opportunity to implement some corrections and amendments. We have corrected a number of misprints and minor errors and have supplied additional explanatory remarks at various places. Furthermore some new material has been included on the magnetic moment of the muon (in Example 5. 6) and on the Lamb shift (in Example 5. 8). Finally, we have added the new Example 3. 17 which explains the equivalent photon method. We thank several colleagues for helpful comments and also are grateful to Dr. R. Mattiello who has supervised the preparation of the second edition of the book. Furthermore we acknowledge the agreeable collaboration with Dr. H. J. K6lsch and his team at Springer-Verlag, Heidelberg. Frankfurt am Main, Walter Greiner July 1994 Joachim Reinhardt Preface to the First Edition Theoretical physics has become a many-faceted science. For the young student it is difficult enough to cope with the overwhelming amount of new scientific material that has to be learned, let alone obtain an overview of the entire field, which ranges from mechanics through electrodynamics, quantum mechanics, field theory, nuclear and heavy-ion science, statistical mechanics, thermodynamics, and solid state theory to elementary-particle physics. And this knowledge should be acquired in just 8-10 semesters, during which, in addition, a Diploma or Master's thesis has to be worked on or examinations prepared for.