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HowareMaxwell'sequationsstatedinthelanguageoftensors?Quora

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EmadNoujeim,Tensorsareinteresting,usefulandelegant,withmanyapplications
.
1.6kViewsMostViewedWriterinTensorAnalysis

Maxwell'sequations arethefundamentalequationsofclassicalelectromagnetismand
electrodynamics.Theycanbestatedinintegralform,indifferentialform(asetofpartial
differentialequations),andintensorform.
TheconventionaldifferentialformulationofMaxwell'sequationsintheInternational
SystemofUnits isgivenby:

WhatistheapplicationofMaxwellequations?
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thescientificcommunity?
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equations?
Maxwell'sEquations:Insimpleterms,whatis
Maxwellsscatteringproblem?
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equations,ifquantumphysicsismoreprecise?
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Intheaboveequations,Eistheelectricfield(vectorfield),Bisthemagneticfield(
pseudovectorfield),isthechargedensity,andJisthecurrentdensity.
0 istheVacuumpermittivity
,
and 0 istheVacuumpermeability .
ThesecondandthirdequationsaboveformthefirstgroupofMaxwell'sequations(the
generalizedFaraday'slawofinduction andGauss'slawformagnetism ),andthethe
firstandlastequationsaboveformthesecondgroup(Gauss'slaw andAmpere'scircuit
lawextendedbyMaxwell).
Theequationsofelectromagnetism(Maxwell'sequationsandtheLorentzforce)in
covariantform(invariantunderLorentztransformations)canbededucedfromthe
Principleofleastaction .
Allthestepsandequationsrelatedtothissubjectcannotbeshownherebecausethey
wouldmaketheanswermuchtoolong,butanoverviewoftheequations,calculations
andderivationswillbepresented.
ThedevelopmentofthecomponentsoftheLorentzforceand(aftersomecalculations)its
formulationintensorformallowstheintroductionoftheelectromagneticfieldtensor F ij
:

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HowareMaxwell'sequationsstatedinthelanguageoftensors?Quora

where uj isthefourvelocityfourvector
ThevariationoftheactionS withrespecttothecoordinatesofaparticlegivesthe
equationsofmotion.
Theactionforachargedparticleinanelectromagneticfieldcanbeexpressedas:

qistheelectriccharge.
Thevariationoftheactiongives:

Aftersomecalculationsandanintegrationbypartsthevariationoftheactionbecomes:

Intheequationabove, ui isthefourvelocityfourvector.
Sincethetrajectoriesoftheparticlearesupposedtohavethesameinitialandfinal
coordinates,thefirsttermintherighthandsideoftheequalityaboveisequaltozero.
Thepotentialsareafunctionofthecoordinates,andthefollowingequalitiescanbeused:

Whichgivesforthevariationoftheaction:

Thustheelectromagneticfieldtensorpopsoutfromthevariationaboveinfactthe
electromagnetictensorisgivenbythedefinition:

A i istheelectromagneticfourpotentialcomprisingtheelectricscalarpotentialVandthe
magneticvectorpotentialA.

Theelectromagnetictensorisantisymmetric:

Andthediagonaltermsinitarezero:

Thecomponentsofthistensorcanbefoundusing:

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HowareMaxwell'sequationsstatedinthelanguageoftensors?Quora

Forexample:

Theotherstermscanalsobecalculatedandonegetsforthecovariantelectromagnetic
tensor:

Thecomponentsofthecontravarianttensorcanbefoundusing:

where g ij istheMetrictensor .
Thetransformationlawsfortheelectromagnetictensoraregivenbythegeneralrelation:

Thefollowingequation:

givesthefirstgroupofMaxwell'sequations.
IftheLeviCivitatensor eikmn isused(acompletelyantisymmetric4thranktensor),one
getsforthefirstgroupofequations:

UsingtheexpressionoftheactionwiththeLagrangiandensityandtakingthevariationof
theactionasstationary:

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ThelastrelationaboverepresentstheLagrangeequations.Andtheelectromagnetictensor
ik
F
isassumedtohavebeenfoundanddefinedafterdevelopingtheLorentzforce.
Therelationsabovegive:

ThusLagrange'sequationsgivetheresult:

AndthesecondgroupofMaxwell'sequationsisgivenby:

ThesecondgroupofequationsalsogivestheequationofChargeconservation

Inagravitationalfieldtheelectromagnetictensorisgivenby:

isthecovariantderivativeand kij areChristoffel'ssymbols.

Sotherelationbetweentheelectromagnetictensorandthepotentialsisunchangedinthe
presenceofagravitationalfield.
ThefirstandsecondgroupsofMaxwell'sequationsbecome:

Aftercalculationthefirstgroupcanbeshowntobeequaltotheoriginalfirstgroupof
equationswithoutgravitation.
Thesecondgroupcanbeexpressedas:
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Internetconnectionproblem.Hidethismessage.

wheregisthedeterminantofthemetrictensor.
Ingeneralrelativity,theenergymomentumtensor Tij ofanelectromagneticfieldinfree
spaceisexpressedintheformoftheelectromagneticstressenergytensor:

AndtheEinsteinfieldequations

arecalledtheEinsteinMaxwellequations.
UpdatedJul8,2015ViewUpvotes
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ViktorToth,formernationalhighschoolmathschampioninHungary
2.8kViewsMostViewedWriterinPhysicsofEverydayLifewith90+answers

Maxwell'sequationsareactuallymathematicalidentitiesthatapplytoany(atleast)three
timesdifferentiablefourvectorfield.Theycanbestatedmostelegantlyusingthelanguage
ofdifferentialforms,buttheycanalsobereexpressedinthelanguageoftensors.
First,westartwitha4vectorfield A (orjustA ifthelanguageofdifferentialformsis
used.)Wedefinearanktwoantisymmetrictensor(theelectromagneticfieldtensor)asthe
exteriorderivativeofthis4vectorfield:F = dA (or F = A A .)

Becausetheexteriorderivativeoperatorisnilpotent(i.e., d = 0 ),dF = 0 .Thisisavery

compactformulationofFaraday'slawandGauss'slawformagnetism.
2

Butwecandobetter.Withthehelpofametricandtheconceptofadual,thesocalled
coderivativeoperator,d,canbeformed.Whenappliedtotheelectromagneticfield
tensor,thisyieldsanothervector:J = d F ,whichweidentifyasthe4current.This
definitionis,infact,acompactformulationofGauss'slawandAmpre'slaw.
Thecoderivativeisalsonilpotent,therefored J
conservationofelectriccharge.

= 0

.Thisfinalequationisthe

Spelledoutinindexedtensornotation,thegenerallycovariantformofGauss'slawfor
magnetismandFaraday'slawread:
(

F ) = 0.

Gauss'slawandAmpre'slawaregivenby:
1

(gF

) = J

Finally,thechargeconservationlawis:

(gJ

) = 0.

IshallnotethatapartfromthedefinitionofJ ,whichiskindofarbitrary,everythingelseis
anidentity:therewasnoneedtopostulateanythingoncethefourvectorA (threetimes
differentiable)wasgiven.Itis,however,possibletointroduceanalternateformofthe4
AskQuestion
current,e.g.,J =AskorSearchQuora
d F + A ,whichleadstoProca'stheoryofmassive
2

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electromagnetism.
Internetconnectionproblem.Hidethismessage.

Andincaseyou'rewonderingwhereallthisleavesroomformagneticcharges
(monopoles):iftheoriginal4vectorfieldisnotthreetimesdifferentiableeverywhere,then
monopolesmayexistastopologicalmagneticcharges,asfirstshownbyDirac.
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