Maxwell’s equations

(1831 – 1879)

And God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light !
- Genesis

Maxwell could say, when he was finished with his discovery, “Let there be electricity and
magnetism, and there is (shall be) light ”
- Feynman
 Electrodynamics before Maxwell

E & B are defined by the eq. that describes force on a moving charged particle :
      

F  qEq vB  q EvB   
In electrostatics:
• Gauss’s law:   1
E   E .d a  Qenc : integral form
  0
1
. E   : differential form
0
 
  E  0 : No name

If source  is given these two differential eqns. with the boundary condn.: E  0 far from all
charges yields electric field E

Essentially contain same information as the Coulomb’s law and principle of

superposition
In magnetostatics:
  
  
 . B d   B.d a
 
Magnetic flux: M   B.d a  0
 
 . B  0 : No name
  
  B   0 J : Ampere’s law

These two eqns along with the boundary condition:

far from all currents B  0 yield B
Equivalent to B-S law and principle of superposition

• Faraday’s law:   B 
 E . d l    t . d a : integral form
  B
 E   : differential form
t
Electrodynamics before Maxwell

  1
(i) . E   : Gauss’s law
0
 
(ii) . B  0 : No name

  B
(iii)  E   : Faraday’s law
t
  
(iv)   B   0 J : Ampere’s law

Consider the third eq. and take its divergence:


     B    
 
 .   E   . 
  t    t  . B  
 
? = 0 due to eq. (ii)
Ans: 0
   
From the 4th eq. :   B  0 J
    
Taking its divergence  
  .   B  0  . J  
For steady currents,    
  B  . J  0
  
From continuity equation: . J  
t
= 0 only if R H side = 0
Again 
      
. J  
t


t

 0 . E    . 
E 
  0 t 

 

  E 
 J   0 t   0
  . 
  
Thus    E
Ampere’s law becomes:   B  0 J  0  0
t
 
   E
  B  0 J  0  0  A changing E induces a B!
t
Gauss’s law:      
1   . 0 E    . D  
. E   
0 D
 Ampere’s law becomes:  
   D   D 
  B  0 J  0  0 
 J 
 
t   t  E
 JD  0
t
   

   B  0 J  J d  Displacement current
misnomer!
A changing electric field induces a magnetic field
According to Faraday’s law , a changing magnetic field induces an electric field
Post-Maxwell Electrodynamics:
Physical interpretation
 
(i)  . D   : Gauss’s law derived from Coulomb’s law
 
(ii)  . B  0  : Absence of magnetic monopole
  B
(iii)   E   : Faraday’s law of electromagnetic induction
t 
   E
(iv)   B   0 J   0  0 : Ampere’s law with Maxwell’s correction
t
Note
Eqs (i) – (iv) are solvable only if the following constitutive relations are known:
    
D  E Recollect D  0 E  P
  P=0
BH In most cases,  = 0 = 4 x 10-7 Ns2/C2
     0 1   m 
J  E
 
In a charge and current free dielectric  0 and J 0 P=0
Thus Maxwell eqs transform to
 
(i) . E  0
 
(ii)  . H  0 
  H
(iii)   E    0
t
 
  E D
(iv)   H   
t t
Taking curl of eq. (iii) we get
     
    E   0
t

 H 
= grad div  2
 
    
   E
2
 E 2
   . E   E    0
2
   E    0
2

t 2
t 2
 
  E 2
  E   0
2
(1) : wave equation
t 2

This wave equation governs the em field in a homogeneous, linear, and charge free
dielectric having dielectric permittivity 
Solution of the wave eqn. for monochromatic waves of freq.  :

  E 2
 E   0
2
(1)
t 2
Differential eq of what order? 2
Assume as a trial soln for the time dependence of E as
     i t
E r , t   Es r  e ( 2)
Important
• Choice of  or  for the time dependence is completely arbitrary
• Remember that physical E is obtd. by taking real part of this eqn.
• E s (r) is in general complex
 
Es r  e i  t    Actual field is proportional to cos t   
From eqs. (1) and (2)
e i t
 
 Es    0 Es  0
2 2


 
  Es    0 Es  0
2 2

 
 2 2


  Es   0 Es  0 (3) : it governs the spatial dependence of the E
Consider plane monochromatic waves in a dielectric of permittivity 
What is a plane wave?
Phase is constant at any point in a plane perpendicular to a specified direction

if specified direction is chosen to be z then Es must be same at all points on a plane which
have the same z
Plane waves  Es = Es (z)
  
Es  Es  z 
x
These planes are also called planes
of constant phase z
y
 Thus Eq. (3)
  
  
 Es   0 Es  0 for Es  Es z 
2 2


transforms to
d Es  z 
2 
2
   0  Es  z   0
2

dz

d Es  z 
2 
2
 k Es  z   0
2
4
dz
k    0
Its solution will be   ik z
E s  z   E0 e
  i     z
 E0 e 0
(5)

a const vector
Note:
Eq. (5) yields a solution to (3) with wave fronts perpendicular to z-axis
Not all these solns. satisfy Maxwell’s equations
  
In particular the one representing Gauss’s law:  . D   , which for charge free space will be
   
 . Es  0  D   E

 Esz  z    i    0 Esz  z   0
z
This will be true if Esz = 0  Esz has no z component



Es  z   x̂ E0 x  ŷ E0 y e
 i  
 0 z

Show that
 

  Es  z    - i   0 x̂ E0 y  i  0 ŷ E0 y e 
 i  
 0 z

 i  Bs
and hence verify 
  
Bs     0 ẑ  Es  Bs is perpendicular to both Es and z axis