A Dynamical Theory of the Electromagnetic Field

E73656

A Dynamical Theory of the Electromagnetic Field is James Clerk Maxwell’s landmark 1865 paper that mathematically formulated the classical theory of electromagnetism and introduced what are now known as Maxwell’s equations.

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Predicate Object
instanceOf physics paper
scientific paper
author James Clerk Maxwell
basedOn Ampère's force law
surface form: Ampère's law

Faraday's law of induction
Gauss’s law
surface form: Gauss's law for electricity

Gauss's law for magnetism
centralTheme unification of electricity, magnetism, and optics
contains continuity equation for electric charge
wave equation for electromagnetic waves
countryOfOrigin United Kingdom
datePresented 1864
describes classical theory of electromagnetism
field electromagnetism
formulated electromagnetic field as a dynamical system
hasAlternativeName Maxwell's 1865 electromagnetic field paper
hasPageCount over 50 pages
historicalPeriod 19th-century physics
implied finite speed of propagation of electromagnetic interactions
speed of light determined by electromagnetic constants
influenced classical electrodynamics
field theory in physics
special relativity
introducedConcept Maxwell's equations
displacement current
introducedQuantity permeability of free space in field equations
permittivity of free space in field equations
language English
numberOfEquations 20
originalFormulationOf Maxwell's equations in component form
precedes A Treatise on Electricity and Magnetism
surface form: Treatise on Electricity and Magnetism
presentedTo Royal Society
surface form: Royal Society of London
proposed electromagnetic waves in vacuum
publicationYear 1865
publishedIn Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society
surface form: Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London
publisher Royal Society
surface form: Royal Society of London
showed light is an electromagnetic wave
status landmark paper in physics
subjectOf historical studies in history of science
topic electric field
electromagnetic induction
energy in the electromagnetic field
magnetic field
mechanical analogy for the electromagnetic field
propagation of electromagnetic disturbances
usesMathematicalTool vector calculus in component form

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On Physical Lines of Force relatedWork A Dynamical Theory of the Electromagnetic Field