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Electromagnetism is the force observed as static electricity, and causes the flow of electric charge (electric current) in electrical conductors.

The magnetic field is produced by the motion of electric charges, i.e. electric current. The magnetic field causes the magnetic force associated with magnets.

The term "electromagnetism" comes from the fact that electrical and magnetic forces are involved simultaneously. A changing magnetic field produces an electric field (this is the phenomenon of electromagnetic induction, which provides for the operation of electrical generators, induction motors, and transformers). Similarly, a changing electric field generates a magnetic field. Because of this interdependence of the electric and magnetic fields, it makes sense to consider them as a single coherent entity — the electromagnetic field.

This unification, which was completed by James Clerk Maxwell, is one of the triumphs of 19th century physics. It had far-reaching consequences, one of which was the understanding of the nature of light. As it turns out, what is thought of as "light" is actually a propagating oscillatory disturbance in the electromagnetic field, i.e., an electromagnetic wave. Different frequencies of oscillation give rise to the different forms of electromagnetic radiation, from radio waves at the lowest frequencies, to visible light at intermediate frequencies, to gamma rays at the highest frequencies.

Since it is useful to have other examples to imagine such a subject, we may say that electromagnitism is broken down into the 'voltage field' and 'electrical current field'.

The theoretical implications of electromagnetism led to the development of special relativity by Albert Einstein in 1905.

The electromagnetic force

The force that the electromagnetic field exerts on electrically charged particles, called the electromagnetic force, is one of the four fundamental forces. The other fundamental forces are the strong nuclear force (which holds atomic nuclei together), the weak nuclear force (which causes certain forms of radioactive decay), and the gravitational force. All other forces are ultimately derived from these fundamental forces.

As it turns out, the electromagnetic force is the one responsible for practically all the phenomena one encounters in daily life, with the exception of gravity. Roughly speaking, all the forces involved in interactions between atoms can be traced to the electromagnetic force acting on the electrically charged protons and electrons inside the atoms. This includes the forces we experience in "pushing" or "pulling" ordinary material objects, which come from the intermolecular forces between the individual molecules in our bodies and those in the objects. It also includes all forms of chemical phenomena, which arise from interactions between electron orbitals.

According to modern electromagnetic theory, electromagnetic forces are mediated by the transfer of virtual photons.

Origins of electromagnetic theory

The scientist William Gilbert proposed, in his De Magnete (1600), that electricity and magnetism, while both capable of causing attraction and repulsion of objects, were distinct effects. Mariners had noticed that lightning strikes had the ability to disturb a compass needle, but the link between lightning and electricity was not confirmed until Benjamin Franklin's proposed experiments in 1752. One of the first to discover and publish a link between man-made electric current and magnetism was Romagnosi, who in 1802 noticed that connecting a wire across a Voltaic pile deflected a nearby compass needle. However, the effect did not become widely known until 1820, when Ørsted performed a similar experiment. Ørsted's work influenced Ampère to produce a theory of electromagnetism that set the subject on a mathematical foundation.

An accurate theory of electromagnetism, known as classical electromagnetism, was developed by various physicists over the course of the 19th century, culminating in the work of James Clerk Maxwell, who unified the preceding developments into a single theory and discovered the electromagnetic nature of light. In classical electromagnetism, the electromagnetic field obeys a set of equations known as Maxwell's equations, and the electromagnetic force is given by the Lorentz force law.

One of the peculiarities of classical electromagnetism is that it is difficult to reconcile with classical mechanics, but it is compatible with special relativity. According to Maxwell's equations, the speed of light is a universal constant, dependent only on the electrical permittivity and magnetic permeability of the vacuum. This violates Galilean invariance, a long-standing cornerstone of classical mechanics. One way to reconcile the two theories is to assume the existence of a luminiferous aether through which the light propagates. However, subsequent experimental efforts failed to detect the presence of the aether. In 1905, Albert Einstein solved the problem with the introduction of special relativity, which replaces classical kinematics with a new theory of kinematics that is compatible with classical electromagnetism.

In addition, Relativity theory shows that in moving frames of reference a magnetic field transforms to a field with a nonzero electric component and vice versa; thus firmly showing that they are two sides of the same coin, and thus the term Electromagnetism.

Failures of classical electromagnetism

In another paper published in that same year, Einstein undermined the very foundations of classical electromagnetism. His theory of the photoelectric effect (for which he won the Nobel prize for physics) posited that light could exist in discrete particle-like quantities, which later came to be known as photons. Einstein's theory of the photoelectric effect extended the insights that appeared in the solution of the ultraviolet catastrophe presented by Max Planck in 1900. In his work, Planck showed that hot objects emit electromagnetic radiation in discrete packets, which leads to a finite total energy emitted as black body radiation. Both of these results were in direct contradiction with the classical view of light as a continuous wave. Planck's and Einstein's theories were progenitors of quantum mechanics, which, when formulated in 1925, necessitated the invention of a quantum theory of electromagnetism. This theory, completed in the 1940s, is known as quantum electrodynamics (or "QED"), and is one of the most accurate theories known to physics.

Related concepts

The term electrodynamics is sometimes used to refer to the combination of electromagnetism with mechanics, and deals with the effects of the electromagnetic field on the dynamic behavior of electrically charged particles.

SI electricity units

SI electromagnetism units
v
t
e
Symbol^[1]	Name of quantity	Unit name	Symbol	Base units
$E$	energy	joule	J = C⋅V = W⋅s	kg⋅m²⋅s⁻²
$Q$	electric charge	coulomb	C	A⋅s
$I$	electric current	ampere	A = C/s = W/V	A
$J$	electric current density	ampere per square metre	A/m²	A⋅m⁻²
$U$ , $Δ V$ ; $Δ ϕ$ ; E, $ξ$	potential difference; voltage; electromotive force	volt	V = J/C	kg⋅m²⋅s⁻³⋅A⁻¹
$R$ ; $Z$ ; $X$	electric resistance; impedance; reactance	ohm	Ω = V/A	kg⋅m²⋅s⁻³⋅A⁻²
$ρ$	resistivity	ohm metre	Ω⋅m	kg⋅m³⋅s⁻³⋅A⁻²
$P$	electric power	watt	W = V⋅A	kg⋅m²⋅s⁻³
$C$	capacitance	farad	F = C/V	kg⁻¹⋅m⁻²⋅A²⋅s⁴
$Φ E$	electric flux	volt metre	V⋅m	kg⋅m³⋅s⁻³⋅A⁻¹
$E$	electric field strength	volt per metre	V/m = N/C	kg⋅m⋅A⁻¹⋅s⁻³
$D$	electric displacement field	coulomb per square metre	C/m²	A⋅s⋅m⁻²
$ε$	permittivity	farad per metre	F/m	kg⁻¹⋅m⁻³⋅A²⋅s⁴
$χ e$	electric susceptibility	(dimensionless)	1	1
$p$	electric dipole moment	coulomb metre	C⋅m	A⋅s⋅m
$G$ ; $Y$ ; $B$	conductance; admittance; susceptance	siemens	S = Ω⁻¹	kg⁻¹⋅m⁻²⋅s³⋅A²
$κ$ , $γ$ , $σ$	conductivity	siemens per metre	S/m	kg⁻¹⋅m⁻³⋅s³⋅A²
$B$	magnetic flux density, magnetic induction	tesla	T = Wb/m² = N⋅A⁻¹⋅m⁻¹	kg⋅s⁻²⋅A⁻¹
$Φ$ , $Φ M$ , $Φ B$	magnetic flux	weber	Wb = V⋅s	kg⋅m²⋅s⁻²⋅A⁻¹
$H$	magnetic field strength	ampere per metre	A/m	A⋅m⁻¹
F	magnetomotive force	ampere	A = Wb/H	A
R	magnetic reluctance	inverse henry	H⁻¹ = A/Wb	kg⁻¹⋅m⁻²⋅s²⋅A²
P	magnetic permeance	henry	H = Wb/A	kg⋅m²⋅s^-2⋅A^-2
$L$ , $M$	inductance	henry	H = Wb/A = V⋅s/A	kg⋅m²⋅s⁻²⋅A⁻²
$μ$	permeability	henry per metre	H/m	kg⋅m⋅s⁻²⋅A⁻²
$χ$	magnetic susceptibility	(dimensionless)	1	1
$m$	magnetic dipole moment	ampere square meter	A⋅m² = J⋅T⁻¹	A⋅m²
$σ$	mass magnetization	ampere square meter per kilogram	A⋅m²/kg	A⋅m²⋅kg⁻¹

References

Tipler, Paul (1998). Physics for Scientists and Engineers: Vol. 2: Light, Electricity and Magnetism (4th ed. ed.). W. H. Freeman. ISBN 1-57259-492-6. {{cite book}}: |edition= has extra text (help)
Griffiths, David J. (1998). Introduction to Electrodynamics (3rd ed. ed.). Prentice Hall. ISBN 0-13-805326-X. {{cite book}}: |edition= has extra text (help)
Jackson, John D. (1998). Classical Electrodynamics (3rd ed. ed.). Wiley. ISBN 0-471-30932-X. {{cite book}}: |edition= has extra text (help)
Rothwell, Edward J. (2001). Electromagnetics. CRC Press. ISBN 0-8493-1397-X. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)

External links

Introduction to Electromagnetism From the basics to advanced level science
MIT Video Lectures - Electricity and Magnetism from Spring 2002. Taught by Professor Walter Lewin.
Electricity and Magnetism - an online textbook (uses algebra, with optional calculus-based sections)
Electromagnetic Field Theory - an online textbook (uses calculus)
Classical Electromagnetism: An intermediate level course - an online intermediate level texbook downloadable as PDF file
Science Aid: electromagnetism Electromagnetism, aimed at teens.
Motion Mountain A modern introduction to electromagnetism and its effects in everyday life.
Radio waves, the Hertzian Radiation: what it is and how it happens.
Books on Electromagnetism and RF field

^ International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (1993). Quantities, Units and Symbols in Physical Chemistry, 2nd edition, Oxford: Blackwell Science. ISBN 0-632-03583-8. pp. 14–15. Electronic version.

[1] International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (1993). Quantities, Units and Symbols in Physical Chemistry, 2nd edition, Oxford: Blackwell Science. ISBN 0-632-03583-8. pp. 14–15. Electronic version.

[1]

@@ Line 25: / Line 25: @@
 An accurate theory of electromagnetism, known as [[classical electromagnetism]], was developed by various [[physicist]]s over the course of the [[19th century]], culminating in the work of [[James Clerk Maxwell]], who unified the preceding developments into a single theory and discovered the electromagnetic nature of light. In classical electromagnetism, the electromagnetic field obeys a set of equations known as [[Maxwell's equations]], and the electromagnetic force is given by the [[Lorentz force|Lorentz force law]].
-ten of the peculiarities of classical electromagnetism is that it is difficult to reconcile with [[classical mechanics]], but it is compatible with [[special relativity]]. According to Maxwell's equations, the [[speed of light]] is a universal constant, dependent only on the [[Permittivity|electrical permittivity]] and [[magnetic permeability]] of the [[vacuum]]. This violates [[Galilean invariance]], a long-standing cornerstone of classical mechanics. One way to reconcile the two theories is to assume the existence of a [[luminiferous aether]] through which the light propagates. However, subsequent experimental efforts failed to detect the presence of the aether. In [[1905]], [[Albert Einstein]] solved the problem with the introduction of [[special relativity]], which replaces classical kinematics with a new theory of kinematics that is compatible with classical electromagnetism.
+One of the peculiarities of classical electromagnetism is that it is difficult to reconcile with [[classical mechanics]], but it is compatible with [[special relativity]]. According to Maxwell's equations, the [[speed of light]] is a universal constant, dependent only on the [[Permittivity|electrical permittivity]] and [[magnetic permeability]] of the [[vacuum]]. This violates [[Galilean invariance]], a long-standing cornerstone of classical mechanics. One way to reconcile the two theories is to assume the existence of a [[luminiferous aether]] through which the light propagates. However, subsequent experimental efforts failed to detect the presence of the aether. In [[1905]], [[Albert Einstein]] solved the problem with the introduction of [[special relativity]], which replaces classical kinematics with a new theory of kinematics that is compatible with classical electromagnetism.
 In addition, Relativity theory shows that in moving frames of reference a magnetic field transforms to a field with a nonzero electric component and vice versa; thus firmly showing that they are two sides of the same coin, and thus the term '''Electromagnetism'''.

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