Maxwell Equations

Was it a god (Boltzmann’s saying) that wrote those equations? Such was the enthusiasm for the Maxwell Equations. A review of Electromagnetic Field Theory (EMF), the repetitorium refers to the Hertz vector as the basis for discussions. The treatment of EMF assumes knowledge of coordinate systems along with scalar and vector fields.

Electric and magnetic field strengths are computed from the Hertz vector for the coordinate system chosen. As an alternative the approach using Green’s Theorem is discussed. A favorite topics of electrical engineering, antennas tend to attract great interest from students, which encourages one to look back at the elementary dipole as the basic element for antenna designs. From field strengths and their patterns to eigenfrequencies, the topics flow naturally from one section to the next. The less so common 4-dimensional spacetime formulation is also touched on as an addendum.

One hundred fifty years on since Maxwell, the repetitorium is echoing the enthusiasm that was ringing among scientists.