The Lorenz Number and the Lorenz Gauge—Known Concepts,Unknown Physicist

Ludvig Lorenz was Denmark's first theoretical physicist of international recognition. Despite his important contributions to a broad range of experimental and theoretical physics, he generally appears as a somewhat peripheral figure in histories of late‐nineteenth‐century physics and is completely overshadowed by his near‐namesake H. A. Lorentz. Herein, a selected number of Lorenz's works is introduced with an eye on those which are still of relevance to modern physics and today eponymously associated with his name. These contributions are known as the Lorenz number, the Lorenz gauge, the Lorenz–Lorentz law or formula, and the Lorenz–Mie scattering theory.     

Maxwell: A new vision of the world

The paper outlines the crucial contributions of James Clerk Maxwell to Physics and more generally to our vision of the world. He achieved 150 years ago a synthesis of the pioneering works in magnetostatics, electrostatics, induction and, by introducing the notion of displacement current, gave birth to Electromagnetics. Then, he deduced the existence of electromagnetic waves and identified light as one of them.Maxwell equations deeply changed a Newtonian conception of the world based on particle interactions by pointing out the vital role of waves in physics. This new conception had a strong influence on the development of quantum physics. Finally, the invariance of light velocity in Galilean frames led to Lorentz transformations, a key step toward the theory of relativity.     

Physics Textbooks Don’t Always Tell the Truth

Anyone who studies the history of physics quickly realizes that the history presented in physics textbooks is often inaccurate. I will discuss three episodes from the history of modern physics: (1) Robert Millikan’s experiments on the photoelectric effect, (2) the Michelson-Morley experiment, and (3) the Ellis-Wooster experiment on the energy spectrum in β decay. Everyone knows that Millikan’s work established the photon theory of light and that the Michelson-Morley experiment was crucial in the genesis of Albert Einstein’s special theory of relativity. The problem is that what everyone knows is wrong. Neither experiment played the role assigned to it by physics textbooks. The Ellis-Wooster experiment, on the other hand, is rarely discussed in physics texts, but it should be. It led to Wolfgang Pauli’s suggestion of the neutrino. I will present a more accurate history of these three experiments than those given in physics texts.     

On Ludvig Lorenz and his 1890 treatise on light scattering by spheres

The European Physical Journal H - This paper offers background and perspective on a little-known memoir by Ludvig Lorenz on light scattering by spheres, which was published in Danish in 1890. It is...     

Influence of modified light dispersion theory on fermion tunneling radiation in the Einstein-Maxwell-dilaton-axion black hole

Based on a light dispersion relationship derived from string theory and quantum gravitational theory,we make an accurate modification to the quantum tunneling radiation rate and black hole temperature at an event horizon in a stationary axial-symmetric Einstein–Maxwell–dilaton–axion black hole.We also analyze our new results and carry out some significant discussions.This work enriches the research content and methods of the frontiers of black hole physics.     

Much Polyphony but Little Harmony: Otto Sackur’s Groping for a Quantum Theory of Gases

The endeavor of Otto Sackur (1880–1914) was driven, on the one hand, by his interest in Nernst’s heat theorem, statistical mechanics, and the problem of chemical equilibrium and, on the other hand, by his goal to shed light on classical mechanics from the quantum vantage point. Inspired by the interplay between classical physics and quantum theory, Sackur chanced to expound his personal take on the role of the quantum in the changing landscape of physics in the turbulent 1910s. We tell the story of this enthusiastic practitioner of the old quantum theory and early contributor to quantum statistical mechanics, whose scientific ontogenesis provides a telling clue about the phylogeny of his contemporaries.     

Arthur Cayley and the ‘Gruppen Pest’

The original contributions of Arthur Cayley to the Philosophical Magazine on group theory and his ‘trees’ are revisited and to some extend reinterpreted. Both topics were and are of enormous importance not only in physics (group theory, graph theory), but also in quite a few other disciplines as diverse as information technology or, for example, linguistics (trees, graph theory). In order to show that these two topics originally arose from interests in the theory of permutations also Cayley’s ‘Mousetrap’ game is briefly mentioned.     

Solution of Maxwell’s equations on a de Sitter background

The Maxwell equations for the electromagnetic potential, supplemented by the Lorenz gauge condition, are decoupled and solved exactly in de Sitter space–time studied in static spherical coordinates. There is no source besides the background. One component of the vector field is expressed, in its radial part, through the solution of a fourth-order ordinary differential equation obeying given initial conditions. The other components of the vector field are then found by acting with lower-order differential operators on the solution of the fourth-order equation (while the transverse part is decoupled and solved exactly from the beginning). The whole four-vector potential is eventually expressed through hypergeometric functions and spherical harmonics. Its radial part is plotted for given choices of initial conditions. We have thus completely succeeded in solving the homogeneous vector wave equation for Maxwell theory in the Lorenz gauge when a de Sitter space–time is considered, which is relevant both for inflationary cosmology and gravitational wave theory. The decoupling technique and analytic formulae and plots are completely original. This is an important step towards solving exactly the tensor wave equation in de Sitter space–time, which has important applications to the theory of gravitational waves about curved backgrounds.     

麦克斯韦速率分布的特色推导方法

大学物理教学的一个基本点是培养学生的空间想象力.麦克斯韦速率分布律是气体分子运动论的中心内容,是大学物理气体运动理论中讲授的一个难点,其公式抽象、繁难,学生不易理解.本文根据速度空间概念,给出速度球的表面积相当于气体分子微观状态数的观点,利用拉郎格日函数,推导理想气体平衡态下气体分子的速率分布函数.这种推导方法相对比较...     

The Universal C*-Algebra of the Electromagnetic Field

A universal C*-algebra of the electromagnetic field is constructed. It is represented in any quantum field theory which incorporates electromagnetism and expresses basic features of the field such as Maxwell’s equations, Poincaré covariance and Einstein causality. Moreover, topological properties of the field resulting from Maxwell’s equations are encoded in the algebra, leading to commutation relations with values in its center. The representation theory of the algebra is discussed with focus on vacuum representations, fixing the dynamics of the field.     

Boundary states at reflective moving boundaries

We derive and evaluate boundary states for Maxwell’s equations, the linear, and the nonlinear Euler gas-dynamics equations to compute wave reflection from moving boundaries. In this study we use a Discontinuous Galerkin Spectral Element method (DGSEM) with Arbitrary Lagrangian–Eulerian (ALE) mapping for the spatial approximation, but the boundary states can be used with other methods, like finite volume schemes. We present four studies using Maxwell’s equations, one for the linear Euler equations, and one more for the nonlinear Euler equations. These are: reflection of light from a plane mirror moving at constant velocity, reflection of light from a moving cylinder, reflection of light from a vibrating mirror, reflection of sound from a plane wall and dipole sound generation by an oscillating cylinder in an inviscid flow. The studies show that the boundary states preserve spectral convergence in the solution and in derived quantities like divergence and vorticity.     

Linear and nonlinear optical properties of excitons in semiconductor quantum wells and microcavities

Linear and nonlinear light propagation in single and multiple quantum wells and in semiconductor microresonators are studied on the basis of Maxwell’s equations. The treatment includes radiative broadening of quantum-confined excitons, radiative coupling between quantum wells as well as coupling of quantum wells to the cavity field of a microresonator for steady state or ultrashort pulse excitation. The dynamical evolution of the coherent quantum-well polarization under the influence of many-body effects is studied within a microscopic model. The theory is used to investigate the influence of exciton saturation and dephasing on pulse propagation and excitonic normal-mode coupling.     

Lorenz混沌系统的分析与电路实现

利用Matlab的数值计算和Multisim的电路模型分析和实现著名的Lorenz混沌系统,观察Lorenz混沌吸引子,加深对混沌现象的认识,可将混沌理论与实验引入到大学物理实验教学项目中。     

用洛伦兹磁场力挑战狭义相对论首文的论点简

实验论证表明：基于欧式空间的伽利略相对运动,①当磁铁静止而线圈运动时,其感应电流是经典洛伦兹磁力F1的作用结果;②当线圈静止而磁铁运动时,其感应电流是广义洛伦兹磁力F2的作用结果。这就否定了狭义相对论的论点,也质疑了麦克斯韦电动力学。     

Luis Santaló and classical field theory

Considered one of the founding fathers of integral geometry, Luis Santaló has contributed to various areas of mathematics. His work has applications in number theory, in the theory of differential equations, in stochastic geometry, in functional analysis, and also in theoretical physics. Between the 1950’s and the 1970’s, he wrote a series of papers on general relativity and on the attempts at generalizing Einstein’s theory to formulate a unified field theory. His main contribution in this subject was to provide a classification theorem for the plethora of tensors that were populating Einstein’s generalized theory. This paper revisits his work on theoretical physics.

     

利用连续介质力学方法研究超光速现象

从可压缩连续介质角度出发,给出一种可以在空间二级准确度上兼容的相对论然而又允许超光速介质运动存在的数学描述.先给出无粘不可压缩流动的Euler方程可以改写成和电磁场方程相同的表达形式：在空间二阶准确度的意义上来说,不可压缩流+相对论近似等于可压缩流,它们都是和现在的实验结果相融的;给出可压缩流动的广义相对论.这也说明协变不变原理不过是可压缩流动的一种近似处理方法.新模型可以解释索么菲（A.Sommerfeld）提出的粒子在超过光速后减小能量反而加速的现象.     

Covariant jump conditions in electromagnetism

A generally covariant four-dimensional representation of Maxwell’s electrodynamics in a generic material medium can be achieved straightforwardly in the metric-free formulation of electromagnetism. In this setup, the electromagnetic phenomena are described by two tensor fields, which satisfy Maxwell’s equations. A generic tensorial constitutive relation between these fields is an independent ingredient of the theory. By use of different constitutive relations (local and non-local, linear and non-linear, etc.), a wide area of applications can be covered. In the current paper, we present the jump conditions for the fields and for the energy–momentum tensor on an arbitrarily moving surface between two media. From the differential and integral Maxwell equations, we derive the covariant boundary conditions, which are independent of any metric and connection. These conditions include the covariantly defined surface current and are applicable to an arbitrarily moving smooth curved boundary surface. As an application of the presented jump formulas, we derive a Lorentzian type metric as a condition for existence of the wave front in isotropic media. This result holds for ordinary materials as well as for metamaterials with negative material constants.     

Boundary conditions for regularized 13-moment-equations for micro-channel-flows

Boundary conditions are the major obstacle in simulations based on advanced continuum models of rarefied and micro-flows of gases. In this paper, we present a theory how to combine the regularized 13-moment-equations derived from Boltzmann’s equation with boundary conditions obtained from Maxwell’s kinetic accommodation model. While for the linear case these kinetic boundary conditions suffice, we need additional conditions in the non-linear case. These are provided by the bulk solutions obtained after properly transforming the equations while keeping their asymptotic accuracy with respect to Boltzmann’s equation.After finding a suitable set of boundary conditions and equations, a numerical method for generic shear flow problems is formulated. Several test simulations demonstrate the stable and oscillation-free performance of the new approach.     

A simplistic pedagogical formulation of a thermal speed distribution using a relativistic framework

A novel pedagogical technique is presented that can be used in the undergraduate (UG) class to formulate a relativistically extended kinetic theory of gases and thermal speed distribution, while assuming the basic thermal symmetry arguments of the famous Maxwell–Boltzmann distribution as presented at the UG level. The adopted framework can be used by students to understand the physics of a thermally governed system at high temperature and speeds, without having to indulge in high level tensor-based mathematics, as has been done by the previous works on the subject. Our approach, a logical extension of that proposed by Maxwell, will first recapitulate what is taught and known in the UG class and then present a methodology inspired from the Maxwell–Boltzmann framework that will help students to understand and derive the physics of relativistic thermal systems. The methodology uses simple tools well known to undergraduates and involves a component of computational techniques that can be used to involve students in this exercise. We have tried to place the current work in a larger perspective with regard to the earlier works done and emphasize on its simplicity and accessibility to students. Towards the end, interesting implications of the relativistically extended distribution are presented and compared with the Maxwell–Boltzmann results at various temperatures.