Electromagnetism according to geometric algebra: An appropriate and comprehensive formulation
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While the Maxwell’s equations describe the electric and magnetic fields developed by electrically charged particles and/or currents, the Lorentz force law completes the picture of classical electromagnetic theory by defining the force acting on a localised charge (or charge distribution) moving in the field. However, the standard formulation using vector algebra suffers from several inadequacies and unwarranted features. Clifford’s geometric algebra or more specifically space–time algebra, i.e geometric algebra in 4D Minkowski space–time, provides anelegant, compactified and comprehensive description by removing the discrepancies of the earlier formulation. It provides an invariant description, in the appropriate space–time setting, in terms of the combined electromagnetic field without reference to any inertial system. Moreover, using elementary geometric calculus, it facilitates direct analytical introduction of the putative concept of magnetic monopole and renders the equations for both the constituent fields, symmetric and inhomogeneous. In terms of the single space–time force equation, space–time algebra also encapsulates both the Lorentz force equation and the electromagnetic power equation.
Volume 97, 2023
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