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Subject: PHYSICS Class: XII
Chapter -8 Electromagnetic waves
8.1 Introduction
An electrical current produces a magnetic field around it. Further, a magnetic field
changing with time gives rise to an electric field. Is the converse also true? Does an
electric field changing with time give rise to a magnetic field?
According to James Clerk Maxwell, time-varying electric field generates magnetic field.
Maxwell formulated a set of equations involving electric and magnetic fields, known as
Maxwell’s equations.
Maxwell’s equations predicted the existence of electromagnetic waves, which are
(coupled) time varying electric and magnetic fields that propagate in space. Hertz, in
1885, experimentally demonstrated the existence of electromagnetic waves. Its
technological use by Marconi and others led in due course to the revolution in
communication that we are witnessing today.
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8.2 Displacement Current
The current due to changing electric field or electric flux is called displacement current
or Maxwell’s displacement current.
Ampere-Maxwell law
According to Maxwell the source of a magnetic field is not just the conduction electric
current due to flowing charges, but also the time rate of change of electric field.
The total current i is the sum of the conduction current ( ic) and displacement current
( id)
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8.3 Electromagnetic waves
Sources of Electromagnetic Waves:
▪ A stationary charge produces only electrostatic fields.
▪ Charges in uniform motion (steady currents) can produce
magnetic fields that, do not vary with time.
▪ An oscillating charge (accelerating charge) produces an oscillating electric field in
space, which produces an oscillating magnetic field, which in turn, is a source of
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oscillating electric field, and so on. The oscillating electric and magnetic fields thus
regenerate each other, as the electromagnetic wave propagates through the space.
Thus an oscillating charge (accelerating charge) is the source of electromagnetic
waves.
An electric charge oscillating harmonically with frequency 𝑣, produces electromagnetic
waves of the same frequency 𝑣.
▪ The experimental demonstration of electromagnetic wave in the radio wave region was
done by Hertz in1887.
▪ Seven years after Hertz, Jagdish Chandra Bose, succeeded in producing and
observing electromagnetic waves of much shorter wavelength (25 mm to 5 mm).
▪ At around the same time, Guglielmo Marconi succeeded in transmitting
electromagnetic waves over distances of many kilometers. Marconi’s experiment marks
the beginning of the field of communication using electromagnetic waves.
Nature of Electromagnetic Waves:
5) No material medium is required for the propagation of [Link].
6) Electromagnetic waves carry energy as they travel through space and this energy is
shared equally by the electric and magnetic fields.
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Expression for electric field and magnetic field
Consider an electromagnetic wave propagating along the z direction. Let the electric
field 𝐸𝑥 is along the x-axis and the magnetic field 𝐵𝑦 is along the y-axis. Then
8.4 Electromagnetic Spectrum
The classification of em waves according to frequency is the electromagnetic spectrum.
There is no sharp division between one kind of wave and the next.
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How is food cooked in microwave ovens?
In microwave ovens, the frequency of the microwaves is selected to match the resonant
frequency of water molecules so that energy from the waves is transferred efficiently to
the kinetic energy of the molecules. This raises the temperature of any food containing
water.
Infrared waves
▪ Infrared waves are produced by hot bodies and molecules.
▪ (i) Infrared lamps are used in physical therapy.
(ii) Infrared radiation plays an important role in maintaining the earth’s warmth or
average temperature through the greenhouse effect.
(iii)Infrared detectors are used in Earth satellites, both for military purposes and to
observe growth of crops.
(iv)LEDs emit infrared waves, which are used in the remote switches of TV sets, video
recorders and hi-fi systems.
Why IR waves are called heat waves?
Infrared waves are sometimes referred to as heat waves. This is because water
molecules present in most materials readily absorb infrared waves
( CO2, NH3, also absorb infrared waves). After absorption, their thermal motion
increases, that is, they heat up and heat their surroundings.
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Greenhouse Effect
Incoming visible light is absorbed by the earth’s surface and reradiated as infrared
(longer wavelength) radiations. This radiation is trapped by greenhouse gases such as
carbon dioxide and water vapour. This trapped Infrared radiation maintains the earth’s
warmth.
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1) Give the expressions for energy density of electric and magnetic fields in electromagnetic
waves.
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2) What is radiation pressure? Give an expression for radiation pressure?
3) Which are the 7 E.M waves?
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