Abstract
It is well established that classical electrodynamics, quantum electrodynamics (QED) as well as Quantum Field Theory (QFT) are grounded on Maxwell’s wave theory and on his equations, but it is much less well understood that they are not grounded on his initial interpretation of the relation between the E and B fields, but are rather grounded on Ludvig Lorenz’s interpretation of this relation, with which Maxwell disagreed. Maxwell considered that both fields had to mutually induce each other cyclically for the velocity of light to be maintained while Lorenz considered that both fields had to synchronously peak at maximum at the same time for this velocity to be maintained, both interpretations being equally consistent with the equations. Two recent breakthroughs however now allow confirming that Maxwell’s interpretation was correct because, contrary to the Lorenz interpretation, it allows to seamlessly reconcile Maxwell’s electromagnetic wave theory, so successfully applied at our macroscopic level, with the electromagnetic characteristics that apply at the subatomic level to localized electromagnetic photons and to all localized charged and massive elementary electromagnetic particles of which all atoms are made, and finally allows establishing a clear mechanics of electromagnetic photon emission and absorption by electrons during their interaction at the atomic level.
Highlights
The first of these two breakthroughs was the elaboration of a more extensive geometry of space, based on the three-way orthogonal relationship that Maxwell related to the three fundamental aspects of electromagnetic energy of which light is made at the subatomic level, namely its electrical and magnetic aspects perceived as being perpendicular to each other and mutually inducing each other into a standing cyclic transverse oscillation mode of the energy that these fields measure with respect to the direction of motion in vacuum of this transversely oscillating electromagnetic energy in space, that is, a direction of motion of this energy which is perpendicular to the direction of the stationary transverse oscillation of the energy represented by the two fields
The most edifying demonstration of this confusion is that in a major work on quantum field theory (QFT) published in 1993, that is, 25 years later, by a renowned physicist in the community, we find the following mention in section 1.2 of his book [50], that shows that he had never heard about the Breidenbach et al experiments that were carried 25 years before, otherwise it seems obvious that he would have taken them into account: “Ironically, one problem of the quark model was that it was too successful
This analysis highlights the point that it is no more difficult to conceive that electromagnetic energy can consist of localized photons at the subatomic level than it is to conceive that water consists of localized molecules at the submicroscopic level, even if at our macroscopic level we treat electromagnetic energy as if it was made of continuous wave impulses and water as if it was a fluid without internal structure
Summary
Maxwell disagreed with this approach, because the concept of “gauge” developed by Lorenz had the consequence of treating both fields E and B as a single electromagnetic field at the general level, without any apparent internal structure at first glance, which obscures the fact that both fields are of equal and separate importance in Maxwell’s theory, with different and irreconcilable characteristics, in addition to mutually inducing each other, contrary to the Lorenz solution, as put in perspective in reference [3] The fact that this second solution was developed by Lorenz, is not well known in the scientific community because it is associated only to the so-called Lorenz gauge defined by him, and this, only in high level specialized reference works on electromagnetism [5], because it lends itself more than Maxwell’s representation to various mathematical generalization processes, but the true origin of the solution represented by Figure 2 is not clearly explained in introductory textbooks and general reference works on physics [6] [7]. Even the fact that as formulated, QED cannot explain the mutual induction of both fields in LRC systems doesn’t seem to attract attention to this issue
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