Electromagnetic pulses which have a zero momentum frame
Optics
2009-11-10 v1 General Physics
Abstract
One set of the Ziolkowski family of exact solutions of the wave equation are shown to represent pulses propagating with momentum smaller than energy/c. This is explicitly demonstrated for special cases by calculating the total electromagnetic momentum and energy. Since the ratio of momentum to energy is a constant smaller than 1/c, there exists a Lorentz transformation to a frame in which the total momentum is zero. In the zero-momentum frame the fields are those of an annular pulse converging onto or diverging from a focal region.
Cite
@article{arxiv.physics/0304022,
title = {Electromagnetic pulses which have a zero momentum frame},
author = {John Lekner},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:physics/0304022},
year = {2009}
}
Comments
10 pages, 2 figures incorporated