Related papers: Macroscopic view of light pressure on continuous m…
The problem of the electromagnetic energy-momentum tensor is among the oldest and the most controversial in macroscopic electrodynamics. In the center of the issue is a dispute about the Minkowski and the Abraham tensors for moving media.…
We use the electromagnetic stress tensor to describe the elongation of paramagnetic drops in uniform magnetic fields. This approach implies a linear relationship between the shape of the drops and the square of the applied field which we…
By examination of the exerted electromagnetic (EM) force on boundary of an object in a few examples, we look into the compatibility of the stress tensors corresponding to different formulae of the EM force density with special relativity.…
The problem of construction of a continuous (macroscopic) matter model for a given point-like (microscopic) matter distribution in general relativity is formulated. The existing approaches are briefly reviewed and a physical analogy with…
A general theory of optical forces on moving bodies is here developed in terms of generalized/4x4 transfer and scattering matrices. Results are presented for a planar dielectric multilayer of arbitrary refractive index placed in an…
Conventionally, theories of electromagnetic waves in a medium assume that only the energy of the field propagates in a transparent medium and the medium is left undisturbed. Consequently, the transport of mass density and the related…
We establish a general relation between dispersion forces. First, based on QED in causal media, leading-order perturbation theory is used to express both the single-atom Casimir-Polder and the two-atom van der Waals potentials in terms of…
Maxwell's equations and the Lorentz force density are expressed using an alternative simultaneity gauge. As a result, they describe electrodynamics for an observer travelling with a constant velocity through an isotropic medium. If desired,…
Electromagnetic sources, as e.g. lasers, antennas, diffusers or thermal sources, produce a wavefield that interacts with objects to transfer them its momentum. We show that the photonic force exerted on a small particle in the near field of…
Particles bound to an interface interact because they deform its shape. The stresses that result are fully encoded in the geometry and described by a divergence-free surface stress tensor. This stress tensor can be used to express the force…
We derive from first principles the momentum exchange between a photon and a quantum mirror upon reflection, by considering the boundary conditions imposed by the mirror surface on the photon wave equation. We show that the system generally…
Current theory is able to predict the Casimir force between macroscopic bodies with an accuracy only limited by the knowledge of the material parameters. Yet surprisingly after almost 70 years of research, while theory describes the Casimir…
The electromagnetic wave propagation in an anisotropic dielectric media with two generic matrices $\epsilon^{ij}$ and $\mu^{ij}$ of permittivity and permeability is studied. These matrices are not required to be symmetric, positive…
A discussion is given on the interpretation and physical importance of the Minkowski momentum in macroscopic electrodynamics (essential for the Abraham-Minkowski problem). We focus on the following two facets: (1) Adopting a simple…
Light, or electromagnetic radiation, is well known to possess momentum, and the exchange of this momentum with a reflecting surface leads to radiation pressure. More often than not, it is the radiation pressure generated by a plane wave…
The system of particles interacting via multibody interatomic potential of general form is considered. Possible variants of partition of the total force acting on a single particle into pair contributions are discussed. Two definitions for…
The refraction of light by dispersion-free dielectric media can be modeled using well-localized macroscopic wave packets, enabling a description in terms of pseudo-particles. This approach is often used in thought experiments to illustrate…
We use an extended version of electrodynamics, which admits the existence of magnetic charges and currents, to discuss how different models for electric and magnetic dipoles do or do not carry hidden momentum under the influence of external…
The Newtonian character of gauge theories on a light front requires that the longitudinal momentum P^+, which plays the role of Newtonian mass, be conserved. This requirement conflicts with the standard definition of the force between two…
During the past century, the electromagnetic field momentum in material media has been under debate in the Abraham-Minkowski controversy as convincing arguments have been advanced in favor of both the Abraham and Minkowski forms of photon…