MANDATORY TOPICS
 

Topic 1:

General discussion of simple radiation, definitions of distance regions or zones. Dipole radiation, radiated power and scattering from an electric dipole. Multiple scatterers, coherent scattering, forward scattering and the optical theorem. (1 week)

Topic 2:

General treatment of radiation and scattering. Vector spherical harmonics and spherical Bessel's functions, electric and magnetic multiple radiation. Special examples. Diffraction scattering.(1 1/2 weeks)

Topic 3:

The transition from physical wave propagation to geometrical optics. Fermat's principle. (1/2 week)

Topic 4:

Review of Special Relativity. General Lorentz transformations and four-vector description. Scalars, vectors, and tensors, and the use of invariants to perform transformations. Relativistic Dopple shift and proper time. Four vector velocity, acceleration, and energy momentum. Newton's Laws. (2 weeks)

Topic 5:

Differential operators in relativity. Charge conservation and the four-vector current density. Electric and magnetic fields as components of a tensor. Covariant formulation of Maxwell's equations and the Lorentz force. Gauge invariance. (1 1/2 weeks)

Topic 6:

Transformation properties of E and B. Conservation Laws in relativity. (1/2 week)

Topic 7:

The Laagrangian, Hamiltonian, and Stress-Energy tensor for free E&M. Stress-energy tensor with sources, field momentum, energy, and angular momentum. Lagrangian for particles. (2 weeks)

Topic 8:

Radiation from a moving charge (Lienard Wiechert Potentials. Synctron radiation: power and spectrum. Cherenkov radiation. (2 weeks)

Topic 9:

Radiation Damping. Self interaction and self energy. Relativistic generalization of Larmor formula. (0ne week)

OPTIONAL TOPICS
 

Topic 1:

Magnetohydrodynamics and Plasma Physics (1 to 2 weeks)

Links to exisiting web page for this course:

Currently does not exist.

Prepared by James Ball (2/24/99)