2003/12/03 by Kirk T. McDonald, McDonald, Kirk T.
Physics and Astronomy · #Atomic and Subatomic Physics Research #Classical Physics (physics.class-ph) #FOS: Physical sciences #Ionosphere and magnetosphere dynamics #Plasma Physics (physics.plasm-ph) #Quantum optics and atomic interactions #physics.class-ph #physics.plasm-ph
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.physics/0312025
8 pages, no figures
arxiv created 2003/12/03 · openalex publication_date 2003/12/03 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
In general, Maxwell's equations require that a wave of electric field be accompanied by a wave of magnetic field, and vice versa. However, it is possible to have a plane wave in a dielectric medium with electric field E parallel to the wave vector k (a longitudinal wave) with no time-dependent magnetic field provided the electric displacement D is zero. We give an example from plasma physics: the so-called Bernstein wave.