electromagnetic wave

views updated May 08 2018

electromagnetic wave A wave comprising an electrical and a magnetic component at right angles to one another but which are in phase and have the same frequency. The electrical component represents the electrical field strength, E, and the magnetic component the magnetic flux density, B. Electromagnetic waves travel at the speed of light (about 2.998 × 105 km/s in free space), such that the wave velocity v = 1/(μ0ϵ0)1/2, where μ0 and ϵ0 are the magnetic permeability (4π× 10−7H/m) and dielectric permittivity of free space, respectively.

electromagnetic wave

views updated May 29 2018

electromagnetic wave A wave comprising an electrical and a magnetic component which are at right angles to one another but are in phase and have the same frequency. The electrical component represents the electrical field strength and the magnetic component the magnetic flux density. Electromagnetic waves travel at the speed of light (about 2.998 × 105 km/s in free space).