The hidden link between electricity and magnetism
Why Physics Stack Exchange recommends it
Physics Stack Exchange users point people to it when they want a more careful, derivation-based account of magnetism as a relativistic effect than popular pop-science versions give.
Recommended by 3 people across 3 different months, 2021 to 2023.
What it is
A 20-minute explainer from the STEM cell channel showing how magnetism emerges from electrostatics once special relativity is applied. It derives the strength of the magnetic field from the Lorentz-transformed fields and electrostatic equations rather than just asserting the link.
What people said
Recommends Cleonis · 2021-10 · Physics Stack Exchange · on “How do we think at the perspective of negatively charged wire in special relativity that causes magnetism?”
That veritatasium video isn't particularly good, unfortunately. You may want to try this youtube video: " The hidden link between electricity and magnetism [this video] " (Youtube channel: 'STEM Cell') (I haven't watched all of it but the author seems thorough.) About the version presented in the Veritasium video: it's not just that the switch is to another perspective, the switch is to another case: The two cases are: -the cat is stationary with respect to the physical wire -the cat is in motion relative to the physical wire. Each of those two cases can be described in terms of a coordinate system that is stationary with respect to the wire, or in terms of a coordinate system that has a velocity
Recommends mr chap · 2022-11 · Physics Stack Exchange · on “Special relativity and electromagnetism”
You don't understand it because Its wrong. You cannot explain it using only length contraction. you must include length contraction as well as the transformation of the fields under special relativity. Here is the solution [this video]
Recommends Lambda · 2023-05 · Physics Stack Exchange · on “Maxwell's Equations Relativistic Interpretation”
I've seen similar questions asking about expressing Maxwell's equations with relativistic formulation, but my question is about the physical interpretation it may give for their conventional form. I'm only familiar with the intuition of special relativity, but explanations I've seen for the origins of the magnetic field describe it as an electric field in a non-stationary reference frame caused by the length contraction of electrons increasing negative charge density. This results in a radial "electric" field in the reference frame of a moving charge that we view as caused by a magnetic field in a stationary frame. How do Maxwell's equations relating the curl of the electric and magnetic fie
Critical mr chap · 2022-11 · Physics Stack Exchange · on “Special relativity and electromagnetism”
You don't understand it because Its wrong. You cannot explain it using only length contraction. you must include length contraction as well as the transformation of the fields under special relativity. Here is the solution [this video] don't learn physics from pop gurus