How well do you know electricity and magnetism ?

Suppose that you live in some very, very weird universe where the speed of light is infinity. Now lets observe a infinitely long wire with current I = 10 A I=10A passing trough it. Find the Magnetic field on a distance r = 5 m r=5\text{ m} from the wire.


The answer is 0.00.

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3 solutions

The magnetic field B B at a point radial distance r r from an infinite wire carrying current I I is given by:

B = μ 0 I 2 π r B = \frac{\mu_0I}{2 \pi r}

From electromagnetic wave equation: ( c 2 2 2 t 2 ) E = 0 ( c 2 2 2 t 2 ) B = 0 \left(c^2\nabla^2 - \frac{\partial^2}{\partial t^2} \right) \text{E} = 0 \\ \left(c^2\nabla^2 - \frac{\partial^2}{\partial t^2} \right) \text{B} = 0

where c = 1 μ 0 ϵ 0 c = \dfrac{1}{\sqrt{\mu_0 \epsilon_0}} , c c is the speed of light, and μ 0 \mu_0 and ϵ 0 \epsilon_0 are the permeability and permittivity of free space.

In a universe, where c c \to \infty , since the wave equation is symetrical μ 0 0 \mu_0 \to 0 and ϵ 0 0 \epsilon_0 \to 0 , and B = 0 B = \boxed{0} .

How can u say that its permeability that will tend to zero and not permittivity of free space

Somesh Patil - 5 years, 8 months ago

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Yes, I was thinking about it yesterday. I think the answer is as I mentioned in the amended solution above. Thanks for asking.

Chew-Seong Cheong - 5 years, 8 months ago
Parth Vashisht
Oct 2, 2015

μ°approaches 0 by -Can we say by expression c=1/√μ°*€°

yes, used exactly the same method but i was thinking why can't episolon tend to zero as we know the product is tending to zero not the individual values.

A Former Brilliant Member - 4 years, 9 months ago

Thus the magnetic field exist because the speed of light is finite in our universe B = 0 B=0 .

Mathematical proof:

By Lorent'z transformations we know

B n = γ ( B n ( v × E ) / c 2 ) \vec B_n'=\gamma(\vec B_n-(\vec v \times \vec E)/c^2)

Now let K be the system moving with current and K' be the system of observation. Then in K B n = 0 B_n=0 and because c c is infinity ( v × E ) / c 2 = 0 (\vec v \times \vec E)/c^2=0 so B n = 0 B_n'=0 .

Since you are the question creator, I would like to write to you. My access to search for 'Nature of electromagnetic field' in the website was not successful.

Hard to imagine how all our appliances at home stop to work just because of speed of light becomes an infinity.

c = 1 μ 0 ϵ 0 c = \dfrac{1}{\sqrt{\mu_0 \epsilon_0}}

Propagation of electromagnetic wave is very imaginative but very likely the only reasoning for light's propagation. According to what was meant by symmetry, both magnetic and electrostatic effect ought to turn off together!

"The correspondence was too great to be accidental, and Maxwell concluded that light consists of electromagnetic waves." (Written by a book writer.)

Perhaps we can't simply make an assumption. The fact of appearance or emergence of magnetic field and electrostatic field may overwrite an allowance for an absence of limit of speed of light. The cause and effect may have been in another way round by the assumption. There could be no light able to exist when magnetic field and electrostatic field cannot emerge before we can talk about an infinity of speed of light; it is like infinite speed of zero momentum! We are at a position of discussing a great problem in a small manner.

I think I couldn't be sure when I entered 0 to try for a correct answer wanted. Are you sure of what you thought should be correct?

Lu Chee Ket - 5 years, 7 months ago

You cannot divide by infinity.

Can you tell us a little more about this idea? May be write an wiki page? That'd be helpful :)

Agnishom Chattopadhyay - 5 years, 8 months ago

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Okey, i said it's 'mathematical proof' that's just a colorization.

But really if c tends to infinity that term divided by c^2 really goes to zero!

On the other hand that's physically correct fact. I don't think I'm suitable for writing wiki page, but i can recommend you to read some articles related with 'Nature of electromagnetic field' if you want theory with nice examples take a look at 'Basic Laws Of Electromagnetism' Irodov chapter 8.

Вук Радовић - 5 years, 8 months ago

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