Chapter 4
Electricity
and Magnetism
Prepared by: Emma-Sensei 1
The Proponent of
Electromagnetic
Theory
2
Brief History of
electromagnetism
A Timeline of Events in Electromagnetism
3
Contents
1. History
1. Ancient times.
2. Mid-times
3. Early modern times.
4
Ancient times
600 BCE: Sparking Amber in Ancient
Greece
◼ Amber rubbed with fur attracts bits of dust and
hairs.
◼ 600 BCE: Sparking Amber in Ancient Greece
◼ The earliest writings about electromagnetism
were in 600 BCE, when the ancient Greek
philosopher, mathematician and scientist Thales
of Miletus described his experiments rubbing
animal fur on various substances such as amber.
5
Ancient times- 1600: Gilbert
and the Lodestone
Toward the late 16th century, the "founder of
electrical science" English scientist William Gilbert
published "De Magnete" in Latin translated as "On
the Magnet" or "On the Lodestone." Gilbert was a
contemporary of Galileo, who was impressed by
Gilbert's work. Gilbert undertook a number of
careful electrical experiments, in the course of
which he discovered that many substances were
capable of manifesting electrical properties.
6
7
Mid-times
◼ 1600. English scientist,
William Gilbert,
publishes “De Magnete”.
◼ 1700. Lectures and
demonstrations given
by various scientists
using electricity and
entertain audiences
8
Ancient times-
1752: Franklin's
Kite Experiments
American founding father Benjamin Franklin is famous for
the extremely dangerous experiment he ran, of having
his son fly a kite through a storm-threatened sky. A key
attached to the kite string sparked and charged a
Leyden jar, thus establishing the link between lightning
and electricity. Following these experiments, he invented
the lightning rod.
Franklin discovered there are two kinds of charges, positive
and negative: objects with like charges repel one
another.
9
Mid-times
◼ 1785. Charles Austin de Coulomb
The force between two charges Q1 and Q2 is
proportional to their product divided by the
separation distance r squared inverse square law.
◼ 1785: Coulomb's Law
◼ -the definition of the electrostatic force of attraction and
repulsion. He found that the force exerted between two small
electrified bodies is directly proportional to the product of the
magnitude of charges and varies inversely to the square of the
distance between those charges. He also produced important
work on the study of friction.
10
1789: Galvanic
Electricity
-Luigi Galvani's Frog Leg Experiment Made a Dead Frog Jump
In 1780, Italian professor Luigi Galvani (1737–1790)
discovered that electricity from two different metals causes
frog legs to twitch. He observed that a frog's muscle,
suspended on an iron by a copper hook passing through its
dorsal column, underwent lively convulsions without any
extraneous cause.
To account for this phenomenon, Galvani assumed that
electricity of opposite kinds existed in the nerves and muscles
of the frog. Galvani started the study of how electricity works in
living systems. 11
Mid-times
1790: Voltaic Electricity
1790. Alessandro Volta finds chemistry acting on
two dissimilar metals generates electricity. He later
invents the voltaic pile- “the battery”.
12
Italian physicist, chemist and inventor Alessandro
Volta (1745–1827) read of Galvani's research and in his
own work discovered that chemicals acting on two
dissimilar metals generate electricity without the benefit
of a frog. He invented the first electric battery, the voltaic
pile battery in 1799. With the pile battery, Volta proved
that electricity could be generated chemically and
debunked the prevalent theory that electricity was
generated solely by living beings. Volta's invention
sparked a great deal of scientific excitement, leading
others to conduct similar experiments which eventually
led to the development of the field of electrochemistry.
13
Modern Times
1820: Magnetic Fields
In 1820, Danish physicist and chemist
Hans Christian Oersted (1777–1851)
discovered what would become known
as Oersted's Law: that an electric
current affects a compass needle and
creates magnetic fields. He was the first
scientist to find the connection between
electricity and magnetism. 14
1821: Ampere's
Electrodynamics
French physicist Andre Marie Ampere (1775–1836)
found that wires carrying current produce forces on
each other, announcing his theory of electrodynamics in
1821.
Ampere's theory of electrodynamics states that two
parallel portions of a circuit attract one another if the
currents in them are flowing in the same direction, and
repel one another if the currents flow in the opposite
direction. He had produced a magnetic attraction and
repulsion without the use of any magnets, all of it
was generated by electricity. 15
1831: Faraday and
Electromagnetic Induction
English scientist Michael Faraday (1791–1867) at the
Royal Society in London developed the idea of an
electric field and studied the effect of currents on
magnets. His research found that the magnetic field
created around a conductor carried a direct current,
thereby establishing the basis for the concept of the
electromagnetic field in physics.
Faraday observed that current is detected only when
the magnet is moving in and out of the coil.
16
1873: Maxwell and the
Basis of
Electromagnetic Theory
James Clerk Maxwell (1831–1879), a Scottish physicist and
mathematician, recognized that electromagnetism's
processes could be established using mathematics. Maxwell
published "Treatise on Electricity and Magnetism" in 1873 in
which he summarizes and synthesizes the discoveries of
Coulomb, Oersted, Ampere, Faraday into four mathematical
equations. Maxwell's equations are used today as the basis
of electromagnetic theory. Maxwell predicts the connections
of magnetism and electricity leading directly to the prediction
of electromagnetic waves.
17
Maxwell’s Equations
◼ Gauss' law for electricity
◼ Gauss' law for magnetism
◼ Faraday's law of induction
J 1 E
◼ Ampere's law B = +
0c 2 c 2 t
18
1885: Hertz and
Electric Waves
German physicist Heinrich Hertz proved Maxwell's
electromagnetic wave theory was correct, and in the
process, generated and detected electromagnetic
waves. Hertz published his work in a book, "Electric
Waves: Being Researches on the Propagation of
Electric Action With Finite Velocity Through Space."
The discovery of electromagnetic waves led to the
development to the radio. The unit of frequency of the
waves measured in cycles per second was named the
"hertz" in his honor. 19
1895: Marconi and
the Radio
In 1895, Italian inventor and electrical engineer Guglielmo
Marconi put the discovery of electromagnetic waves to
practical use by sending messages over long distances using
radio signals, also known as the "wireless." He was known for
his pioneering work on long-distance radio transmission and
his development of Marconi's law and a radio telegraph
system. He is often credited as the inventor of the radio, and
he shared the 1909 Nobel Prize in Physics with Karl
Ferdinand Braun "in recognition of their contributions to the
development of wireless telegraphy."
20
21
