Electromagnetism, Spring 2017

Instructor: Yih-Yuh Chen

Midterm

This exam is due 12:10pm of Wednesday, April 19, 2017.

If the primed frame is moving at a velocity along the positive -axis of the unprimed
frame, then Lorentz transformation says
12
0 2
= 2 1 2

0 = ( )
0 =
0 =

You can freely use these formulas in this exam when the situation calls for.

1. (10 points) A particle moves at the velocity



in the unprimed frame.
0

0 0
0
In the primed frame, the particle has a velocity


0 0 0
. Please derive an
0 in terms of
expression for
and .

2. (14 points) Adopting the standard reference frames used in our lectures, we consider
a fixed light source in the primed frame at (0 0 0 ) = (0 0). This light source
emits two signals towards the primed origin (0 0 0 ) = (0 0 0) at the time 0 = 0
and 0 = , respectively. The unprimed (lab) observer uses her -axis to intercept
the two light signals. Consider the two events signifying her interception of the two
signals.

(a) (4 points) Write down (01 01 ) and (02 02 ) for these two events, expressed in terms
of , , and .
(b) (6 points) Write down (1 1 ) and (2 2 ) for these two events, expressed in terms
of , , and .
(c) (4 points) (Application of the result of Part (b).) A certain alien spaceship near
Mars is moving across the sky at a speed of 35 . Assume the spaceship is neither
approaching nor receding from us. If the alien sends a light beam of wavelength
= 660 nm towards us, what is the corresponding wavelength we observe on
earth?

3. (16 points)

(a) (10 points) High speed electrons and protons are mixed together in space to form
a so-called plasma. The local charge density and current density are denoted
by and , respectively. Please argue why form a 4-vector. (Hint: It
might help if you consider each species of particles first.)

1
 (b) (6 points) Please explain why the following so-called continuity equation

+
=0


is a dierential form of the statement of charge conservation.

4. (10 points) Two identical particles moving at the respective velocity and along
the -axis collide head-on and stick together to form a lump. If the mass of each
particle is , please find the mass of the lump after the collision.

5. (20 points) A source point charge always located at (0 0 0 ) = (0 0 0) is comoving

with the primed frame so that the electric field observed by the primed observer is of
the familiar Coulomb form. It is known that the transformation law for the electric
field between the two frames is

k = k0 (1)
= 0 (2)

where the subscript k () refers to the component parallel (orthogonal) to the direction
of . In this problem set, we will only consider what is being observed by the unprimed
observer at = 0. Warning: Please note that you are expected to answer Parts (a)
and (b) under the assumption that you have no knowledge of the general formula you
are going to derive in Part (c)! So, using a physics argument rather than mechanical
manipulations of formulas is a must for answering Parts (a) and (b)!

(a) (5 points) Consider the electric field at the point ( ) = (0 0). Can we
infer that is equal to (40 2 ) from Eqn. (2)? If your answer is no, then
you must explain (1) why not, and also (2) answer if you expect it to be greater
or smaller?
(b) (5 points) Consider the electric field at the point ( ) = ( 0 0). Can we
infer that is equal to (40 2 ) from Eqn. (1)? If your answer is no, then
you must explain (1) why not, and also (2) answer if you expect it to be greater
or smaller?
(c) (10 points) Please find ( ) as a function of the position ( ) at the
time = 0 when the source charge is exactly located at ( ) = (0 0 0).

6. (10 points) The complete transformation law of electromagnetic fields reads

= 0 = (0 + 0 ) = (0 0 )

= 0 = 0 2 0 = 0 + 2 0


Please use these formulas to show that both
and
2


are relativistically

invariant.

7. (20 points) In the primed frame there is a static charge density 0 which generates a
0 , and there is no magnetic fields.
pure static electric field

2
 0
(a) (10 points) Assuming invariance of charge, please prove that 0
0 =
0
leads

= 0 using Lorentz transformation and Eqns. (1) and (2).
to

(b) (10 points) One can (but you are not required to) show that the unprimed frame
observes a magnetic field
given by

1
=
2



Please use this to prove that

1 1



=
+
2
2 0