Advanced Classical Electromagnetism

A modern approach to classical electromagnetismElectromagnetism is one the pillars of modern physics. Robert Wald provides graduate students with a clear, concise, and mathematically precise introduction to the subject, covering all the core topics while bringing the teaching of electromagnetism up to date with our modern understanding of the subject. Electromagnetism is usually taught in a quasi-historical fashion, starting from concepts formulated in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, but this tends to promote outdated and unhealthy ways of thinking about the theory. Wald begins with Maxwell's equations-the foundation of electromagnetism-together with the formulas for the energy density, momentum density, and stress tensor of the electromagneticfield. He then proceeds through all the major topics in classical electromagnetism, such as electrostatics, dielectrics, magnetostatics, electrodynamics and radiation, diffraction, and special relativity. The last two chapters discuss electromagnetism asa gauge theory and the notion of a point charge-topics not normally treated in electromagnetism texts.Completely rethinks how to teach electromagnetism to first-year graduate studentsPresents electromagnetism from a modern, mathematically precise perspective, formulating key conceptual ideas and results clearly and conciselyWritten by a world-class physicist, proven in the classroomCovers all the subjects found in standard electromagnetism textbooks as well as additional topics such as the derivation of the initial value formulation for Maxwell's equationsAlso ideal as a supplementary text or for self-study--