Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Email
Answers.com

electromagnetic force

 
Dictionary: electromagnetic force
Home > Library > Literature & Language > Dictionary

n.
The fundamental force that is associated with electric and magnetic fields and is responsible for atomic structure, chemical reactions, the attractive and repulsive forces associated with electrical charge and magnetism, and all other electromagnetic phenomena. It is carried by the photon.


Search unanswered questions...

Enter a question here...
Search: All sources Community Q&A Reference topics

Britannica Concise Encyclopedia: electromagnetic force
Top
Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Britannica Concise Encyclopedia

One of the four known basic forces in the universe. Electromagnetism is responsible for interactions between charged particles that occur because of their charge, and for the emission and absorption of photons (electromagnetic radiation). The phenomena of electricity and magnetism are consequences of this force, and the relationships between them were first described by James Clerk Maxwell in the 1860s. The physical description of electromagnetism has since been combined with quantum mechanics into the theory of quantum electrodynamics. The electromagnetic force is about 1036 times as strong as the gravitational force (see gravitation), but significantly weaker than both the weak force and the strong force.

For more information on electromagnetic force, visit Britannica.com.

 
 

 

Copyrights:

Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 2006 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more