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Are light waves electromagnet waves

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Anonymous

15y ago
Updated: 8/17/2019

Usually when one says light waves, one is referring to Visible light.

Any light wave, and hence visible light, is an electromagnetic wave.

As an electromagnetic wave, it is also a transverse wave. The oscillating electric and magnetic fields of an electromagnetic wave in free space are oscillating with a direction perpendicular yo the direction of movement of the wave.

The velocity of an electromagnetic wave is the sped of light. This is a sensible things since light is an electromagnetic wave. In a vacuum all electromagnetic waves travel at the same speed. In matter, if the matter allows an electromagnetic wave to propagate, the speed is slower than the speed of light and in optics we say the speed is reduce by the index of refraction, v=c/n.

Electromagnetic waves, like all waves, have velocity, wavelength, frequency, amplitude and phase. As with all transverse waves, electromagnetic waves can be polarized, or we say, have a polarization.

Electromagnetic waves have electric and magnetic fields that are sinusoidal in space and time. These electromagnetic fields satisfy Maxwell's equations, i.e. the fundamental laws of electromagnetism.

There is a quantum version of electromagnetic theory called electrodynamics and that theory is the necessary edification of Maxwell's equations to describe the quantum nature of light. Thus, even when we are discussing light as photons, it is correct to say light is an electromagnetic wave as such is manifested within quantum electrodynamics.

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Wiki User

12y ago

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