Thursday, 11 February 2016

electromagnetism - How to derive Maxwell's equations from the electromagnetic Lagrangian?


In Heaviside-Lorentz units the Maxwell's equations are:


E=ρ

×BEt=J
×E+Bt=0
B=0


From EM Lagrangian density: L=14FμνFμνJμAμ


I can derive the first two equations from the variation of the action integral: S[A]=Ld4x. Is it possible to derive the last two equations from it?



Answer



Assume for simplicity that the speed of light c=1. The existence of the gauge 4-potential Aμ=(ϕ,A) alone implies that the source-free Maxwell equations B = 0no magnetic monopole"


×E+Bt = 0Faraday's law"


are already identically satisfied. To prove them, just use the definition of the electric field



E := ϕAt,


and the magnetic field


B := ×A


in terms of the gauge 4-potential Aμ=(ϕ,A).


The above is more naturally discussed in a manifestly Lorentz-covariant notation. OP might also find this Phys.SE post interesting.


Thus, to repeat, even before starting varying the Maxwell action S[A], the fact that the action S[A] is formulated in terms the gauge 4-potential Aμ means that the source-free Maxwell equations are identically satisfied. Phrased differently, since the source-free Maxwell equations are manifestly implemented from the very beginning in this approach, varying the Maxwell action S[A] will not affect the status of the source-free Maxwell equations whatsoever.


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