Does Light Travel Through Fiber Optic Cable Generate EMF?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers on whether light traveling through fiber optic cables generates a detectable electromagnetic field. Participants explore the nature of light as an electromagnetic phenomenon and its comparison to electron behavior in conductive materials.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Conceptual clarification, Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant questions if light in fiber optics generates an electromagnetic field, expressing uncertainty about the topic.
  • Another participant asserts that light is an electromagnetic field but suggests that outside the fiber, no detectable field exists unless the fiber is broken or emits additional radiation due to heating.
  • A participant draws a comparison between photons in fiber optics and electrons in metal wires, questioning if fiber optic cables could be detected by marine life, such as sharks.
  • Another response emphasizes treating light in fiber optics using classical physics principles, focusing on wave properties like reflection and refraction.
  • One participant clarifies that there is no direct parallel between photons and electrons, noting that electrons have charge and create external fields, while photons do not.
  • A later reply expresses satisfaction with the explanations provided, indicating a personal understanding of the topic.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the nature of light in fiber optics and its electromagnetic properties. There is no consensus on whether detectable electromagnetic fields are generated, and the discussion remains unresolved.

Contextual Notes

Some assumptions about the nature of light and electromagnetic fields are not fully explored, and the discussion relies on varying interpretations of classical physics principles.

Sayagain
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Does light traveling through a fiber optic cable generate any sort of detectable electromagnetic field? Please forgive the stupid question. It’s something that popped into mind recently and google hasn’t adequately answered for me. I’m not a scientist or physicist. :blushing:
 
Science news on Phys.org
Light is an electromagnetic field.
Outside the fiber, not counting the ends of it: No, unless the fiber is broken (or unless you use so much light that it warms up and emits more infrared radiation).
 
Thanks. I was curious if photons traveling along fiber optics behaved like electrons tracking along a metal wire. I was thinking about undersea cables and started wondering if fiber optic cables would be detectable by sea creatures such as sharks. No particular reason, just something that popped into my head this evening. :biggrin:
 
Sayagain said:
Thanks. I was curious if photons traveling along fiber optics behaved like electrons tracking along a metal wire
forget photons
treating the light in the fibre with classical physics is all your need
treat the light as a wave with all the usual reflection and refraction properties
 
Sayagain said:
Thanks. I was curious if photons traveling along fiber optics behaved like electrons tracking along a metal wire.
There is no parallel here. Electrons have a charge and it is the moving charge that creates the external field. Photons have no charge (or mass) so they do not behave in the same way.
 
Thank you. It makes perfect sense to me now.
 

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