Unraveling the Mystery: The Quest to Understand Magnetic Monopoles

[NEILS BOHR]

magnetic monopoles??

why don't magnetic monopoles exist??

 

[andonrangelov]

Actually the question can be set in a different way? Do the magnetic monopoles exist?
The last question still do not have answer. The magnetic monoples may or may not exist. If they exist then the magnetic charge should be much, much less then a electric charge due to the fact that the Maxwell equations are tested to high precision and therefore only a very small magnetic charge can exist.
From time to time there are publications that claimed the demonstration of the Dirac monopoles (such as spin ice http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spin_ice) but the real monopoles are not found in Nature yet…..

 

[kcdodd]

The question is even actually slightly more interesting then that. There is what is called a duality transformation for Maxwells equations which can transform E and B into E' and B', and electric charge and current into a mixture of electric charge, current, and also magnetic charges and currents. That is, for example, an electron would be partially an electric monopole and partially a magnetic monopole in the new fields instead of pure electric monopole. It would also then be partially magnetic dipole and electric dipole instead of pure magnetic dipole. So what is important is if the *ratio* of magnetic charge/current to electric charge/current is the same everywhere. If so, then one can conveniently transform away one or the other. Historically, the fields are chosen such that magnetic charge/current = zero.

Duality transformation from Jackson p. 274
$$\vec{E} = \vec{E}'cos(\theta) + Z_0\vec{H}'sin(\theta)$$
$$Z_0\vec{H} = -\vec{E}'sin(\theta) + Z_0\vec{H}'cos(\theta)$$

$$Z_0\vec{D} = Z_0\vec{D}'cos(\theta) + \vec{B}'sin(\theta)$$
$$\vec{B} = -Z_0\vec{D}'sin(\theta) + \vec{B}'cos(\theta)$$

$$Z_0\rho_e = Z_0\rho_e'cos(\theta) + \rho_m'sin(\theta)$$
$$\rho_m = -Z_0\rho_e'sin(\theta) + \rho_m'cos(\theta)$$

$$Z_0\vec{J_e} = Z_0\vec{J_e}'cos(\theta) + \vec{J_m}'sin(\theta)$$
$$\vec{J_m} = -Z_0\vec{J_e}'sin(\theta) + \vec{J_m}'cos(\theta)$$

$$Z_0 = \sqrt{\mu_0/\epsilon_0}$$

Subscripts e or m indicate electric and magnetic sources respectively.

It can be fun to play around with these to come up with different configurations.

 

[santo35]

your question is more philosophical in nature...in science there is a caution in handling a question of "why"...you can't ask "why" questions always...
well y arent they any monopoles.? - god noes !... its like asking y do Newton's laws wroks? or ts like y is force equals m times acceleration... well its good that you started 'thinking' the science way, but do think upon why your question of "why" dosent survive . ah ! dats a pun der ! ;)... check out this on my blog if u have time http://intellectual-discomfort.blogspot.com/2011/01/science-is-questioning-but-wait-what-to.html

 

[sardar]

The existence of magnetic monopoles has been a long-standing mystery in the field of physics. Many scientists have been on a quest to understand and unravel this mystery for decades. However, despite numerous efforts and advancements in technology, the existence of magnetic monopoles still remains elusive.

One of the main reasons why magnetic monopoles may not exist is due to the fundamental principles of electromagnetism. According to Maxwell's equations, a magnetic monopole would violate the Gauss's law for magnetism, which states that the magnetic field lines must form closed loops. This means that a magnetic monopole would have to exist at the end of a magnetic field line, which goes against the observed behavior of magnetic fields.

Furthermore, the Standard Model of particle physics, which has been extensively tested and proven, does not include magnetic monopoles as fundamental particles. This suggests that if magnetic monopoles do exist, they may be incredibly rare or only exist in certain extreme conditions.

Despite these challenges, scientists continue to search for evidence of magnetic monopoles in the universe, such as in cosmic rays or in the remnants of the Big Bang. It is possible that new discoveries and advancements in technology may one day provide us with a deeper understanding of the nature of magnetic monopoles. Until then, the quest to unravel this mystery continues.