Radio waves interaction with other electromagnetic waves

  • #1
emh01
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when it is asked that why radio waves do not interact with the magnetic field of electric wires or magnets, people say that radio waves are not "matter" and they do not have "charge". i really can not understand this for ex think about 2 magnets. The magnet A has a magnetic field and when we put it near the magnet B, magnet A effects the magnet B because of magnet B has its own magnetic field.

the matter creates its electric or magnetic field and so effects the other matter's magnetic/electric field. now we know that a radio wave is mixture of oscilating electric and magnetic fields and for ex if we put an FM radio near a magnet or electric wire the signals have to weak or diverge... and if we define "light" as an electromagnetic wave, light beam has to deviate while passing near a magnet or electric wire or another electromagnetic wave. i know there sth wrong about my opinion if someone can explain, it will be very useful for me and other confused people like me
 
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  • #2
emh01 said:
when it is asked that why radio waves do not interact with the magnetic field of electric wires or magnets, people say that radio waves are not "matter" and they do not have "charge".
I guess you could say that, but I personally would say that it is because Maxwell's equations are linear. So you can take the solution with a radio wave going past the wire without a current, and the solution of a magnetic field around a wire with a current and just add them together to get the solution of a radio wave going past a current carrying wire.
 
  • #3
emh01 said:
when it is asked that why radio waves do not interact with the magnetic field of electric wires or magnets

But they do. The electric (magentic) field near the wire (magnet) is the sum of the fields from the wire (magnet) and the radio wave. Also, the fields from the radio wave affect the current in the wire - this is how an antenna works.
 
  • #4
Would it not be best to say that the waves do not interact (as Dale says, space is a linear) but the (linear) vector sum of the waves at any location and time may cause interaction with matter. The problem could arise if you want to explain the mechanical force between two current carrying wired in terms of the two fields interacting but, even in a simple case like that, we explain it in terms of one wire interacting with the field from the other wire (Flemming's Left Hand Motor Rule etc..)
 
  • #5
Dale said:
I guess you could say that, but I personally would say that it is because Maxwell's equations are linear. So you can take the solution with a radio wave going past the wire without a current, and the solution of a magnetic field around a wire with a current and just add them together to get the solution of a radio wave going past a current carrying wire.

sorry but i could not understand
Vanadium 50 said:
But they do. The electric (magentic) field near the wire (magnet) is the sum of the fields from the wire (magnet) and the radio wave. Also, the fields from the radio wave affect the current in the wire - this is how an antenna works.

okay, so i have to ask why other forms of electromagnetic waves like (light, microwave, xray) do not causes electric movements or current and effect antennas
 
  • #6
emh01 said:
okay, so i have to ask why other forms of electromagnetic waves like (light, microwave, xray) do not causes electric movements or current and effect antennas

they do ...

emh01 said:
microwave,

microwaves are just radio waves
microwave communications also use antennas, look around where you live and see the dish antennas on towers
I'm sure you have seen them before ?

this is a tower not far from my home

upload_2017-10-8_8-30-25.png


all those round dishes are for transmitting and receiving microwaves
emh01 said:
light,

light is used for the generation of current in solar panels (I am sure you have heard of them ?)

SPRDS-GR-roof-solar-panel.jpg

emh01 said:
xray

X-rays ... I am not sure of their effects on a conductor
some one more knowledgeable than me can answer that one
@Vanadium 50 , @ZapperZ
Dave
 
  • #7
emh01 said:
sorry but i could not understand
Are you familiar with Maxwell's equations?
 
  • #8
davenn said:
X-rays ... I am not sure of their effects on a conductor
some one more knowledgeable than me can answer that one

The frequency is too high to create an oscillating current or voltage like radio and microwaves do, but x-rays can eject one or more electrons from the conductor when they are absorbed and can have other effects depending on their energy.
 
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Likes Dale and davenn
  • #9
Any arrangement of charges can interact with the appropriate energy of photon. Even a neutral Neutron will scatter (interact with) a photon. The neutron consists of Quarks, which have charge so, in principle, you could say the effect of a high energy Gamma photon is along the lines of the effect of an optical photon and a Hydrogen atom. There would have to be some separation of the charges in order to have an Electric Dipole Moment, presumably.
This elderly PF thread has a discussion of the photon / neutron interaction.
 
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