Sign of Maxwell's stress tensor

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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on the negative sign in Maxwell's stress tensor components relative to the electromagnetic momentum energy tensor. It references the Poynting vector and the equation for force per unit volume, specifically -f = ε₀μ₀(∂S/∂t) + ∇·(-σ). The participants clarify that the Maxwell stress tensor, denoted as -σ, is defined in relation to the energy-momentum tensor T, with σ = -T. The source of this information is linked to Landau and Lifshitz's work on classical field theory.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of Maxwell's equations
  • Familiarity with the Poynting vector
  • Knowledge of stress-energy tensors in electromagnetism
  • Basic principles of classical field theory
NEXT STEPS
  • Study the derivation of the electromagnetic stress-energy tensor
  • Explore the implications of the Poynting vector in electromagnetic theory
  • Investigate the relationship between force per unit volume and electromagnetic fields
  • Read Landau and Lifshitz's "The Classical Theory of Fields" for deeper insights
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This discussion is beneficial for physicists, electrical engineers, and students studying electromagnetism and classical field theory, particularly those interested in the mathematical foundations of electromagnetic stress tensors.

sweet springs
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Why Maxwell's stress tensor has minus sign to the corresponding components of electromagnetic momentum energy tensor ?

From WP ---
Bzx%7D%20&%20-%5Csigma_%5Ctext%7Bzy%7D%20&%20-%5Csigma_%5Ctext%7Bzz%7D%20%5Cend%7Bbmatrix%7D$%7D.png
,

where
imgtex.png
,
is the Poynting vector,
imgtex.png

is the Maxwell stress tensor, and c is the speed of light.
----
 
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Thanks. From there

-\mathbf{f} = \epsilon_0 \mu_0 \frac{\partial \mathbf{S}}{\partial t}\, + \nabla \cdot \mathbf{(-\sigma)}

where f is the force per unit volume of material, so -f should be the force per unit volume of e.m. field.

Rather than \mathbf{T^{ij}}=\mathbf{-\sigma}^{ij}, \mathbf{\sigma^{ij}} first, I prefer T first, defined from T,
\mathbf{\sigma^{ij}} =\mathbf{-T^{ij}}.
 
Bzx%7D%20&%20-%5Csigma_%5Ctext%7Bzy%7D%20&%20-%5Csigma_%5Ctext%7Bzz%7D%20%5Cend%7Bbmatrix%7D$%7D.png
,

On which wikipedia page did you find this?
 

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