Article ID: CBB322806876

When Fields Are Not Degrees of Freedom (2021)

unapi

We show that in the Maxwell–Lorentz theory of classical electrodynamics most initial values for fields and particles lead to an ill-defined dynamics, as they exhibit singularities or discontinuities along light-cones. This phenomenon suggests that the Maxwell equations and the Lorentz force law ought rather to be read as a system of delay differential equations, that is, differential equations that relate a function and its derivatives at different times. This mathematical reformulation, however, leads to physical and philosophical consequences for the ontological status of the electromagnetic field. In particular, fields cannot be taken as independent degrees of freedom, which suggests that one should not add them to the ontology.

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Authors & Contributors
Rinat Magdievich Nugayev
Francesco Nappo
Marmottini, Donatella
D'Agostino, Salvo
Lazaroff-Puck, Cameron
Nándori, I.
Concepts
Electromagnetism
Physics
Electrodynamics
Philosophy of science
Fields and field theory
Electricity; magnetism
Time Periods
19th century
20th century
Places
Great Britain
Europe
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