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Definition of Electromagnetism
Electromagnetism is the science of charge and the forces and fields associated with control. Electricity and magnetism are two aspects of electromagnetism.
History of Electromagnetism
Discovery of Electricity and Electro-Magnetism was a great leap forward for Mankind. Like all scientific discoveries every new discovery drew us closer to another discovery. Lightning and Triboelectric effect (static spark) are two seemingly unrelated phenomena which we have observed in nature throughout human history. Metal attracting properties of Lodestone (a naturally magnetised ore of iron) were known to humans since classical antiquity. The word Magnet is derived from the ancient Greek city of Magnesia in Ionia (modern day Turkey).
One of the first practical uses of magnetism came with the invention of compass. The history of Magnetic Compass for navigation is traced back to ancient Han dynasty in China. The inner functioning of a compass remained a mystery for roughly 1500 years until Earth’s magnetic field was discovered in 17th century by the Europeans.
In 1775 / 76 the discovery of Leyden Jar was made independently by German physicist Ewald Georg von Kleist on 11 October 1745 and by Dutch physicist Pieter van Musschenbroek of Leiden (Leyden) in 1745 / 1746. It’s considered to be the world’s first practical capacitor.
In 1785 French physicist Charles-Augustin de Coulomb published his first three reports of electricity and magnetism where he stated his law. This publication was essential to the development of the theory of electromagnetism. He used a torsion balance to study the repulsion and attraction forces of charged particles, and determined that the magnitude of the electric force between two point charges is directly proportional to the product of the charges and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them. SI unit COULOMB is named after him.
In 1780 Italian inventor Luigi Galvani and his wife Lucia discovered that the muscles of dead frogs’ legs twitched when struck by an electrical spark. He later made good use of his discovery by inventing frog galvanoscope.
In 1799 Italian physicist Alessandro Volta invented Voltic Pile the world’s first electric battery. SI unit VOLT is named after him.
In 1820, Danish physicist and chemist Hans Christian Ørsted published his discovery that a compass needle was deflected from magnetic north in the presence of an electric circuit, confirming a direct relationship between electricity and magnetism.
In 1820, French physicist and mathematician André-Marie Ampère began developing a mathematical and physical theory to understand the relationship between electricity and magnetism. In 1823 André-Marie Ampère coined the term solenoid to designate a copper helical coil. SI unit AMEPRE is named after him.
In 1827 German physicist and mathematician Georg Ohm discovered a direct proportionality between Voltage applied across a conductor and the resultant electric current. SI unit OHM is named after him.
In 1831 English physicist and chemist Michael Faraday discovered Electromagnetic Induction with the help of a liquid battery, a copper solenoid and a galvanometer. He also invented Faraday’s electric motor and Faraday’s disc, the world’s first electric motor and electric generator. SI unit FARAD is named after him.
In 1832 French instrument maker Hippolyte Pixii built an early form of alternating current electrical generator, based on the principle of electromagnetic induction discovered by Michael Faraday.
In 1832 English physicist and inventor William Sturgeon built first commutator DC electric motor capable of turning machinery.
Around 1833 American physicist Joseph Henry developed first commercial electromagnet with insulated coil wire wound tightly around an iron core, improving on William Sturgeon’s electromagnet which used loosely coiled uninsulated wire. SI unit HENRY is named after him.
In 1837 Following Sturgeon’s work, a commutator-type direct-current electric motor was built by American inventor Thomas Davenport and his wife, Emily Davenport. The motors ran at up to 600 revolutions per minute, and powered machine tools and a printing press.
In 1865 Scottish mathematician James Clerk Maxwell publishes his landmark paper A Dynamical Theory of the Electromagnetic Field. In which he published his original 20 mathematical equations on electromagnetic theory.
In 1884 English mathematician and physicist Oliver Heaviside reformulated Maxwell’s original mathematical treatment of electromagnetic theory from twenty equations into four simple equations. (the modern vector form of Maxwell’s equations).
In 1888 German physicist Heinrich Hertz demonstrated the existence of electromagnetic waves. SI unit HERTZ is named after him.
Thank you for reading our short blog, we hope you found it informative.
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