Abraham–Minkowski controversy

{{short description|In physics: electromagnetic momentum within dielectric media}}

The Abraham–Minkowski controversy is a physics debate concerning electromagnetic momentum within dielectric media.{{cite journal|last=Leonhardt|first=Ulf|year=2006|title=Momentum in an uncertain light|journal=Nature|volume=444|issue=7121|pages=823–824|bibcode=2006Natur.444..823L|doi=10.1038/444823a|pmid=17167461|s2cid=33682507|doi-access=free}}{{Cite web|last=McDonald|first=K. T.|year=2017|title=Bibliography on the Abraham–Minkowski Debate |url=http://physics.princeton.edu/~mcdonald/examples/ambib.pdf}} Two equations were first suggested by Hermann Minkowski (1908){{cite journal|last=Minkowski|first=H.|year=1908|title=Die Grundgleichungen für die elektromagnetischen Vorgänge in bewegten Körpern|journal=Nachrichten von der Gesellschaft der Wissenschaften zu Göttingen, Mathematisch-Physikalische Klasse|pages=53–111|title-link=s:de:Die Grundgleichungen für die elektromagnetischen Vorgänge in bewegten Körpern}}

:* Wikisource translation: [https://en.wikisource.org/?curid=674267 The Fundamental Equations for Electromagnetic Processes in Moving Bodies]

and Max Abraham (1909){{cite journal|last=Abraham|first=M.|year=1909|title=Zur Elektrodynamik bewegter Körper|journal=Rendiconti del Circolo Matematico di Palermo|volume=28|pages=1–28|doi=10.1007/bf03018208|title-link=s:de:Zur Elektrodynamik bewegter Körper (Abraham)|s2cid=121681939}}

:* Wikisource translation: On the Electrodynamics of Moving Bodies

{{cite journal |last=Abraham |first=M. |year=1910 |title=Sull'Elettrodinamica di Minkowski |url=https://zenodo.org/record/1428452 |journal=Rendiconti del Circolo Matematico di Palermo |volume=30 |pages=33–46 |doi=10.1007/bf03014862 |s2cid=121524871}}

:* Wikisource translation: On the Electrodynamics of Minkowski

for this momentum. They predict different values, from which the name of the controversy derives.{{cite journal|last2=Nieminen|first2=T. A|last3=Heckenberg|first3=N. R.|last4=Rubinsztein-Dunlop|first4=H.|year=2007|title=Colloquium: Momentum of an electromagnetic wave in dielectric media|journal=Reviews of Modern Physics|volume=79|issue=4|pages=1197–1216|arxiv=0710.0461|bibcode=2007RvMP...79.1197P|doi=10.1103/RevModPhys.79.1197|last1=Pfeifer|first1=R. N. C.|citeseerx=10.1.1.205.8073}} See also: {{cite journal|year=2009|title=Erratum: Colloquium: Momentum of an electromagnetic wave in dielectric media [Rev. Mod. Phys. 79, 1197 (2007)]|journal=Reviews of Modern Physics|volume=81|issue=1|pages=443|bibcode=2009RvMP...81..443P|doi=10.1103/RevModPhys.81.443|arxiv=0710.0461|last1=Pfeifer|first1=Robert N. C.|last2=Nieminen|first2=Timo A.|last3=Heckenberg|first3=Norman R.|last4=Rubinsztein-Dunlop|first4=Halina}} Experimental support has been claimed for both.{{cite journal |author1=A. Ashkin |author2=J. M. Dziedzic |title=Radiation Pressure on a Free Liquid Surface |journal=Physical Review Letters |date=1973 |volume=30 |issue=4 |pages=139–142 |doi=10.1103/PhysRevLett.30.139}}{{cite journal |author1=Gretchen K. Campbell |author2=Aaron E. Leanhardt |author3=Jongchul Mun |author4=Micah Boyd |author5=Erik W. Streed |author6=Wolfgang Ketterle |author7=David E. Pritchard |title=Photon Recoil Momentum in Dispersive Media |journal=Physical Review Letters |date=2005 |volume=94 |issue=17 |page=170403 |doi=10.1103/PhysRevLett.94.170403|pmid=15904272 |arxiv=cond-mat/0502014 |s2cid=2033128 }}{{cite journal |author1=Weilong She |author2=Jianhui Yu |author3=Raohui Feng |title=Observation of a Push Force on the End Face of a Nanometer Silica Filament Exerted by Outgoing Light |journal=Physical Review Letters |date=2008 |volume=101 |issue=24 |page=243601 |doi=10.1103/PhysRevLett.101.243601|pmid=19113619 |arxiv=0806.2442 |s2cid=9630919 }}{{cite web|url=https://physicsworld.com/a/experiment-resolves-century-old-optics-mystery/|title=Experiment resolves century-old optics mystery|last=Dacey|first=J.|date=9 January 2009|work=Physics World|access-date=18 April 2021}}

The two points of view have different physical interpretations and thus neither need be more correct than the other.{{Cite journal |last1=Milonni |first1=Peter W. |last2=Boyd |first2=Robert W. |date=2010-12-31 |title=Momentum of Light in a Dielectric Medium |url=http://www.hajim.rochester.edu/optics/sites/boyd/assets/pdf/publications/Milonni_AOP_10.pdf |journal=Advances in Optics and Photonics |language=en |volume=2 |issue=4 |pages=519 |doi=10.1364/AOP.2.000519 |issn=1943-8206 |access-date=2023-07-19}}

David J. Griffiths argues that, in the presence of matter, only the total stress–energy tensor carries unambiguous physical significance; how one apportions it between an "electromagnetic" part and a "matter" part depends on context and convenience.{{Cite journal|last=Griffiths|first=D. J.|year=2012|title=Resource Letter EM-1: Electromagnetic Momentum|journal=American Journal of Physics|volume=80|issue=1|pages=7–18|doi=10.1119/1.3641979|bibcode = 2012AmJPh..80....7G|doi-access=free}}

Several papers have claimed to have resolved this controversy.

{{Cite journal|last=Gordon|first=J. P.|year=1973|title= Radiation forces and momenta in dielectric media|journal=Physical Review A|volume=8|issue=1|pages=14–21|doi=10.1103/physreva.8.14|bibcode = 1973PhRvA...8...14G}}{{Cite journal|last=Nelson|first=D. F.|year=1991|title=Momentum, pseudomomentum, and wave momentum: Toward resolving the Minkowski–Abraham controversy|journal=Physical Review A|volume=44|issue=6|pages=3985–3996|doi=10.1103/physreva.44.3985|pmid=9906414|bibcode = 1991PhRvA..44.3985N}}{{Cite journal

|last1=Mansuripur|first1=M.

|title=Resolution of the Abraham–Minkowski controversy

|journal=Optics Communications

|year = 2010

|volume = 283

|issue=10

|pages=1997–2005

|arxiv=1208.0872

|doi=10.1016/j.optcom.2010.01.010

|bibcode=2010OptCo.283.1997M|s2cid=118347570

}}{{cite journal|last=Barnett|first=S.|year=2010|title=Resolution of the Abraham–Minkowski Dilemma|journal=Physical Review Letters|volume=104 |issue=7|page=070401|bibcode=2010PhRvL.104g0401B| doi=10.1103/PhysRevLett.104.070401|pmid=20366861|url=https://strathprints.strath.ac.uk/26871/5/AbMinPRL.pdf}}{{cite journal |author1=Mikko Partanen |author2=Teppo Häyrynen |author3=Jani Oksanen |author4=Jukka Tulkki |title=Photon mass drag and the momentum of light in a medium |journal=Physical Review A |date=2017 |volume=95 |issue=6 |page=063850 |doi=10.1103/PhysRevA.95.063850|bibcode=2017PhRvA..95f3850P |arxiv=1603.07224 |s2cid=53420774 }}{{cite journal |author1=Mikko Partanen |author2=Jukka Tulkki |title=Covariant theory of light in a dispersive medium |journal=Physical Review A |date=2021 |volume=104 |issue=2 |page=023510 |doi=10.1103/PhysRevA.104.023510 |bibcode=2021PhRvA.104b3510P |arxiv=2105.04053 |s2cid=234336055 }}

The controversy is still claimed to have importance in physics beyond the Standard Model where electrodynamics gets modifications, like in the presence of axions.{{Cite journal |last1=Tobar |first1=Michael E. |last2=McAllister |first2=Ben T. |last3=Goryachev |first3=Maxim |date=2022-02-15 |title=Poynting vector controversy in axion modified electrodynamics |url=https://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevD.105.045009 |journal=Physical Review D |language=en |volume=105 |issue=4 |page=045009 |doi=10.1103/PhysRevD.105.045009 |issn=2470-0010|arxiv=2109.04056 |s2cid=246430570 }}