Focus
Maxwell anniversary
- Focus issue:
- January 2015 Volume 9 No 1 pp1-72
2015 marks the 150th anniversary of the formulation of Maxwell's equations which lie at the heart of our understanding of electromagnetism and the behaviour of light waves. This focus brings together a collection of articles charting the development, impact and modern day use of Maxwell's equations.
Editorial
A year to remember - p1
doi:10.1038/nphoton.2014.324
2015 marks the 150th anniversary of Maxwell's formulation of his theory of electromagnetism and a year-long celebration of the importance of optics.
Full Text - A year to remember | PDF (579 KB) - A year to remember
Commentary
How Maxwell's equations came to light - pp2 - 4
Basil Mahon
doi:10.1038/nphoton.2014.306
The nineteenth-century Scottish physicist James Clerk Maxwell made groundbreaking contributions to many areas of science including thermodynamics and colour vision. However, he is best known for his equations that unified electricity, magnetism and light.
Full Text - How Maxwell's equations came to light | PDF (881 KB) - How Maxwell's equations came to light
Interview
Numerical solution - pp5 - 6
Interview with Allen Taflove
doi:10.1038/nphoton.2014.305
Nature Photonics spoke to Allen Taflove, father of the finite-difference time-domain technique, about the birth of Maxwell's equations and their impact on the world after 150 years.
Full Text - Numerical solution | PDF (634 KB) - Numerical solution
Review
Conformal transformation optics - pp15 - 23
Lin Xu & Huanyang Chen
doi:10.1038/nphoton.2014.307
Transformation optics is a modern application of Maxwell's equations offering unprecedented control over the flow of light that exploits spatially customized optical properties and mathematical techniques applied to space-time curvature.
Abstract - Conformal transformation optics | Full Text - Conformal transformation optics | PDF (2,992 KB) - Conformal transformation optics