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Electromagnetic waves — light as a field phenomenon When Maxwell’s equations are solved in free space (no charges or currents), they yield wave equations for the electric and magnetic fields. The solutions are transverse waves in which the electric and magnetic fields oscillate perpendicular to each other and to the direction of propagation. Importantly, the analysis predicts a propagation speed c = 1/sqrt(ε0μ0), which matches the measured speed of light — a revelation that unified optics and electromagnetism: light is an electromagnetic wave.
Electromagnetic waves — light as a field phenomenon When Maxwell’s equations are solved in free space (no charges or currents), they yield wave equations for the electric and magnetic fields. The solutions are transverse waves in which the electric and magnetic fields oscillate perpendicular to each other and to the direction of propagation. Importantly, the analysis predicts a propagation speed c = 1/sqrt(ε0μ0), which matches the measured speed of light — a revelation that unified optics and electromagnetism: light is an electromagnetic wave.