A modified version of the macroscopic Maxwell theory is developed with the purpose of removing some of the current contradictions and inconsistencies. One of the crucial problems of the current electromagnetic theory concerns the concept of energy. It appears that energy which has a clearly defined physical significance in all fields of physics has not been properly incorporated into the Maxwell-Lorentz theory. Therefore, the electromagnetic energy in a dissipative system as interpreted in the current version of the theory is not "energy" in the same sense as one usually interprets this concept in classical mechanics. The main object of this investigation is, therefore, to clarify the meaning of energy and to suggest a revised version in which the concept of energy is incorporated in accordance with the logical requirements of the theory. The proposed version is based on an assumption that the "electrical energy" both in nondissipative and dissipative media has a meaning only to the extent to which the electrical-field theory can be developed as a theory of a dynamical system. This assumption leads to a formulation of a principle which states that the energy density U of an electrical field in an absorbing medium is determined solely by the electrical intensity E and is, therefore, independent of any parameter which represents absorption. The proposed version differs from the traditional theory in the interpretation of the dielectric constant and of conductivity. The dielectric constant is considered to be independent of conductivity in the sense that a change in conductivity does not produce a corresponding alteration of the dielectric constant. Part I of this investigation deals with the fundamentals of the proposed reformulated version. These fundamentals are then applied in Part II to the extension of Brillion’s theory of wave propagation and group velocity to absorbing media.
展开▼
