Module I: Electromagnetic waves

Lecture 5: EM waves with boundaries Amol Dighe TIFR, Mumbai

Outline

EM waves at dielectric boundaries: reection, transmission

EM waves in conductors: inside and at the boundary

Coming up...

EM waves at dielectric boundaries: reection, transmission

EM waves in conductors: inside and at the boundary

Reection and refraction

An EM wave is incident from one medium ( 1 , 1 , n1 , c1 ) to another medium ( 1 , 1 , n1 , c1 ), at an angle I with the normal to the boundary.

Incident, reected and refracted waves

Incident wave EI BI Reected wave ER BR Transmitted wave ET BT = = ET 0 ei (kT rt ) kT 1 ET = (k T ET ) c2 (5) (6) = ER 0 ei (kR rt ) = kR 1 ER = (k R ER ) c1 (3) (4) = EI 0 ei (kI rt ) = 1 kI EI = (k I EI ) c1 (1) (2)

Boundary conditions on phases

D is continuous across the boundary
1 EI 1 EI 0 e i (kI r t )

1 ER

= =

2 ET 2 ET 0 e i (kT r t )

(7) (8)

1 ER 0 e

i (kR r t )

The equatity should be valid at all r on the boundary kI r = kR r = kT r With origin at the point of incidence: |kI |r sin I = |kR |r sin R = |kT |r sin T Using |kI | = |kR | and |kT |/|kI | = n2 /n1 , sin I = sin R , sin I n2 = sin T n1 (11) (10) (9)

The rst is the law of reection the second is the Snells law

Boundary conditions on amplitudes

Our discussion would have worked for any of the boundary conditions, we just took D as an example. Now we need not worry about the phases, since the laws of reection and refraction derived there guarantee that the phase conditions will be satised. Boundary conditions
1 EI 0

1 ER 0

= = = =

2 ET 0

(12) (13) (14)

BI 0 + BR 0 1 BI 1 + ER 1 BR 0+ 1
0

BT 0 ET 0 1 BT 2

EI

0 0

(15)

For convenience well divide the incident electric eld into a component in the plane of incidence (the plane that contains kI , kR , kT ) and a component normal to the plane of incidence. These two clearly wont interfere, and they can be added together at any time, using the principle of superposition, to get the net electric eld.

E in the plane of incidence

Applying boundary conditions

Boundary conditions involving E 1 EI 0 sin I + Solution: ER 0 = where + EI 0 , ET 0 = 2 + EI 0 (18)

1 ER 0

sin R

= 2 ET 0 sin T = ET 0 cos T

(16) (17)

EI 0 cos I + ER 0 cos R

cos T , cos I

1 c1 2 c2

(19)

Boundary conditions involving B give exactly the same conditions.

Reection and transmission coefcient

Rate of energy transported by incoming wave normal to the boundary: (Correct this, right language, factors of c, connect with N) Incident wave : II Reected wave : IR Transmitted wave : IT Reection coefcient R= Transmission coefcient T = IT = II
2 c2

= = =

1 2 1 c1 |EI 0 | cos I 2 1 2 1 c1 |ER 0 | cos R 2 1 2 2 c2 |ET 0 | cos T 2

(20) (21) (22)

IR = II +

(23)

cos T 4Re( ) = | + |2 1 c1 cos I

(24)

Comments on reection and transmission coefcients

R + T = 1, as expected R = 1, T = 0 possible if is purely imaginary. 1 sin2 T cos I 1 (n2 /n1 )2 sin2 T cos I

(25)

so if sin I > (n1 /n2 ), there is no transmission. This is the condition for Total Internal reection. R = 0, T = 1 possible if = . This condition takes a simple form if 1 = 2 , since then cos T c1 sin I c1 = = = cos I c2 sin T c2 This leads to sin 2I = sin 2T , that is I + T = /2. In such a case, I is called the Brewsters angle. (26)

E normal to the plane of incidence

Comments on this scenario

The values for R and T will in general be different. In particular, R = 0 is not possible here. If an unpolarized wave is incident on a dielectric surface, the reected and transmitted waves will therefore, in general, be polarized.

Coming up...

EM waves at dielectric boundaries: reection, transmission

EM waves in conductors: inside and at the boundary

Reection from a conducting surface

No wave is transmitted inside the conductor; i.e. elds inside the conductor are zero. For a normal incidence, EI = ER I.e. there is a phase-shift by . For incidence at an angle, the components of EI and ER parallel to the boundary cancel, i.e. EI = ER There will be charge oscillations at the metal surface corresponding to 1 (EI + EI ) = s , where s is the surface charge density The movements of these charges along the surface correspond to surface currents, which account for nite values of HI + HR at the boundary. The net B normal to the surface vanishes, i.e. BI + BR = 0. This follows automatically from the E conditions above.

Recap of topics covered in this lecture

Reection and transmission at the surface of a dielectric Boundary conditions at a conducting surface