Abstract
Maxwell, one of the greatest physicists of the nineteenth century, was the founder of a consistent theory of electromagnetism. However, it must be noted that significant discoveries and intelligent efforts of Coulomb, Volta, Ampére, Oersted, Faraday, Gauss, Poisson, Helmholtz and others preceded the work of Maxwell, enhancing a partial understanding of the connection between electricity and magnetism. Maxwell, by sheer logic and physical understanding of the earlier discoveries completed the unification of electricity and magnetism. The aim of this article is to describe Maxwell's contribution to electricity and magnetism.
Similar content being viewed by others
Suggested Reading
Sir. Edmond Whittaker,A History of the Theories of Aether and Electricity. Vol. 1 and 2, Thomas Nelson and Sons Ltd. London, 1951.
J C Maxwell,Treaties on Electricity and Magnetism, 3rd Edition (1891), Vol. 1 and 2, Dover, New York, 1954.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
P V Panat is Professor of Physics at the Pune University, His main research interests are condensed matter theory and quantum optics.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Panat, P.V. Contributions of Maxwell to electromagnetism. Reson 8, 17–29 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02867126
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02867126