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QJEEM23Ph2137: JEE Main 2023 Physics - Class 12 JEEM23Ph2137 Solution: For the plane electromagnetic wave given by and , the ratio of…

For the plane electromagnetic wave given by E=E0sin⁡(ωt−kx)E=E_{0} \sin (\omega t-k x) and B=B0sin⁡(ωt−kx)B=B_{0} \sin (\omega t-k x) , the ratio of average electric energy density to average magnetic energy density is

Multiple Choice Options

  • A 1
  • B 4
  • C 2
  • D `1/2

Step-by-Step Verified Solution

The average energy density of an electromagnetic wave is equally shared between the electric field and the magnetic field. This means that the average electric energy density is equal to the average magnetic energy density.

The average electric energy density ( uEu_E ) is given by:

uE=12ε0E2u_E = \frac{1}{2} \varepsilon_0 E^2

and the average magnetic energy density ( uBu_B ) is given by:

uB=12μ0B2u_B = \frac{1}{2\mu_0} B^2

where ε0\varepsilon_0 is the permittivity of free space, μ0\mu_0 is the permeability of free space, EE is the electric field strength, and BB is the magnetic field strength.

In an electromagnetic wave, EE and BB are related by the equation:

E=cBE = cB

where cc is the speed of light in vacuum.

Substituting this into the energy density equations gives:

uE=12ε0(cB)2u_E = \frac{1}{2} \varepsilon_0 (cB)^2

and

uB=12μ0B2u_B = \frac{1}{2\mu_0} B^2

Since c=1ε0μ0c = \frac{1}{\sqrt{\varepsilon_0 \mu_0}} , we can rewrite uEu_E as:

uE=121μ0B2=uBu_E = \frac{1}{2} \frac{1}{\mu_0} B^2 = u_B

Therefore, the ratio of the average electric energy density to the average magnetic energy density is 1.

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