Principle and Characteristic of Lorentz Force Propeller
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J. Electromagnetic Analysis & Applications, 2009, 1: 229-235 229 doi:10.4236/jemaa.2009.14034 Published Online December 2009 (http://www.SciRP.org/journal/jemaa) Principle and Characteristic of Lorentz Force Propeller Jing ZHU Northwest Polytechnical University, Xi’an, Shaanxi, China. Email: [email protected] Received August 4th, 2009; revised September 1st, 2009; accepted September 9th, 2009. ABSTRACT This paper analyzes two methods that a magnetic field can be generated, and classifies them under two types: 1) Self-field: a magnetic field can be generated by electrically charged particles move, and its characteristic is that it can’t be independent of the electrically charged particles. 2) Radiation field: a magnetic field can be generated by electric field change, and its characteristic is that it independently exists. Lorentz Force Propeller (ab. LFP) utilize the charac- teristic that radiation magnetic field independently exists. The carrier of the moving electrically charged particles and the device generating the changing electric field are fixed together to form a system. When the moving electrically charged particles under the action of the Lorentz force in the radiation magnetic field, the system achieves propulsion. Same as rocket engine, the LFP achieves propulsion in vacuum. LFP can generate propulsive force only by electric energy and no propellant is required. The main disadvantage of LFP is that the ratio of propulsive force to weight is small. Keywords: Electric Field, Magnetic Field, Self-Field, Radiation Field, the Lorentz Force 1. Introduction also due to the changes in observation angle.) “If the electric quantity carried by the particles is certain, the The magnetic field generated by a changing electric field magnetic field generated by the particles is entirely de- is a kind of radiation field and it independently exists. termined by the motion speed of the particles” [2] and it When the moving electrically charged particles are sub- is a single-valued function of the motion speed. In other jected to Lorentz force in the magnetic field, the device words, there must be a certain magnetic field corre- generating the changing electric field isn’t subjected to sponding to the electrically charged particles when the any reacting force. motion state of the particles is determined. This suggests 2. Theoretical Basis that the magnetic field generated by the moving electri- cally charged particles is the state quantity which de- As we know, a magnetic field can be generated by two scribes the motion state of the electrically charged parti- methods: one is electrically charged particles move and cles. The state quantity, which reflects the sate of a the other is electric field change [1]. However, the mag- physical object, is different in different reference systems, netic fields generated by the two methods are entirely but it can’t be separated from the physical object and different in nature. can’t be independent of the physical object. Thus, the We discuss the magnetic field generated by moving magnetic field generated by moving electrically charged electrically charged particles at first. It’s well known that particles is different in different reference systems. Of the electric quantity carried by the electrically charged cause the magnetic field can’t be independent of the particles isn’t affected by the motion state of the particles. electrically charged particles and it’s the self-field of the This shows that when the electrically charged particles particles. generate a magnetic field due to their movement, the As the magnetic field generated by moving electrically electric quantity owned by the particles doesn’t change charged particles, kinetic energy also belongs to state with the generation of the magnetic field. Only the dis- quantity. They reflect the motion state of a physical ob- tribution of the electric energy, i.e., the distribution of the ject in the form of energy. The difference between them electric field, is affected by the motion state of the parti- is as follows. The motion state of a physical object is cles. (We will mention below that even this change is described by its mass in kinetic energy, which is central- Copyright © 2009 SciRes JEMAA 230 Principle and Characteristic of Lorentz Force Propeller ized at the object. The motion state of the electrically the electromagnetic waves are separated from the an- charged particles is described by the electric quantity in tenna and independent of the antenna. [4] the magnetic field, which is generated by the moving It’s another issue that a changing magnetic field also particles and distributed in the space around the particles. generates an electric field, which is known as the issue Then we discuss the magnetic field generated by a that magnetic energy is transformed into electric energy. changing electric field. Based on the energy conservation Similarly, the electric field generated by the changing principle, the total energy in the electromagnetic field magnetic field is independent of the magnetic field. “A isn’t changed in the course that a magnetic field is gener- magnetic field is generated by a changing electric field, ated by a changing electric field. This indicates that the and an electric field is generated by the changing mag- magnetic energy is continuously generated and the elec- netic field” [5], so repeatedly. The process is continu- tric energy is continuously decreased at the same time. ously repeated. The most common example is electro- The magnetic energy is transformed from the decreased magnetic waves. Just because not only the magnetic field electric energy. The course that a magnetic field is gen- generated by a time varying electric field but also the erated by a changing electric field is a course that electric electric field generated by the time varying magnetic energy is transformed into magnetic energy. The electric field is a radiation field, electromagnetic waves are energy and the magnetic energy are localized in the elec- formed and spread continuously. On the surface, the tric field and the magnetic field respectively. According electric field and the magnetic field in the electromag- to “the superposition principle of electric fields” [3], the netic waves are tightly fastened and linked. But in fact, initial electric field can be regarded as the superposition they are mutually independent and irrelevant to each of two mutually independent electric fields in the other. above-mentioned course at any time. One of the two The law of a time varying electromagnetic field fol- electric fields is the electric field with the localized elec- lows the Maxwell equation. “The differential form of the tric energy, which has been transformed into magnetic Maxwell equations in free space is given as follows [6] energy. The other is the electric field with the localized electric energy, which hasn’t been transformed into D magnetic energy. Obviously, the former electric field t generated a magnetic field but the magnetic field has B disappeared. The latter electric field still exists but it E hasn’t generated any magnetic field. Because the two t electric fields are mutually independent, the magnetic D0 field generated by the former electric field is independent of the latter electric field. In other words, the magnetic B0” field and the electric field are mutually independent in It can be seen from the equations that the size of the the course that the magnetic field is generated by the magnetic field intensity is determined by the changing changing electric field. The former electric field is also a rate of the electric field. However, according to the tie between the magnetic field and the device generating above-mentioned, the magnetic field is transformed from the changing electric field and it’s shown as the device the disappeared electric field, so the size of the magnetic generating the changing electric field → the electric field field intensity should be determined by the changing → the magnetic field. With the disappearance of the amount of the electric field. They seem to be contradic- former electric field, the magnetic field generated by the tory. This is because that the two courses that the time changing electric field is not only independent of the varying electric field generates the magnetic field and the electric field, but also independent of the device generat- time varying magnetic field generates the electric field ing the changing electric field at the same time. The occur at the same time, rather than the magnetic field changing electric field and the device generating the begins to transform into the electric field after the electric changing electric field are only the initial condition to field has thoroughly transformed into the magnetic field. generate a magnetic field. The magnetic field generated It can be seen more easily from electromagnetic waves. by the changing electric field is a radiation field and it’s Finally, we discuss the different changes in the electric irrelevant to reference system. field when the electrically charged particles have differ- The relation between the magnetic field generated by a ent motion speeds or have acceleration. The relations changing electric field and the device generating the between the changes and electromagnetic radiation are changing electric field is similar to the relation between also investigated. electromagnetic waves and an antenna. The antenna is The situation that the electrically charged particles only the initial condition to generate electromagnetic have different motion speeds is firstly discussed. As waves. When the electromagnetic waves have been gen- shown in Figure 1, a is a stationary particle carrying posi- erated, they are irrelevant to the antenna. In other words, tive charge and its electric field is distributed in the space Copyright © 2009 SciRes JEMAA Principle and Characteristic of Lorentz Force Propeller 231 change of the electric field. Electrically charged particles moving in a straight line with a uniform speed can’t gen- erate any electromagnetic radiation.