On the refractive index for a nonmagnetic two-component medium: resolution of a controversy

A heuristic resolution of the Abraham-Minkowski controversy

This paper reviews the history and origin of the Abraham-Minkowski controversy and points out that it is a continuation of the controversy over the speed of light in medium. Upon considering an aircraft flying at a constant speed along the great-circle route from the perspective of a geosynchronous space station, we show that the A-M controversy arises from non-local observation. The relative motion refractive index and the gravitational field refractive index are defined by the space-time metric tensor, which reveals the A-M controversy hidden in special and general relativity. As another exa…

Resolving the wave-vector and the refractive index from the coefficient of reflectance

We resolve the existing controversy concerning the selection of the sign of the normal-to-the-interface component of the wave-vector $k_z$ of an electromagnetic wave in an active (gain) medium. Our method exploits the fact that no ambiguity exists in the case of a {\em film} of the active medium since its coefficient of reflectance is invariant under the inversion of the sign of $k_z$. Then we show that the limit of the infinite film thickness determines a unique and physically consistent choice of the wave-vector and the refractive index. Practically important implications of the theory are i…

Application of axiomatic formal theory to the Abraham--Minkowski controversy

We treat continuum electrodynamics as an axiomatic formal theory based on the macroscopic Maxwell--Minkowski equations applied to a thermodynamically closed system consisting of an antireflection-coated block of a simple linear dielectric material situated in free-space that is illuminated by a quasimonochromatic field. We prove that valid theorems of the formal theory of Maxwellian continuum electrodynamics are inconsistent with conservation laws for the inviscid incoherent flow of non-interacting particles (photons) in the continuum limit (light field) in the absence of external forces, pres…

On the Saturation of the Nonlinear Refractive Index in Atomic Gases

Motivated by the ongoing controversy on the origin of the nonlinear index saturation and subsequent intensity clamping in femtosecond filaments, we study the atomic nonlinear polarization induced by a high-intensity and ultrashort laser pulse in hydrogen by numerically solving the time dependent Schrödinger equation. Special emphasis is given to the efficient modeling of the nonlinear polarization at central laser frequency corresponding to 800 nm wavelength. Here, the recently proposed model of the Higher-Order Kerr Effect (HOKE) and two versions of the Standard model for femtosecond filament…

线性介电介质中电磁波的颤动运动、动量与自旋动力学

Zitterbewegung, momentum and spin dynamics of electromagnetic waves in linear dielectric medium

本文通过研究介电介质中电磁波与偶极子的耦合动力学，统一解释了 Abraham 与 Minkowski 动量争议，并预言了由螺旋度混合引起的颤动运动现象。