Abstract
By restating geometrical optics within the field-theoretical approach, the classical concept of a photon (and, more generally, any elementary excitation) in an arbitrary dispersive medium is introduced, and photon properties are calculated unambiguously. In particular, the canonical and kinetic momenta carried by a photon, as well as the two corresponding energy-momentum tensors of a wave, are derived from the first principles of Lagrangian mechanics. As an example application of this formalism, the Abraham-Minkowski controversy pertaining to the definitions of these quantities is resolved for linear waves of arbitrary nature, and corrections to the traditional formulas for the photon kinetic energy-momentum are found. Several other applications of axiomatic geometrical optics to electromagnetic waves are also presented.
- Received 22 May 2012
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.86.053834
©2012 American Physical Society