Ludvig Lorenz (1867) on Light and Electricity

TL;DR

This paper explores Lorenz's 1867 electrodynamic theory of light, which was independent of Maxwell's but largely overlooked, and provides an English translation of his semi-popular publication with annotations.

Contribution

It introduces and analyzes Lorenz's alternative electrodynamic theory of light from 1867, highlighting its historical significance and differences from Maxwell's theory.

Findings

Lorenz's theory identified light with electrical oscillations in poor conductors.

Lorenz's electrodynamic theory was formally equivalent to Maxwell's but physically distinct.

The paper provides the first English translation of Lorenz's semi-popular 1867 publication.

Abstract

Independent of Maxwell, in 1867 the Danish physicist L. V. Lorenz proposed a theory in which he identified light with electrical oscillations propagating in a very poor conductor. Lorenz's electrodynamic theory of light, which formally was equivalent to Maxwell's theory but physically quite different from it, was published in well-known journals in German and English but soon fell into oblivion. In 1867 Lorenz also published a paper on his new theory in a semi-popular Danish journal which has generally been overlooked. This other paper is here translated into English and provided with the necessary annotations.