How big was Maxwell s contribution?

Maxwell's research interests include electromagnetic theory, molecular physics, statistical physics, optics, mechanics, and elastic theory. In particular, the electromagnetic field theory he established, which unified electricity, magnetism, and optics, is the most brilliant achievement of the development of physics in the 19th century, and is one of the greatest synthesis in the history of science. He predicted the existence of electromagnetic waves.

This theoretical encounter was later fully experimentally verified. He erected a monument to physics. Radio technology, which benefits mankind, was developed on the basis of the theory of electromagnetic fields.

Maxwell began to study electromagnetism around 1855, and after studying Faraday's new theories and ideas on electromagnetism, he was convinced that Faraday's new theory contained truth. Therefore, he had the desire to "provide a mathematical basis for Faraday's theory" and was determined to express Faraday's genius in a clear and accurate mathematical form. On the basis of the achievements of his predecessors, he made a systematic and comprehensive study of the entire electromagnetic phenomenon, and published three articles on the theory of electromagnetic field by virtue of his profound mathematical attainments and rich imagination

On Faraday's Line of Force (December 1855–February 1856); On the Lines of Force in Physics (1861-1862); "Kinetic Theory of the Electromagnetic Field" (December 8, 1864). The work of his predecessors and himself was comprehensively summarized, and the electromagnetic field theory was expressed in a concise, symmetrical and perfect mathematical form, which was sorted out and rewritten by later generations and became the main basis of classical electrodynamics. Based on this, in 1865 he predicted the existence of electromagnetic waves, which could only be transverse waves, and calculated that the speed of propagation of electromagnetic waves was equal to the speed of light, while concluding:

Light is a form of electromagnetic wave that reveals the connection between light phenomena and electromagnetic phenomena. In 1888, the German physicist Hertz experimentally verified the existence of electromagnetic waves.

Maxwell published his scientific masterpiece The Theory of Electromagnetism in 1873. The theory of electromagnetic fields is systematically, comprehensively and perfectly expounded. This theory became one of the important pillars of classical physics.

Maxwell also made important contributions to thermodynamics and statistical physics, and he was one of the founders of the kinetic theory of gases. In 1859, he used statistical laws to derive Maxwell's velocity distribution law for the first time, thus finding a more accurate way to find the statistical average from the microscopic two. In 1866 he gave a new derivation of the distribution function of molecules by velocity, which was based on the analysis of forward and reverse collisions.

He introduced the concept of relaxation time, developed a general form of transport theory, and applied it to diffusion, heat conduction, and frictional processes within gases. The term "statistical mechanics" was introduced in 1867. Maxwell was a master of using mathematical tools to analyze physical problems and express scientific ideas accurately, and he attached great importance to experimentation, and the Cavendish Laboratory, which he was responsible for, developed under his leadership and later directors into one of the world's most famous academic centers.

Maxwell's greatest contribution was the establishment of the electromagnetic theory of light. As early as in college, he realized that Faraday's theory was an important foundation for building a new theory of physics. He was determined to make up for Faraday's shortcomings by mathematical means, and to express Faraday's concept of genius in a clear and accurate mathematical form.

In 1873, Maxwell completed his classic work On Electricity and Magnetism, which is regarded as the most important classic of physics after Newton's Principia. Maxwell's electromagnetism is a vast and profound scientific heritage in the treasure trove of human knowledge. In addition to electromagnetism, Maxwell's contributions to the molecular dynamics of heat are also prominent.

In 1871, Maxwell published The Theory of Heat. The book describes some of the relationships between partial derivatives of thermodynamic variables such as pressure, volume, entropy, and temperature, known as "Maxwell's relations". The position of these relations in thermodynamics is equivalent to that of Maxwell's equations in classical dynamics.

In 1879, Maxwell began to turn his attention to gas theory. Using mathematical and statistical methods, he derived Maxwell's velocity distribution law of molecular motion. This result can be seen as the starting point of classical statistical physics.

In addition, Maxwell further developed Hamiltonian's theory on the rationality of the use of vector analysis and symbolic differential operators, and also made important contributions to different fields such as horse theory and colorimetry, the study of Saturn's rings, geometric optics, optical elasticity of servo mechanisms (tachometers), and structural mechanics. On November 5 of the same year, Maxwell died of cancer at the age of 49. A giant star in the history of physics that could rival Newton has fallen.

In order to commemorate him, later generations named the unit of magnetic flux Maxwell.

An unprecedented scientist and the pioneer of the information age, how good is Maxwell?

Maxwell's greatest achievement was the establishment of the theory of electromagnetism, which unified the phenomena of light, electricity, and magnetism. On December 8, 1864, Maxwell read an important article entitled "The Dynamic Theory of the Electromagnetic Field" at a meeting of the Royal Society, in which he found a clear electromagnetic basis for his mechanical model, summarized the work of his predecessors and himself, and used displacement current as a premise compatible with the law of conservation of charge.

The master of electromagnetic theory was the great British scientist Maxwell. His works are comparable to Newton's "Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy" and Darwin's "On the Origin of Species". Unlike Faraday, who was good at experiments, McBlind Potato Sway was good at theoretical generalizations of mathematical methods.

His scientific practice once again proves that in the study of natural sciences, the mathematical method is an indispensable means of understanding, and the special grinder is an effective form of theoretical thinking, which is of great significance. It provides scientific research with concise and precise formal language, methods of quantitative analysis and calculation, as well as reasoning means and abstraction capabilities.