Re: visualizing fields near charged objects

[Joel Rauber <Joel_Rauber@SDSTATE.EDU>]

Leigh,
You are right. I mostly thought that Abromowitz is better known and
widespread; the 3D cases have to be generalized from the information they
give.  I have Visscher's book as well, also obtained from a pub. rep.;I wish
I had thought of it when I gave the references.

It is an interesting book taking a finite difference approach to E&M rather
than the continuum limit (ordinary versions utilizing vector calculus
methods).

I've never been brave enough to teach out of it.  Has anybody on the list
done that?

Joel Rauber

> -----Original Message-----
> From: phys-l@lists.nau.edu: Forum for Physics Educators
> [mailto:PHYS-L@lists.nau.edu]On Behalf Of Leigh Palmer
> Sent: Friday, February 09, 2001 2:20 PM
> To: PHYS-L@lists.nau.edu
> Subject: Re: visualizing fields near charged objects
>
>
> At 9:39 AM -0600 2/9/01, Joel Rauber wrote:
> > A partial answer to this question is that one must develope a finite
> > difference scheme to approximate the laplacian in these
> coordinates.  Some
> > references that are readily available and may be of partial help.
> >
> > Abromowitz & Stegun: section 25 around page 877
>
> They seem to think the world is two dimensional*. A reference I just
> found this morning may be more to the point: "Fields and
> Electrodynamics:
> A Computer-Compatible Introduction" by Pieter B. Visscher.
> Chapter 16 is
> devoted to this and more. I got this book from a publisher's rep some
> time ago. I hadn't really looked at it much before this
> morning. The book
> may be obscure; Amazon shows it as out of print. It was
> published in 1988
> so check you unperused publishers' samples.
>
> Leigh
>
> *They write Laplace's equation in two dimensions.