A first principles derivation of the electromagnetic fields of a point charge in arbitrary

motion
Ashok K. Singal
Citation: American Journal of Physics 79, 1036 (2011); doi: 10.1119/1.3620257
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A first principles derivation of the electromagnetic fields of a point

charge in arbitrary motion
Ashok K. Singala)
Astronomy and Astrophysics Division, Physical Research Laboratory, Navrangpura,
Ahmedabad-380 009, India

(Received 24 January 2011; accepted 9 July 2011)

The electromagnetic fields of an accelerated charge are derived from first principles using
Coulombs law and relativistic transformations. The electric and magnetic fields are derived for the
instantaneous rest frame of the accelerated charge, without using Gausss law, an approach
different from that in the literature. We then calculate the electromagnetic fields for an accelerated
charge in non-relativistic motion. The expressions for these fields, supposedly accurate only to first
order in the reduced velocity b, yield all terms for the acceleration fields, and are missing only a
factor of 1b2 in the velocity fields. The derivation shows the genesis of various terms in the field
expressions when expressed in terms of the time retarded position of the charge. A straightforward
transformation from the instantaneous rest frame yields expressions for the electromagnetic fields
for a charge with an arbitrary velocity. The field expressions are derived without using
LienardWiechert potentials, thereby avoiding the evaluation of spatial and temporal derivatives of
these potentials at the retarded time. VC 2011 American Association of Physics Teachers.
[DOI: 10.1119/1.3620257]

I. INTRODUCTION
The electromagnetic fields of a moving charge are formally calculated from the LienardWiechert potentials.14
The calculation is tedious because derivatives of the potentials need to be evaluated at the retarded time. The fields for
the special case of acceleration parallel to the velocity vector
have been derived,5,6 without using LienardWiechert potentials. Huang and Lu7 considered the more general case but
found incorrect expressions for the fields. To bypass the
mathematical difficulties, Padmanabhan8 used an alternate
approach where the expressions for the field were derived
indirectly by finding a general covariant 4-vector function of
position, velocity, and acceleration of the charge, which
coincided with the field values in the instantaneous rest
frame. This approach is elegant but not immediately obvious.
It, thus, is worthwhile to obtain field expressions by a direct
transformation from the rest-frame values using a 3-vector
language in a way that is more transparent.
We will show that the textbook expressions for the fields
of an accelerated charge can be derived in straightforwardly
without using LienardWiechert potentials, thereby avoiding
the evaluation of spatial and temporal derivatives of these
potentials at the retarded time. We start with the radial Coulomb field of a stationary charge and then use the relativistic
transformations, in particular that of electromagnetic fields,
to derive the fields for an accelerated charge in its instantaneous rest frame in which transverse field components proportional to acceleration occur.
The presence of an electric field component proportional
to the acceleration was shown by Thomson,9 in pre-relativity
days by employing the concept of electric field lines representing Faraday (flux) tubes. A modern derivation using
Gausss law is available in many textbooks.1012 We shall
derive the transverse components for both electric and magnetic fields in the same spirit but from a different perspective
without explicitly using Gausss law. We then obtain
field expressions for a slowly moving charge using
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Am. J. Phys. 79 (10), October 2011

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non-relativistic transformations. The expression for the

acceleration fields turn out to be the same as for a relativistically moving charge, which we derive rigorously in Sec. IV.
We will use the Gaussian units.
II. ELECTROMAGNETIC FIELDS OF AN
ACCELERATED CHARGE IN AN INSTANTANEOUS
REST FRAME
A. A uniformly moving charge
The electric field of a stationary charge (Coulombs law)
in an inertial frame, say S 0 , is
0

e 0
n;
R02

(1)

where n0 is a unit vector in the radial direction from the position of the charge.
The electromagnetic field expressions for a charge moving
with a uniform velocity v can be derived by a relativistic
transformation of the fields to a frame S, which has a uniform velocity  v with respect to frame S 0 . From the Lorentz
transformation of the electromagnetic fields,13,10 we have
0

EEk cE0 ? bB0 ;

BBk cB0 ? bE0 ;

(2)

E0 Ek cE? bB;

B0 Bk cB? bE;

(3)

where b v/c and c (1 b2)1/2, with c being the velocity

of light in vacuum. For a b  1, the field transformations
reduce to
E E0  b  B0 ;

B B0 b  E0 ;

(4)

E0 E b  B;

B0 B  b  E:

(5)

For of a Coulomb field (B0 0), we obtain E E0 and

B b  E0 , which in a spherical coordinate system R; h; /,
C 2011 American Association of Physics Teachers
V

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with b along h 0 (that is, along the Z-axis), can be written

as
ER

e
;
R2

(6)

B/

eb sin h
;
R2

(7)

where R R0 (for b  1) is the distance between the field

point and the present charge position, meaning the charge
location determined simultaneously with the field. Thus, the
electric field to first order in b is independent of velocity as
well as angle and is the radial Coulomb field with respect to
the present charge position. However, there is an accompanying magnetic field proportional to b sin h.
B. An accelerated charge
Now, we determine the electromagnetic fields of an accelerating charge. We assume that a charge initially moving
with a velocity v1 in the lab-frame S has the acceleration a
(not necessarily parallel to v1) for a short duration Dt so that
its velocity changes by Dv (with Dv  c) to become v2 (see
Fig. 1). We assume a Dv=Dt is a constant during the interval Dt and v1 and v2 are constant outside of this interval. At
the midpoint of the time interval, say at t 0, the charge has
a velocity v (v1 v2)/2. Without any loss of generality we
choose the orientation of the axes so that the motion of the
charge is in the X-Z plane with v along the Z-axis. The velocity change Dv and
a can be resolved into com acceleration

ponents parallel Dvk ; ak and perpendicular Dv? ; a? to v.
We first determine the electromagnetic fields in the
inertial frame S 0 , which moves with a velocity v along
the Z-axis with respect to the lab-frame S . Frame S 0 is the
instantaneous rest frame of the charge at t 0. The
charge in frame S 0 has the final velocity components
v0 2;k Dvk =21  v  v2 =c2  c2 Dvk =2 (for Dv  c)
where
and
v0 2;? Dv? =2c1  v  v2 =c2  cDv? =2,
1=2
. In the same way, it can be seen that the
c 1  v2 =c2
initial velocity components in S 0 are v0 1;k v0 2;k and
v0 1;? v0 2;? , respectively. We will suppress the subscripts
and write the initial velocity as  v0 and the final velocity as
v0 . The acceleration, which lasts for a time interval
Dt0 Dt=c, has components a0 k 2v0 k =Dt0 c3 ak and
a0 ? 2v0 ? =Dt0 c2 a? . Note that the motion of the

Fig. 1. A schematic of the motion of an accelerated charge in the lab-frame

S. At t 0, the charge moves with velocity v equal to the average of the
velocities before and after the acceleration a, which may not be parallel to v.
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Am. J. Phys., Vol. 79, No. 10, October 2011

charge in the instantaneous rest frame S 0 is essentially onedimensional with a0 k v0 , irrespective of the angle between a
and v in S (for Dv  c). Thus in frame S 0 , the charge initially moving with a velocity  v0  b0 c will have an accel0
eration a0 b_ c for a brief time interval Dt0 so that its
velocity finally becomes v0 a0 Dt0 =2. The charge will
continue to move with the uniform velocity v0 , retracing its
earlier path (see Fig. 2). For convenience, we can rotate the
co-ordinate axes in S 0 so that the charge motion (along the
O0 z01 direction) is along the horizontal axis. The frame S will
then move with velocity  v along the tilted axis O0 Z0 in S 0 .
At the end, we can undo the rotation or better still, write the
field expressions in co-ordinate independent language. We shall
assume that the electromagnetic field expressions depend only
on the position, velocity, and acceleration of the charge at the
retarded time and not on any higher time derivatives of its
motion. Furthermore, we make the reasonable assumption that
the fields become zero at infinite distance from the charge.
1. The electric field of the accelerated charge in the
instantaneous rest-frame S 0
Let t0 0 be the time at which the charge was instantaneously at rest at O0 . During the time of acceleration Dt0 , the
charge travels a distance a0 Dt02 =8 toward O0 and back. To
first order in Dt0 , we can assume that during the time interval
of acceleration, the charge remains stationary at O0 . Now
consider the fields of the charge at a later time T 0  Dt0 .
With R0 > cT 0 Dt0 =2 (see Fig. 3, region II) information
that the charge motion has undergone a change could not
have reached these far off locations. Therefore, the electric
field there continues to be that of the charge moving with its
initial velocity  v0 and will thus be directed in the radial
direction [see Eq. (6)] from the extrapolated position of the
charge (O02 in Fig. 3), which it would have occupied at that
moment had it not been accelerating. In nearer regions with
R0 < cT 0  Dt0 =2 (region I), the field would have adjusted
to the changed motion of the charge and is now directed radially from point O01 , the actual position of the charge at time
T0 . Only in the narrow shell of thickness DR0 cDt0 in the
region between S01 and S02 , which is causally connected to the
time interval of acceleration at O0 , are the fields yet to be
determined.

Fig. 2. Motion of the accelerated charge in the instantaneous rest-frame S 0 .

Two parts of the charge trajectory, which overlap before and after t0 0,
have been displaced vertically for clarity.
Ashok K. Singal

1037

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We can set the constant of integration a 0 by assuming that

the fields approach
zero as R0 ! 1 (in the absence of a discon0
tinuity in b_ ). Thus, whenever there is an acceleration of a stationary charge, it
will result in an electric field gradient
0
@E0h0 =@R0 eb_ sin h0 =cR02 in the neighborhood of the field
point P(R0 ,h0 ), in turn implying
a nonzero acceleration depend0
ent transverse field E0h0 eb_ sin h0 =cR0 . This component is in
addition to the radial field component E0R0 e=R02 . The total
electric field at any point on the spherical surface S00 is causally
connected to the accelerated charge when it had zero velocity
and can be written in a coordinate independent manner as
0
en0 e n0  n0  b_
E 02
;
R
c
R0
0

(10)

where the unit vector n0 R0 /R0 .

2. Magnetic field of the accelerated charge
Fig. 3. Quantities used to calculate the electric field of an accelerated
charge. The faint grey line O01 EFG illustrates a representative electric field
line using Thomsons construction9 and shows the kink in the region
between S01 and S02 corresponding to the acceleration of the charge.

We examine the electric field along O0 APB, a radial direction from O0 . In the absence of acceleration the field at P
would be the Coulomb field, that is, radial from O0 along
O0 P. We now want to find out what field changes
occur when the charge accelerates. As we discussed, the
electric field at A is along O01 A, which is inclined at a small
angle Dh0 with respect to O0 A. To first order in b0 ,
Dh0 O01 L=R01 O0 O01 sin h0 =R01 v0 T 0 sin h0 =R01 b0 sin h0 .
Therefore, the electric field at A can be resolved into a radial
0
component along O0 A, plus a transverse component along h^ ,
which to first order in b0 is Dh0 e=R02 eb0 sin h0 =R2 . Similarly at B there is a transverse component eb0 sin h0 =R02 . As
the shell sweeps past P, the transverse component of the
electric field there changes from eb0 sin h0 =R02 at time
T 0  Dt0 =2 to eb0 sin h0 =R02 at T 0 Dt0 =2, respectively. Independently of the duration Dt0 of the acceleration, a simple
linear interpolation implies a zero velocity-dependent transverse component at T0 , which is not surprising because at
time T0 the field point P has a causal relation to the charge at
O0 when it had a zero velocity.
In addition to the temporal change at P, 0there is also
a spatial
change 2eb0 sin h0 =R02 eb_ Dt0 sin h0 =R02
0
0
_
eb DR sin h0 =cR02 in the transverse electric field component over the distance DR0 from
A to B. The nonzero value of
0
the ratio DE0h0 =DR0 eb_ sin h0 =cR02 is independent of the
width DR0 of the shell, and in limit DR0 ! 0 we can write it
as a gradient
0
@E0h0 e b_ sin h0

:
@R0
c R02

(8)

There are discontinuities

in the gradient at B and A due to
0
the discontinuity in b_ at the retarded times t0 Dt0 =2 and
Dt0 =2 in the case considered here. But at P, it is well behaved
because the acceleration is continuous at time t0 0.
Equation (8) at P has the formal solution,
0

E0h0
1038

eb_ sin h0
a:
cR0
Am. J. Phys., Vol. 79, No. 10, October 2011

(9)

The magnetic field of the charge can be determined in a

similar manner as the electric field. From Eq. (7), there is a
component of the magnetic field along /^0 that changes
from eb0 sin h0 =R02 at R0  DR0 =2 to eb0 sin h0 =R02
at R0 DR0 =2. Although this value of the component
may be zero at P, there exists a nonzero gradient
0
@B0/0 =@R0 eb_ sin h0 =cR02 , implying the presence of an
0
acceleration-dependent magnetic field, B0 0 eb_ sin h0 =cR0 .
/

Thus on the spherical surface S00 , we have the magnetic

field
B0 

e
0
n0  b_ n0  E0 :
0
cR

(11)

The electromagnetic fields calculated in Eqs. (10) and (11)

are strictly true at points only on the spherical surface S00 ,
that is, corresponding to an accelerated charge that is instantaneously stationary at O0 . These expressions may not be applicable at points other than on the surface S00 in the region
between S01 and S02 , when the charge has gained a nonzero velocity at the corresponding retarded time and the field
expressions might need some velocity-dependent correction
terms, which are derived in the following.
III. FIELDS OF AN ACCELERATED CHARGE
MOVING WITH A NON-RELATIVISTIC VELOCITY
We now derive the electromagnetic fields for an accelerated charge that has a nonzero but non-relativistic velocity
b v/c in the inertial frame S. We assume that at t 0, the
charge is at the origin O, moving with a velocity b, and
acceleration b_ (not necessarily parallel to b). We want to calculate the fields at point D along the radius vector R from O
at time T R/c (see Fig. 4). Let S 0 be an inertial frame moving with velocity b with respect to S, with their origins O0
and O coinciding at t0 t 0. In frame S 0 , O0 is the retarded
time position of the instantaneously stationary charge (the
charge will not forever remain stationary at O0 because of its
acceleration), corresponding to the field point D at radius
vector R0 from O0 .
From the non-relativistic Lorentz transformation b  1
between S and S 0 , we have
R0 R  vT R  bR Rn  b;
Ashok K. Singal

(12)
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from Eq. (17), with n0 and R0 specified with respect to the

present position of the charge, calculated using the corresponding retarded time value of the velocity. Equation (17)
gives the electric field for every point in S (including regions
I and II in Fig. 4), with the understanding that the corresponding retarded time values of the velocity and acceleration (if any) are to be used and n0 and R0 are to be specified
with respect to the present position vT b R of the charge
calculated using the velocity b at the corresponding retarded
time. Equation (17) is thus a generalization of Eq. (6) when
acceleration is present.
From Eqs. (14) and (15), we can substitute for n0 and R0 in
terms of the retarded time quantities n and R, noting that to
first order in b, n0 b n/(1  b  n). We obtain
"
#
"
#
_
n  b
e n  n  b  b

: (18)
Ee
c
R2 1  b  n3
R1  b  n3

Fig. 4. Quantities used to calculate the electric field of an accelerated charge

moving with a non-relativistic velocity.

T 0 T  v  R=c2 T1  b  n:

(13)

A non-relativistic Lorentz transformation does not necessarily imply a Galilean transformation. In particular,
T 0 T 1  b  n, a non-Galilean feature, so that the fields
propagate with the same speed c in both reference frames.
From Eqs. (12) and (13) we obtain
0

R cT R1  b  n;

(14)

n0 R0 =R0 n  b=1  b  n:

(15)

The electromagnetic fields at point D on the surface S00 in the

instantaneous rest-frame S 0 are given by Eqs. (10) and (11).
If0 we use Eq. (4) and note that for a non-relativistic case
_ we can transform the electric field for S to obtain
b_ b,
"
#
_
_
en0 e n0  n0  b
b  n0  b
E 02
;
(16)

R
c
R0
R0

B B0 b  E0 n0 b  E0 ;
n  E0 =1  b  n;

_
en0 e n0 b  n0  b

:
02
0
R
c
R

If we substitute for E0 from Eq. (5), we can rewrite Eq. (19b)

as
B1  n  b n  E n  b  B;

(20)

which using the identity for the vector cross product

becomes
B n  E bn  B;

(21)

From Eq. (19b), we have n  B 0, giving

(22)

(17)

In Eq. (17), n0 and R0 , which are yet to be transformed in

terms of quantities in S, are still specified with respect to S 0 .
In frame S, the point O0 is at vT bR at time T, and the position vector of the field point with respect to O0 in S, R vT
(see Fig. 4), is the same as R0 in S 0 [see Eq. (12)]. Thus n0
and R0 , which are the unit vector and the distance specified
with respect to the position of the charge at the retarded time
in S 0 , are also the unit vector and the distance in S, but specified with respect to the present positions vT of the charge,
determined at time T from the value of the velocity at the retarded time. The geometry of O, O0 , and D in Fig. 4 is similar
to that of O0 ,O01 , and A in Fig. 3.
Thus, the electric field at any point in the region between
surfaces S1 and S2 (see Fig. 4) can be calculated directly
Am. J. Phys., Vol. 79, No. 10, October 2011

(19a)
(19b)

B n  E:

or

1039

All quantities on the right-hand side are to be evaluated at

the retarded time. Equation (18), which is supposed to be
accurate to only first order in the velocity, gives all the terms
correctly especially for the acceleration fields (missing only
a factor 1/c2 in the velocity fields), compared with the more
general expression for electromagnetic fields [see for example, Refs. 14; also see Eq. (37)]. The derivation shows the
genesis of various terms, in particular, that of the factor
_ in the acceleration fields.
n  n  b  b
The magnetic field can be expressed more easily in terms
of the electric field from Eqs. (4) and (11),

IV. GENERAL EXPRESSIONS FOR THE

ELECTROMAGNETIC FIELDS OF AN
ACCELERATED CHARGE
Equations (18) and (22) give the electromagnetic fields of
an accelerated charge moving with a non-relativistic velocity. Our aim here is to derive expressions for the electromagnetic fields of an accelerated charge moving with arbitrary
velocity b v/c in the lab-frame S and find the changes, if
any, required in the field expressions. Let S 0 be the inertial
frame, moving with velocity b with respect to S. Thus, S 0 is
the instantaneous rest frame of the charge. We resolve all
vectors into parallel and perpendicular components by taking
the former along the direction of b. The distance vectors R
and R0 connect the field point to the time retarded positions
Ashok K. Singal

1039

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of the charge, and n R/R and n0 R0 /R0 are the corresponding unit vectors directed from the time retarded positions toward the field point in S and S 0 respectively.
We can write n0 n0 k n0 ? with
0

nk dcnk  b and n0 ? dn? ;

(23)

where d c1 n0  b 1=c1  n  b is the Doppler

factor.1,13,14 Further
R0 Rc1  n  b d1 R:

(24)

From Eq. (23), we also have

0

b_ b_ k b_ ? ,

we

(25)

have

the

0
b_ 0 k c3 b_ k and b_ ? c2 b_ ? :

(26)

We then have the relation

0
0
0
0
n0 b  b_ nk b  b_ k n0 ?  b_ ? ;

(27a)

_ (27b)
dc2 nk  b_ k n?  b_ ? dc2 n  b:
Another vector relation that we will need is
0

b  n0  b_ n0 ? b  b_  b_ ? n0  b;

(34)

E?

ecd3
ec3 d3
_  b_ ? 1  n  b: (35)
n? n  b
n

?
R2
cR

We add Eqs. (32) and (35) and find

ecd3
n  b
R2
ec3 d3
_  b1
_  n  b;
n  bn  b

cR

(36)

which can be expressed in the more familiar form (see, for

example, Refs. 14)
"
#
"
#
_
n  b
e n  n  b  b
Ee

: (37)
c
R2 c2 1  n  b3
R1  n  b3
All quantities on the right-hand side are to be evaluated at
the retarded time. Equation (37) differs from its non-relativistic counter-part in Eq. (18) only in the extra term 1/c2 in
the velocity fields (the first term in the square brackets on the
right-hand side).

(28)

B. Magnetic field

(29)

Although we can explicitly calculate B by following a

similar procedure, it is simpler to express B in terms of E.
By using Eqs. (2) and (11), we can write

which follows from

n0k b  b_ b_ k n0  b n0k b_ k b:

ecn0 ? ec 0
0
0 n ? fn0 b  b_ g
R02
cR
0
 b_ ? 1 n0  b:

We substitute from Eqs. (23)(27) and obtain

cnk b dnk and 1 n0  b d2 1  n  b

For the acceleration
transformations1,13,14

E?

B B0 k cB0 ? b  E0 ;

(38a)

A. Electric field
0

From the Lorentz transformation of the electromagnetic

fields [Eq. (2)], we can write
0

Ek Ek and E? cE0 ?  b  B0 :

(30)

R02

e 0
0
0
nk fn0 b  b_ g  b_ k 1 n0  b:
0
cR

(31)

ecd3
nk  b
R2
ec3 d3
_  b_ k 1  n  b:
nk  bn  b

cR

B cdn? nk  fE? b  Bg n?  Ek ;
cdn  E n  b  B:

We substitute from Eqs. (23)(27) and obtain

Ek

n0 ? cnk b  E0 ? cn0 ?  Ek :

(38c)

We substitute for Ek and E0 ? from Eq. (3) and use Eqs. (23)
and (25) to obtain

Ek

(38b)

By using Eqs. (10) and (29), we can write

enk

n0 ? E0 ? cn0 ?  Ek nk  E0 ? b  E0 ? ;

(39a)
(39b)

We can rewrite Eq. (39) as

B1  n  b n  E n  b  B;
(32)

(40)

which from the usual identity for a triple cross product

becomes

In the same way from Eqs. (10), (11), and (30), we have
B n  E bn  B:
ecn0 ? ec
0
0
E? 02 0 fn0 ? n0  b_  b_ ? g
R
cR
ec
0
0 b  n0  b_ :
cR
By using Eq. (28), we can write
1040

Am. J. Phys., Vol. 79, No. 10, October 2011

(41)

From Eq. (39) n  B 0, and we obtain the desired result

(33)

B n  E;

(42)

which is identical to the non-relativistic expression in Eq.

(22).
Ashok K. Singal

1040

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a)

Electronic mail: asingal@prl.res.in

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Ashok K. Singal

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