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GR: Fachverband Gravitation und Relativitätstheorie

GR 1: Grundlegende Probleme und allgemeiner Formalismus

GR 1.1: Talk

Monday, March 9, 2009, 17:00–17:20, A214

On the initial-value problem of Maxwell's equations — •Volker Perlick — Physics Department, Lancaster University, UK

I present some new results on the initial-value problem for Maxwell's equations. Throughout, Maxwell's equations are considered in metric-free form, with a local but otherwise arbitrary constitutive law. This setting covers standard Maxwell theory on a general-relativistic spacetime and many alternative theories as special cases. The general results are illustrated with applications to the Born-Infeld nonlinear electrodynamic theory. Among other things, I present a new proof of the known fact that the Born-Infeld initial-value problem is well-posed.