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Re: wave momentum

"James W. Wheeler" wrote:
To drive a microphone-e.g. a variable capacitor type, it must exert a
force, hence it must carry momentum! The average momentum over a cycle
may well average to zero-but it is not zero at every point in the cycle.

We are in complete agreement. Which brings us back to Carl's question:
a (continuous) sound wave does not carry (time averaged) momentum, but
an E&M wave does. What's the crucial difference? How does a shock wave
fit in?

--
--James McLean
jmclean@chem.ucsd.edu
post doc
UC San Diego, Chemistry