A wave that is out of phase
with itself
23 August 2012
I do not think such wave exists. The electricand magnetic fields of plan wave are in phase. But that of the solution of theEM wave equation are out of phase. In the Figure1, an element of antenna emits a wave composed ofelectric field E and magnetic field H. The phase of the electric and magnetic fields vary differently, so the electric field wave slides with respect to the magnetic field wave. For example, if the maximums of the 2 fields coincide at a point r1, a moment later, each will travel a different distance and the 2 will separate. In other words, the wave in terms of electric field is out of phase with itself in terms of magnetic field.