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Volume 15: Number 2: Article 4
Commentary: On the Existence of K. Meyl's Scalar Waves
Gerhard W. Bruhn, Darmstadt University of Technology, Department
of Mathematics, AG 7, Schloßgartenstrasse, 7 64289 Darmstadt, Germany
In the fall of 2000, several talks were delivered by K. Meyl. These
talks described his theory of so-called Tesla's scalar waves (e.g.,
in Meyl ["Scalar Waves" (2000) and "Longitudinalwellen-Experiments"
(2000)], and on his Web site). In the following article, we shall mainly
discuss the theoretical part of these publications, although the experimental
part would deserve a detailed discussion in its own right. The scalar
wave, according to Meyl, is an irrotational electric vector solution
E of the homogeneous wave equation having non-vanishing sources. However,
and this is Meyl's logical flaw, it is not the homogeneous wave equation
but Maxwell's equations that are the actual starting point of any theory
of electromagnetic waves. And, as will be seen see in Section 1, the
homogeneous wave equation is valid only in vacuum and in its natural
generalization, in homogeneous materials without free charges and currents,
while in other cases the inhomogeneous wave equation would apply. So
in Section 2, our next immediate result is that Meyl's source conditions
are inconsistent with the material properties. Hence, we have to assume
the vector field E to be source free. But- as will be shown further
for this case-Maxwell's equations do not admit other than trivial scalar
waves of the Meyl type, since only time- independent solutions are admissible.
Under those conditions, the only permissible conclusion is that Meyl's
scalar waves do not exist. At the end of his talks (Meyl, "Scalar Waves"
[2000] and "Longitudinalwellen-Experiments" [2000]), Meyl makes another
remarkable assertion, which we shall discuss in Section 3. Meyl claims
to have generated 'vortex' solutions that propagate faster than light.
But for solutions of the homogeneous wave equation, this would clearly
contradict a well-known theorem of the mathematical theory of the wave
equation. In addition, Meyl's proof for his claim will turn out to be
a simple flaw of thinking.
FULL TEXT:
Commentary: On the Existence of K. Meyl's Scalar Waves
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