Abstract
It has been over a century since the origin of the well known Abraham-Minkowski controversy over the momentum of light in matter. In quantum terms, the Minkowski momentum of a photon pM = hk/2π = nhν/c is related to the reduced wavelength in matter through the wavenumber k, and the Abraham momentum pA = mv = hν/nc is related to Einstein’s mass equivalent m = hν/c2, where h is Plank’s constant, n is the refractive index, ν is the frequency, and c is the speed of light in vacuum. In 2010, Barnett proposed a resolution to the debate which identitied Abraham’s kinetic momentum as being responsible for the overall center of mass translations of a medium and Minkowski’s canonical momentum as being responsible for translations within or with respect to a medium [1]. Since, the classical theory has been reviewed, and it has been determined that a complete formulation for the kinetic subsystem of electrodynamics has yet to be identified [2].
© 2013 Optical Society of America
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