Electromagnetic Theory

graduate course

Course Description

This is a one-semester graduate course on electromagnetic theory. Chapters 1 and 2 provide a concise review of fundamental concepts, along with selected advanced topics such as the plane wave expansion (PWE). Chapters 3 and 4 focus on more advanced material, including the derivation of radiation fields using vector potentials and the development of the Stratton–Chu formulation. The course concludes with canonical electromagnetic scattering problems. Mathematical tools are introduced as needed throughout the course.

Course Material

The course slides are divided into four units:

  • Chapter 1: Maxwell Equations (Slides)
  • Chapter 2: Propagation and Transmission (Slides)
  • Chapter 3: Radiation (Slides)
  • Chapter 4: Scattering (Slides)

Grading Policy

I fully understand that this is a demanding course—but don’t worry about the grading. There will be no tests in this course; instead, four oral presentations are required. For more details, please refer to the grading policy.

References

No textbook is required for this course, but the following references are highly recommended: (1) Harrington’s classic textbook provides a concise yet rigorous treatment of electromagnetic theory. It is strongly recommended, though some of its conventions may differ from other texts. (2) Balanis’ comprehensive text serves as a detailed reference manual. While thorough, it can occasionally feel overwhelming, but remains an invaluable resource. (3) Barkeshli’s concise volume is a hidden gem; parts of the lecture content closely follow his clear and elegant derivations. (4) Ishimaru’s textbook, especially the second edition, offers broad coverage. However, it contains several typos—so keeping a copy of the first edition for comparison is advisable. (5) Pathak’s textbook, authored by my academic “grand-advisor” (my advisor’s advisor), presents more advanced topics and complements the foundational material covered in the earlier references.

[1] R. F. Harrington, Time-Harmonic Electromagnetic Fields, McGraw-Hill, 1961.
[2] C. A. Balanis, Advanced Engineering Electromagnetics, 2nd ed., Wiley, 2012.
[3] K. Barkeshli, Advanced Electromagnetics and Scattering Theory. Springer, 2015.
[4] A. Ishimaru, Electromagnetic Wave Propagation, Radiation and Scattering, 2nd ed., Wiley, 2017.
[5] P. H. Pathak and R. J. Burkholder, Electromagnetic Radiation, Scattering, and Diffraction, Wiley, 2021.