Importance of Electromagnetic Waves

Serena Cuoghi
Title of Professor of Biology

Electromagnetic waves are a form of energy that is transmitted through space in the form of electric and magnetic fields. oscillating perpendicular to each other and to the direction of their propagation, following the geometry of the body that generates it, having the ability to vary in terms of length and frequency of the wave, which makes them a very important tool in technology modern.

These types of waves have the ability to transmit information and energy through space, which is why they are used for functions ranging from wireless communication to radar systems and radiotherapy, since they have the property of propagating through a vacuum, without requiring a medium material to travel, being able to travel great distances through space, hence they are essential for research and observation astronomical.

electromagnetic universe

However, electromagnetic waves are not a human invention. Technically, any form of matter capable of conducting electricity has the ability to generate a field by itself. electromagnetic as a consequence of the flow of electrons, logically, the greater the electrical flow, the greater the quantity and intensity of the electromagnetic waves that it can produce and, therefore, the electromagnetic field that is generated by the around the object.

The movement of matter and the interaction of the electrons that compose it are the determining factor for the creation of an electromagnetic field, hence that not all planets or other space bodies are capable of experiencing this phenomenon, and that it is of such varied intensity among those that can generate it.

technological applications

All this knowledge acquired through astrophysics and electrical physics have allowed a wide use of this type of waves, even for the expansion of their own study, for example, there are currently telescopes capable of detecting electromagnetic waves of different longitudes, allowing astronomers to study objects in space in the various bands of light and even as far as the most powerful telescopes, such as X-ray telescopes, to detect high-energy electromagnetic waves, to study objects such as neutron stars and black holes.

Covering other functionalities, wireless communication technology has been made possible through the use of electromagnetic waves for the transmission of information to through space, thus making possible the existence of radio, television, Wi-Fi and mobile phones, due to the ability to generate networks of telecommunications and data transmission in different bands, as a consequence of the variation in the lengths and frequencies of the waves assigned for each type of artifact. For example, radio waves have longer wavelengths and are used in long-distance communication, such as radio and television. television, while waves of shorter lengths are used in short-distance communication, such as fiber systems optics.

Other applications of this physical phenomenon include the detection of objects and the measurement of distances, as in the case of radars and information systems. satellite navigation such as GPS, which has allowed deepening towards the recognition and characterization of the various layers of our own planet and the elements that compose them, as well as the tectonic plates and their movements, all this through the large-scale use of waves, while in small dimensions, electromagnetism facilitates the study and understanding of the physicochemical properties of matter and changes of their states.

On the other hand, and already in a more humanitarian cause, electromagnetic waves also provide multiple services in favor of health, being used in a great variety of devices, techniques and therapies at a medical level, such as radiotherapy applied to treat some types of cancer, and in itself electromagnetic resonance to obtain increasingly clear and precise images of the interior of the body and organs, allowing the discarding or detection of anomalies caused by various origins, but which, in turn, has also assumed a broad responsibility in the development of the most recent research on the functioning of the brain and mind, which is why it has become one of the uses of this type of waves with the most use in the last years.

References

Hertz, H. (1990). Electromagnetic waves (Vol. 2). Univ. Autonomous of Barcelona.

Munoz, J. b. (2012). Propagation of electromagnetic waves. Open University of Catalonia, 9-21.

Pedraza Ahumada, L. L. (2020). A different look at space: teaching proposal towards radio waves through astronomical observation based on electromagnetic waves.

Temes, J. b. (2001). Electromagnetic waves in communications (No. 100). Univ. Politec. of Catalonia.

Villalba, J. M., Manjón, F., Guirao, A., & Andrés, M. v. (1994). Electromagnetic wave resonances. Spanish Journal of Physics, 1994, vol. 8, p. 33-36.