A simple derivation of the electromagnetic field of an arbitrarily moving charge
arXiv:0810.4246 · doi:10.1119/1.3020758
Abstract
The expression for the electromagnetic field of a charge moving along an arbitrary trajectory is obtained in a direct, elegant, and Lorentz invariant manner without resorting to more complicated procedures such as differentiation of the Lienard-Wiechert potentials. The derivation uses arguments based on Lorentz invariance and a physically transparent expression originally due to J.J.Thomson for the field of a charge that experiences an impulsive acceleration.
The following article has been accepted by the American Journal of Physics. After it is published, it will be found at http://scitation.aip.org/ajp; 12 pages, 1 figure