Tensor theory of electromagnetic radiometry

A theory of electromagnetic radiometry is built on the premise that the electromagnetic generalised radiance has a tensor structure, represented by the electric, magnetic and mixed generalised radiance tensors as fundamental quantities. They allow overcoming the limitations due to the scalar generalised radiances, proposed for characterizing stationary random electromagnetic sources. Furthermore, they provide a unified framework for completely describing the energy flux and the states of spatial coherence and polarization of random electromagnetic fields. So, the fundamental quantities of both the scalar generalised radiometry and the classical radiometry or photometry are deduced as particular cases of the tensor theory. A new procedure of analysis of (second-order) correlations, subject to the accomplishment of conservation laws, is also introduced. It reveals that (1) the primary sources of the measurable radiometric quantities associated to the random electromagnetic fields in any states of spatial coherence and polarization are the individual radiators of the radiant source (the correlations of the electric and magnetic field vectors only modulate the contributions given by those radiators) and (2) there are two physical mechanisms for the transport of measurable radiometric quantities by the electromagnetic field, i.e. the propagation of the contributions from individual radiators and their redistribution over each wavefront on propagation. The term redistribution refers to the transfer of portions of the measurable quantity over the wavefronts on propagation, without change its total value over each wavefront. In this context, a physical meaning is given to the negative values of the generalised radiance, which gives new insight about the Poynting's theory of energy transport. (C) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.