On a Mechanical Representation of Electric, Magnetic and Galvanic Forces, by William Thomson: a commented reading

Abstract

We present and comment the homonimous article originally published by William Thomson, in 1847, in which the author explores the analogy between the estates of deformation in an elastic solid and the configurations of Faraday's lines of force. In this article Thomson has introduced for the first time the magnetic potential vector, associated in this context with rotational deformations in the solid. We present as well, the historical context in which Thomson's original paper has been conceived.

Keywords:
elastic solid; luminiferous aether; line of force; mechanical analogue