01 / Reading Guide
Reading Guide
Citation
Purcell, E. M., & Morin, D. J. (2013). Electricity and Magnetism (3rd ed.). Cambridge University Press.
Chapter Summary
The third edition runs to about 850 pages: eleven chapters, a section of printed solutions to the problems (pages 586–761), eleven appendices (A–K) and prefaces to all three editions. David Morin revised the textbook that Edward Purcell first published 50 years earlier, and this edition converts it from Gaussian to SI units. The publisher describes a "nontraditional approach" in which magnetism is derived as a relativistic effect, with mathematics introduced alongside the physics it serves and macroscopic phenomena derived from the underlying microscopic physics. The summaries below rest on the chapter titles, their page extents and that description; they do not describe the contents of individual sections.
Chapter 1: Electrostatics: charges and fields
The opening chapter (about 57 pages) covers charge and the electric field. Chapters 2 and 3 continue the electrostatic sequence with the potential and with conductors.
Chapter 2: The electric potential
A chapter of about 66 pages devoted to the electric potential.
Chapter 3: Electric fields around conductors
About 53 pages on electric fields around conductors.
Chapter 4: Electric currents
About 58 pages on electric currents. The publisher lists circuits among the standard topics the book covers.
Chapter 5: The fields of moving charges
A chapter of about 42 pages on the fields produced by moving charges. The publisher says magnetism is derived as a relativistic effect, and the position of this chapter just before "The magnetic field" fits that approach; Appendix G, "A short review of special relativity", is the place to refresh the background.
Chapter 6: The magnetic field
About 65 pages on the magnetic field, one of the longer chapters in the book.
Chapter 7: Electromagnetic induction
About 46 pages on electromagnetic induction.
Chapter 8: Alternating-current circuits
About 42 pages on alternating-current circuits.
Chapter 9: Maxwell's equations and electromagnetic waves
The shortest of the main chapters (about 36 pages) pairs Maxwell's equations with electromagnetic waves.
Chapters 10–11: Electric fields in matter; Magnetic fields in matter
Two chapters of roughly 57 and 63 pages treat electric and magnetic fields in matter, which is where the publisher's statement about deriving macroscopic phenomena from the underlying microscopic physics applies.
Back matter: Solutions and appendices
Pages 586–761 hold the solutions to the problems. The appendices cover differences between SI and Gaussian units, SI units of common quantities, unit conversions, SI and Gaussian formulas, exact relations among the unit systems, curvilinear coordinates, a short review of special relativity, radiation by an accelerated charge, superconductivity, magnetic resonance and helpful formulas.
Key Concepts
Chapters 1–3: Electrostatics
- Charges and fields: the subject of Chapter 1, "Electrostatics: charges and fields".
- Electric potential: Chapter 2 develops it as a separate topic.
- Conductors: Chapter 3 treats electric fields around conductors.
Chapters 4–6: Currents and magnetism
- Electric currents: Chapter 4.
- Fields of moving charges: Chapter 5, which precedes the chapter on the magnetic field.
- The magnetic field: Chapter 6.
Chapters 7–9: Induction, circuits and waves
- Electromagnetic induction: Chapter 7.
- Alternating-current circuits: Chapter 8.
- Maxwell's equations and electromagnetic waves: Chapter 9.
Chapters 10–11 and appendices: Matter and units
- Fields in matter: electric (Chapter 10) and magnetic (Chapter 11).
- SI versus Gaussian units: Appendices A, D and E compare and relate the two systems.
Critical Analysis
Strengths
- A distinctive route to magnetism. The publisher describes magnetism as derived as a relativistic effect. A dedicated chapter on the fields of moving charges (Chapter 5) ahead of "The magnetic field" and a relativity review in Appendix G fit that description.
- Mathematics introduced as needed. The publisher says mathematical concepts are introduced in parallel with the physics topics, so a reader does not need all the vector calculus before starting; the book also includes an appendix on curvilinear coordinates (Appendix F).
- Ample practice with printed help. The publisher lists 592 exercises, 614 illustrations, worked examples and applications at the end of each chapter. Solutions to the problems are printed in the book; H. Henry Stroke's review in Physics Today calls them roughly a quarter of the text and "most welcome", particularly for self-study, and notes the book's many clarifying discussions and chapter-end summaries.
- Unit-system help. Because earlier editions used Gaussian units, five appendices (A–E) explain the differences and give conversions, which helps readers who meet Gaussian formulas in other books and papers.
Limitations
- Waves and radiation are compact. Electromagnetic waves share a single chapter with Maxwell's equations (about 36 pages), and radiation by an accelerated charge, superconductivity and magnetic resonance each receive an appendix of four or five pages. A course that wants a fuller treatment of radiation or of waves may need a more advanced text.
- Length and background. At about 850 pages for eleven chapters, several of them 55–66 pages long, the book is a substantial commitment. The relativistic route to magnetism also assumes some familiarity with special relativity; Appendix G offers a review of eight pages.
- Not a first exposure to physics. The publisher describes the topics as standard introductory ones, but the usual prerequisites (calculus-based mechanics and multivariable calculus) place the book after a first-year physics course rather than in place of one.
Where It Fits in the Course
In the electromagnetism list, Purcell and Morin is the main text for a first serious course in electricity and magnetism. Two books can come before or alongside it: OpenStax's University Physics Volume 2 is a free, calculus-based introductory text whose larger part covers Coulomb's law through electromagnetic waves, and Fleisch's A Student's Guide to Maxwell's Equations is a short guide that explains the four equations one at a time and is a gentle companion for readers who find the field mathematics abstract.
After it, Griffiths's Introduction to Electrodynamics is a comprehensive treatment of electromagnetic theory for advanced undergraduates, and Jackson's Classical Electrodynamics is the rigorous graduate treatment of fields, radiation and charged-particle dynamics. Bittencourt's Fundamentals of Plasma Physics is a specialised advanced text rather than a next step for most readers.
How to Use This Book
The book suits students who have completed a calculus-based introductory physics course and have some multivariable calculus. Start with Chapters 1–3 for electrostatics, then Chapter 4 for currents, and read Appendix G before Chapter 5 if special relativity is unfamiliar.
A practical plan:
- Core: Chapters 1–7 and 9 form the line from charge to Maxwell's equations. Read Chapter 5 even when pressed for time, because the publisher's relativistic approach to magnetism is set up by the fields of moving charges.
- Circuits and matter: Chapter 8 (alternating-current circuits) can be read when circuits are needed; Chapters 10–11 on fields in matter follow once the field theory is in place.
- Appendices: use A–E when comparing with texts in Gaussian units, F when curvilinear coordinates arise, and H–J as short enrichment readings.
- Problems: work the exercises before consulting the printed solutions; use the solutions section for self-study rather than as a first resort. Instructor-only solutions to the exercises are available from the publisher's website.