On May 31, 5:28*pm, Cecil Moore wrote:
Bruce W. Ellis wrote:
The actual mean drift velocity for electrons at any reasonable curent
is quite low because there are so many of them in the conductor.
However, the electric wave driving them propagates at he speed of
light appropriate for the medium.

The electrons move hardly at all at RF/AC frequencies.
On the average, they tend to oscillate mostly in place.
What travels at the speed of light are the photons
emitted by the oscillating electrons. The electrons
form the equivalent of a "bucket brigade" for the
photonic wave energy.
--
73, Cecil, IEEE, OOTC, *http://www.w5dxp.com

Cecil
Does that mean that a radiator reduces mass with use
because the electrons orbiting around the atom are losing mass?
You are basically stating that an electron in orbit is travelling at
the speed of light
which thus imparts the same velocity to a photon which there fore also
has mass
since it has the same speed as the electron in orbit! Something wrong
there!

And for the other gentleman, what exactly is an electric wave?
Does it stay in place or does it leave the radiator?
Does it have mass such that the radiator gets lighter in use?
It is beginning to appear to me that hams are not sure what creats
radiation
and what constitutes radiation!
Art