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Holgrin t1_j9odu4i wrote

Reply to comment by jmwing in What does it mean for light to be an excitation in the electromagnetic field? by Ethan-Wakefield

>excitations of a pre-existing field

What "pre-existing field" are you refering to? What sources exist to create such a field?

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jmwing t1_j9og6rr wrote

In this case, the electromagnetic field. As I understand field theory, it states that forces exist as fields everywhere through spacetime. Perturbations in that field, where it rises to a non zero value, are interpreted as force carrying particles or bosons. So we could state that the photon is an excitation in the electromagnetic field just as the W and Z bosons are for the weak field.

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Holgrin t1_j9oiqp5 wrote

>In this case, the electromagnetic field

I asked which one?

>Perturbations in that field,

How does this field differ from the fields surrounding charged particles such as electrons and protons? Is this the same field? Are electrons and protons then not also "perturbations?"

If this is an explanation from quantum field theory, how does this description of one single, continuous electromagnetic field differ from the luminiferous aether? And, again, how do we understand the fields surrounding stationary or moving charged particles?

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