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I understand that, at the more fundamental physical level, waves are phenomena of Fields. Like electromagnetic waves of the electromagnetic field.

However, I also know that we can have waves in Mediums. Like water waves in ocean water.

So, are those mediums, a kind of field? Is the ocean a field?

I'm a bit confused as to how to properly use both terms in physics.

Qmechanic
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Juan Perez
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    This is a technicality but I would not consider a medium a field. For gravity waves in water (not to be confused with gravitational waves), it is the height of the surface that is a field not water itself. – Mauricio Jul 07 '22 at 16:36
  • possible duplicate: https://physics.stackexchange.com/q/13157/50583 – ACuriousMind Jul 07 '22 at 21:21

2 Answers2

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No.

It is incorrect to say that a medium "is" a field. A medium is often conveniently described by properties that are fields. Like density, pressure, displacement, concentration of certain chemicals etc.

Also note that the description of a medium by a field may be just one among others. For example, you can study the deformation of a solid using its displacement field and the continuum theory of elasticity, while there also is the description in terms of lattice models. The latter would be discrete and not involve a field to describe the deformation of the medium.

kricheli
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Field (physics):

In physics, a field is a physical quantity, represented by a scalar, vector, or tensor, that has a value for each point in space and time.

So yes, indeed, (continuous) distributions of density, pressure, etc. in continuous media are fields. Moreover, in hydrodynamics and elasticity they obey well-known field equations. In condensed matter physics some of these the fields are even quantized - like phonons (vibration quanta), plasmons (quanta of hydrodynamic plasma oscillations), etc.

Roger V.
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