Answer to Question #311489 in Electricity and Magnetism for Chemistry

Question

At any point in space, the electric field E is defined to be in the direction of the electric force on a positively charged particle at that point. Why don’t we similarly define the magnetic field to B to be in the direction of the magnetic force on a moving, positively charged particle?

Answer 1

Answer

According to Maxwell's law the magnetic field can be generated either by current or chaging electric field with time or both.

So the charge first produces electic field then magnetic field is generated by the changing electric field produced by charge which is perpendicular to electric field.

So two cannot be imagined in same direction for the same charged particle.