In mathematics and mathematical physics, potential theory is the study of harmonic functions. The term "potential theory" dates from 19th-century physics when it was realized that the two fundamental forces of nature known at the time, namely gravity and the electrostatic force, could be modeled using functions called the gravitational potential and electrostatic potential, both of which satisfy Poisson's equation—or in the vacuum, Laplace's equation.
In mathematics and mathematical physics, potential theory is the study of harmonic functions. The term "potential theory" dates from 19th-century physics when it was realized that the two fundamental forces of nature known at the time, namely gravity and the electrostatic force, could be modeled using functions called the gravitational potential and electrostatic potential, both of which satisfy Poisson's equation—or in the vacuum, Laplace's equation.
Source: Wikipedia "Potential theory" · CC BY-SA 4.0
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