Concept:
The intensity \( I \) of electromagnetic radiation from a point source is defined as the power per unit area, \( I = \frac{P}{4\pi r^2} \). The intensity is also related to the electric field amplitude \( E_0 \) by the relation \( I = \frac{1}{2} c \epsilon_0 E_0^2 \). From these two equations, it follows that the amplitude of the electric field \( E_0 \) is proportional to the square root of the power \( P \), as \( E_0^2 \propto P \implies E_0 \propto \sqrt{P} \).
Step 1: Establish the proportional relationship.
Since the distance \( r \) is kept constant for both bulbs, the ratio of the electric field intensities \( E_1 \) and \( E_2 \) depends solely on the power ratio of the bulbs:
$$ \frac{E_1}{E_2} = \sqrt{\frac{P_1}{P_2}} $$
Step 2: Substitute the given power values.
Given \( P_1 = 100 \text{ W} \), \( P_2 = 50 \text{ W} \), and \( E_1 = E \):
$$ \frac{E}{E_2} = \sqrt{\frac{100}{50}} $$
$$ \frac{E}{E_2} = \sqrt{2} $$
Step 3: Solve for \( E_2 \).
$$ E_2 = \frac{E}{\sqrt{2}} $$
This indicates that reducing the power of the source by half results in the electric field amplitude decreasing by a factor of \( \sqrt{2} \).
$$\boxed{E/\sqrt{2}}$$