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Syllabus: Physics 241Introduction to Modern Physics
Professor Marshall Onellion(office) 263-6829
Office hours:
MW: 10am- 1pm, F: 10am- noon, or by appointment
Text: Kenneth Krane, “Modern Physics,” 3rd edition. We will cover the material in most chapters of Krane and also material not in this book.
Class:MWF 8:50-9:40am, Van Hise room 494; Discussion: Friday 12:05-12:55pm, Chamberlin room 2241.
Our textbook will be used for some of the homework problems and some ideas. However, your primary source of ideas will be my lecture notes. This class is not a history lesson; it is meant to teach you what you need for current physics and engineering. There are three new ideas in this class: Quantum Mechanics, Statistical Mechanics and Relativity. We spend seven weeks on Quantum Mechanics, three weeks on Statistical Mechanics and four weeks on Relativity. I next provide a detailed outline of the ideas, followed by examples. On pages 4 & 5 I provide a detailed list of all lectures.
Quantum Mechanics- Weeks 1-7
Ideas: Schrödinger equation and idea of probability; Quantum wells and tunneling; Fermions & Bosons; Commutators, operators and collapse of the wave function; simple harmonic oscillator and rigid rotator.
Examples:
Atoms & Molecules: Hydrogen atom; vibrations and rotations of molecules; atomic spectra; Spin and orbital angular momenta.
Solid: Photoelectric effect; Electronic energy levels & bandgap; heat capacity versus temperature; Thermionic and electric field emission devices; Magnetic moments and some magnetism basics; Superconductivity basics; Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) basics; examples of Nanostructures.
Statistical Mechanics – Weeks 8-10
Ideas: Entropy; Maxwell- Boltzmann statistics; Fermi- Dirac statistics; Bose- Einstein statistics
Examples:
Atoms & Molecules: Distribution of atom/molecule velocities.
Solid: Blackbody radiation; Electrical conductivity in metals; Electronic specific heat; Paramagnetism.
Astrophysics: Light pressure & gravitational collapse in stars.
Relativity – Weeks 11-14
Ideas: Michelson- Morley experiment; Special relativity; Minkowski geometry; Non-Euclidean geometry; Newtonian gravity; General relativity; Schwarzschild solution; Cosmology.
Examples:
Atoms, Solids: Doppler shift, time dilation and length contraction.
Nuclear, Particle, Astrophysics: Hubble red shift; Gravitational lensing; Cosmic Microwave Background; Big Bang; Inflation; Dark Matter; Universe slowing down & speeding up; Dark Energy; Gravitational waves.
Grade algorithm
* Class attendance5%Range: Can be from 100% (perfect attendance) to 0%
Attendance taken each class and discussion meeting.
* (7) Writing assignments10%Due same days as even week homework assignments (weeks 2, 4, 6,…). More details provided below.
* Chapter quizzes5%Quizzes given in first class meeting of each week, including week 1. They encourage reading lecture notes and chapters in advance.
* Homework20%
* Mid-term20%Given in discussion Friday, 10/28 and covers Quantum Mechanics
* Final40%Comprehensive given Tuesday 12/20, 7:45-9:45am in room selected by Registrar.
* Extra Credit (!)10%See below for details.
Writing assignments
You select the journal article, read it and write a one page summary of the ideas and what you learned. The librarian in the Physics Library ( knows of your assignments and is happy to help you select articles. Each article must include at least one topic from the material we just covered. So, for example, the first article must include a topic from weeks 1 & 2, the second article a topic from weeks 3 & 4, and so forth. I will be sending you examples of good and bad ways to write such summaries. The first example will include a checklist of what to make sure is included and what mistakes to avoid. I will be using coarse-mesh scoring, namely:
Perfect = 10/10, good = 8/10, pretty good = 6/10, fair = 4/10, poor = 2/10, terrible = 0/10.
Lecture Notes
Lecture notes will be provided on the course website. I will write lecture notes for each chapter. Each chapter lecture notes will have a shorter first part that you must know and a longer second part that you may benefit in the future from knowing. Feel free to download and copy the lecture notes, or not, as you choose.
Discussion Meetings
These are for homework,writing questions & tips, plus elaboration on the key ideas. Attendance is mandatory, taken, and counts toward your grade.
Homework Assignments
WeekDueProblems
19/16no homework due
*29/231.2, 1.4, 1.6, 1.10, 1.14
39/304.2, 4.4, 4.6, 4.8, 4.10, 4.14, 4.18, 4.32, 4.34, 4.38
*410/73.2, 3.4, 3.6, 3.8, 3.10, 3.12, 3.18, 3.20, 3.30, 3.32
510/145.2, 5.6, 5.10, 5.12, 5.22, 5.24, 5.28, 5.30, 5.36, 5.38
*610/217.4, 7.6, 7.10, 7.14, 7.18, 7.22, 7.24, 7.26, 7.28, 7.32
710/2811.12, 11.14, 11.16, 11.18, 11.20, 11.22, 11.24, 11.26, 11.38, 11.40
*811/411.42, 11.48, 11.50, 11.52, 11.54
911/117.4, 7.6, 7.14, 7.18, 7.20, 7.22, 7.24, 7.26, 7.28, 7.34
*1011/188.2, 8.4, 8.8, 8.12, 8.14, 8.16, 8.20, 8.24
1112/2no homework due
*1212/210.2, 10.6, 10.8, 10.12, 10.16, 10.18, 10.22, 10.26, 10.28, 10.34
1312/92.6, 2.8, 2.12, 2.20, 2.26, 2.30, 2.38, 2.42, 2.54, 2.56
*1412/14no homework due
(*) Writing assignment also due.
Lectures & Discussions Rules
I base the rules below on the research in the most effective way you can use your time in our lecture & discussion meetings. My references include:
The rules are simple. You will not use electronic devices of any sort in our meetings. If you choose to take notes, and I strongly urge you to do so, you will do so with paper and pen/pencil. The reason for these rules is simple- you benefit more from our lecture & discussion meetings if you take notes and do so using paper and pen/pencil. That said, if you have a specific need for an assistive device, please let me know and I will gladly accommodate you.
Quantum Mechanics
This part of the course covers the material present in parts of Krane, Chapters 1, 3-5, 7-9, and 11. Chapter 6, the Rutherford model, is mentioned, but this is a history lesson and not modern physics. I also cover material not in Krane. The goal of this part of the course is for you to have a working knowledge of quantum mechanics and how it is used in modern physics & engineering.
LectureTopic(s)
1 (9/7)Failures of classical physics.
2 (9/9)Heisenberg uncertainty principle. Probability density. Schrödinger equation.
3 (9/12)Steps and barriers. Tunneling.
4 (9/14)Simple harmonic oscillator. Vibrational energy levels.
5 (9/16)Conjugate variables and commutators.
6 (9/19)Rigid rotor molecules. Rotational energy levels.
7 (9/21)Orbital and spin angular momenta
8 (9/23)Fermions and bosons
9 (9/26)Hydrogen atom
10 (9/28)Atomic spectra
11 (9/30)Photoelectric effect
12 (10/3)Thermionic and electric field emission devices
13 (10/5)Electronic energy levels and bandgaps
14 (10/7)Heat capacity
15 (10/10)Magnetic moments
16 (10/12)Paramagnetism
17 (10/14)Magnetic Resonance
18 (10/17)Superconductivity- 1911- 1986
19 (10/19)Superconductivity- 1986- present
20 (10/21)Plasmons and Nanoplasmonics
21 (10/24)Upconversion Nanoparticles
Statistical Mechanics
In this part of the course I cover material in Krane, Chapter 10 and material not in the text. The goal of this part of the course is for you to know there are three types of statistics used in current science & engineering and to see examples of each so you have practice using each.
LectureTopic(s)
22 (10/26)Entropy. Maxwell-Boltzmann statistics
23 (10/28)Fermi-Dirac statistics
24 (10/31)Bose-Einstein statistics
25 (11/2)Kinetic theory of gases
26 (11/4)Blackbody radiation
27 (11/7)Electrical conductivity in metals
28 (11/9)Electronic specific heat
29 (11/11)Gravitational collapse in stars; Electron & neutron degeneracy; white dwarfs and neutron stars
30 (11/14)Bose-Einstein condensate(s)
Relativity
In this part of the course I cover material in Krane, Chapters 2 and 15, plus material not in the textbook. The goal of this part of the course is for you to learn and become comfortable with the notation used in relativity and the new ideas that have emerged since Albert Einstein’s pioneering work in 1905.
LectureTopic(s)
31 (11/16)Michelson-Morley experiment; Aether; Special Relativity postulates
32 (11/18)Special relativity 4-vectors; tensors; metric; Non-Euclidean geometry
33 (11/21)Lorentz transformation in different circumstances
34 (11/23)Time dilation; length contraction; Doppler shift
35 (11/28)Relativistic dynamics I
36 (11/30)Relativistic dynamics II
37 (12/2)Hubble red shift; Gravitational lensing
38 (12/5)Cosmic microwave background; Big Bang theory
39 (12/7)Inflation; Gravitational waves
40 (12/9)Dark matter; Universe slowing down & speeding up
41 (12/12)Dark Energy; current cosmology
42 (12/14)Review for final
Extra Credit
I list below homework assignments for Chapters 12-14 of Krane. If you get a 100% score on them, your overall class score goes up by 10%, if a 90% score then your overall class score increases by 9%, and so on. This is- and I emphasize this- after the grading scale has been established, so you getting a higher grade does not cause any of your classmates to get a lower grade. I provide lecture notes for these chapters but we will not cover the material in class. The grader and I are available to help you with this material and these homework problems. This is a way that you can raise your grade through your own efforts and learn worthwhile physics at the same time. Further, for those of you who may find these topics in Krane useful, such as nuclear engineering, this is a way to work with the grader and myself to insure you are prepared for your next courses.
ChapterProblems
1212.6, 12.8, 12.12, 12.16, 12.22, 12.24,12.26, 12.28, 12.32, 12.36
1313.2, 13.6, 13.8, 13.14, 13.16, 13.18, 13.22, 13.24, 13.28, 13.34
1414.2, 14.4, 14.6, 14.8, 14.10, 14.12, 14.14, 14.26, 14.28, 14.30