Module Outlines
Here are brief outlines of all the modules that may be taken by current 1st year physics and physics and business studies students.
Term 1
|
This module looks at dimensional analysis, matter and waves. Often the qualitative features of systems can be understood (at least partially) by thinking about which quantities in a problem are allowed to depend on each other on dimensional grounds. Loosely speaking this is the requirement that "apples can only equal apples". Examples we will look at include the size of an atom, the length scale on which a theory of gravity has to take account of quantum effects and the speed of a wave in a shallow channel. We will also study the concept of heat. Studying heat transfers and how they can lead to useful work is the basis of thermodynamics. It is intuitively obvious that not all heat can be turned into work and, hence, some other quantity is needed. This is the quantity called entropy and actually controls how much work can be done by a heat engine. Even though the results are universal, the simplest way to introduce this topic is via the ideal gas, whose properties we will discuss and derive in some detail.
The second half of the module introduces the language and concepts used to describe waves. Waves are time-dependent variations about some some time-independent (often equilibrium) state. For example, they can be variations in pressure (sound waves), variations in electric and magnetic fields (light waves) or variations in the height of water above the sea-bed (water waves). They carry energy, momentum and information and much of their behaviour is similar whatever their nature. We will revise the relation between the wavelength, frequency and velocity and the definition of the amplitude and phase of a wave. The module will also cover phenomena like the Doppler effect (this is the effect that the frequency of a wave changes as a function of the relative velocity of the source and observer), the reflection and transmission of waves at boundaries and some elementary ideas about diffraction and interference patterns.
LECTURER: Neil Wilson
|
By 1905, there was a successful theory (Newton's laws) describing the motion of massive bodies and there was a successful theory of light waves (Maxwell's equations of electromagnetism). But the two theories are inconsistent: in mechanics objects only move relative to each other, whereas light appears to move relative to nothing at all (the vacuum). Physicists (including Maxwell himself) had therefore assumed that there had to be some background 'ether', through which light propagated. The problem was that all attempts to detect this ether had failed.
Einstein realised that there was nothing wrong with Maxwell's equations and that there was no need for an ether. Newtonian mechanics itself was the problem. He proposed that the laws of classical mechanics had to be consistent with just two postulates, namely that the speed of light is a constant and that all frames of reference are equivalent. These postulates forced Einstein to reject previous ideas of space and time and led directly to the special theory of relativity.
In this module, we will study Newtonian mechanics emphasizing the conservation laws inherent in the theory. These have a wider domain of applicability than classical mechanics (for example they also apply in quantum mechanics). We will also look at the classical mechanics of oscillations and of rotating bodies. We will then explain why the failure to find the ether was such an important experimental result and explain how Einstein constructed his theory of special relativity. The module will cover some of the consequences of the theory for classical mechanics and some of the counter-intuitive predictions it makes, including: the relation between mass and energy, length-contraction, time-dilation and the twin paradox.
LECTURER: Tom Marsh
|
All scientists use mathematics to state the basic laws and to analyze quantitatively and rigorously their consequences. The module introduces the concepts and techniques which will be assumed by future modules. These include: complex numbers, functions of a continuous real variable, integration, functions of more than one variable and multiple integration.
LECTURER: Julie Staunton & Steven Brown
|
The laboratory introduces you to experimental science. There are experiments in six areas: i) The measurement of fundamental constants including h, c and e/m for an electron; ii) Wave phenomena; iii) Electricity and Magnetism, iv) Matter, v) Geometrical Optics and vi) Astronomy. The experiments can help give a different and more 'tangible' perspective on material treated theoretically in lectures. They also illustrate the importance of correct handling of data and the estimation of errors, and provide experience in using a range of equipment. You will also begin to learn the 'art' of writing scientific reports.
ORGANISER: Tom Hase
|
This is a composite module made of 2 components; physics problems (6 CATS) and five worksheets (6 CATS).
Problem solving forms a vital part of the learning process and therefore each lecturer issues a set of problems on their module which you are expected to make serious attempts to solve. To encourage you a subset of these problems will be marked for credit. All problems will be discussed in the weekly Examples Classes.
ORGANISER: Michael Pounds
Term 2
The Mathematics for Physicists, Electricity & Magnetism, Physics Laboratory and Key Skills for Physics modules continue from term 1.
|
This module is largely concerned with the great developments in electricity and magnetism which took place during the nineteenth century. The origins and properties of electric and magnetic fields in free space and in materials are tested in some detail and all the basic levels up to, but not including, Maxwell's equations are considered. In addition the module deals with both d.c. and a.c. circuit theory including the use of complex vector impedance.
LECTURER: Erwin Verwichte
|
This module introduces the Python programming language. It is quick to learn and encourages good programming style. Python is an interpreted language which makes it flexible and easy to share. However it also allows easy interfacing with modules which have been compiled from C or Fortran sources. It is widely used throughout physics and there are many downloadable free-to-user codes available. The module will also look at visualisation of data
LECTURERS: Yorck Ramachers and Richard West
|
The elementary constituents of matter are classified into three generations of quarks and leptons (electrons and neutrinos), which interact with each other through the electromagnetic, the weak and the strong forces. An account of how to classify the elementary particles and their interactions and a description of some of the experimental tools used to probe their properties will be the subject of this introductory module.
The module will start by discussing the relationship between conservation laws and the symmetry of the families of elementary particles. Understanding this relationship turns out to be the key to understanding how elementary particles behave. We will look at which quantities are conserved by which interactions and how this allows us to interpret simple reactions between particles. We will discuss how particles are studied experimentally and describe the operation of some standard pieces of equipment including cathode ray tubes, mass spectrometers and particle accelerators. Finally we will look how elementary particles interact with matter. One example we will look at is that of neutrinos in cosmic rays and their interaction with the earth's atmosphere.
LECTURER: Sinead Farrington
|
The Universe contains a bewildering variety of objects, from black-holes, red giants and white dwarfs to brown dwarfs, gamma-ray bursts and globular clusters, to name but a few. The module will introduce this zoo, and, above all, show how, from the application of physics, we have come to know their distances, sizes, masses and natures. The module will start from the Sun and planets and end with the Universe as a whole.
LECTURER: Pier-Emmanuel Tremblay
Term 3
|
These lectures begin by showing how classical physics is unable to explain some of the properties of light, electrons and atoms. (Theories in physics which make no reference to quantum theory are usually called classical theories.) They then deal with some of the key contributions to the development of quantum physics including those of: Planck, who first suggested that the energy in a light wave comes in discrete units or 'quanta'; Einstein, whose theory of the photoelectric effect implied a 'duality' between particles and waves; Bohr, who suggested a theory of the atom that assumed that not only energy but also angular momentum was quantised; and Schrödinger who wrote down the first wave-equations to describe matter.
LECTURER: Oleg Petrenko
|
Electronic instrumentation is widely used in virtually all areas of experimental physics. Whilst it is not essential for all experimental physicists to know how, for example, to make a low noise amplifier, it is extremely useful for them to have some basic knowledge of electronics. In this workshop (and the one next year) you will be introduced to some of the basic electronics which is used by physicists.
ORGANISER: Andy Howes and Bill Murray
[ Top of Document ]