Graduate Courses in Physics

2004-2006 Catalog

The numbering sequence at Old Dominon University places undergraduate courses at the 100, 200, 300, and 400 levels. Coursed that may have graduate as well as undergraduate students enrolled are listed in a dual mode, e.g., 456/556. Graduate students may enroll in the 500, 600, 700 and 800 levels. Master's and doctoral courses are dual-listed at 700/800 levels. Courses marked with + may not be counted for credit in physics graduate programs.

Physics - PHYS

403/503-404/504. Electronic Instrumentation. Lecture 2 hours; laboratory 2 hours; 3 credits each semester. Prerequisite: PHYS 232N or permission of the instructor; 403 is prerequisite to 404. A laboratory-oriented course in which analog circuits in the design of instrumentation systems are covered in 403/503; digital circuits and composite circuits are covered in 404/504. The course emphasizes proper use of the oscilloscope, function generator, DMM, and X-Y recorder in laboratory test and measurement procedures. (offered fall-spring sequence)

405/505+. The Planetarium. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisites: junior standing and an introductory course in astronomy. The course stresses the use of the planetarium as an educational tool in the teaching of astronomy. Production techniques with audio-visual equipment to enhance concepts in astronomy are presented.

406/506+. Observational Astronomy. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: junior standing. Observational techniques in astronomy with emphasis on constellation identification, celestial movements, and telescopic observation. Individualized night observations are required.

408/508. Astronomy for Teachers. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: junior standing. A course in astronomy dealing with stars and stellar systems. Topics will include observational astronomy, the electromagnetic spectrum, relativity, stellar and galactic structures, cosmology, and the search for extraterrestrial intelligence.

414/514. Principles of Physical Instrumentation. Laboratory 6 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: PHYS 413W. Methods for design of experiments using modern physical instrumentation. Included are topics such as analog and digital data acquisition, materials science, vacuum technology, cryogenics measurement techniques, and error and data analysis. (offered fall)

416/516. Introduction to Solid State Physics. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisites: PHYS 352 and MATH 307. Introduction to solid state physics and materials science, with emphasis placed on the applications of each topic to the experimental and analytical techniques. Topics include crystallography, thermal and vibrational properties of crystals and semiconductors, metals and the band theory of solids, superconductivity and the magnetic properties of materials. (offered fall, even numbered years)

420/520. Introductory Computational Physics. Lecture 2 hours; Laboratory 2 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisites: PHYS 232N and MATH 212. Introduction of computational methods and visualization techniques for problem solving in physics.

451/551. Theoretical Mechanics. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisites: PHYS 319 or ME 304 and MATH 312. A mathematical study of the concepts of mechanics. Vector calculus methods are used. Topics include mechanics of a system of particles, Lagrangian mechanics, Hamilton’s canonical equations, and motion of a rigid body.

453/553. Electromagnetic Radiation and Optics. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisites: PHYS 320 or ECE 323 and MATH 312. A course in physical optics developed from Maxwell’s equations. Topics include a mathematical treatment of the phenomena of dipole radiation, scattering, reflection, refraction, diffraction, and an introduction to the techniques of modern optics. (offered fall)

454/554. Thermal and Statistical Physics. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisites: PHYS 319 or ME 304, PHYS 323. A study of the fundamental concepts of thermodynamics, kinetic theory, and statistical mechanics. Topics include the thermodynamics of simple systems, kinetic theory of gases, statistical mechanics of gases and an introduction to quantum statistics. (offered spring)

456/556. Intermediate Quantum Mechanics. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisites: PHYS 323 and 352 or permission of the instructor. A study of the experimental basis of quantum mechanics, basic postulates, solution of the wave equation for simple systems, uncertainty relations, potential barriers, wave packets, angular momentum, symmetry properties of wave functions, Pauli exclusion principle, Dirac notation, perturbation theory, and scattering. (offered fall)

497/597. Special Problems and Research. 1-3 credits each semester. Prerequisite: senior standing. These courses afford the student an opportunity to pursue individual study and research.

601. Mathematical Methods of Physics I. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Mathematical methods and applications necessary for work in theoretical physics.

603. Classical Mechanics. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Particle and rigid body mechanics. Lagrangian and Hamiltonian formulation, Canonical transformation, Hamiltonian-Jacobi theory.

604. Electromagnetic Theory I. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Development of the classical theory of electromagnetism.

621. Quantum Mechanics I. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: PHYS 556. Rigorous development of the quantum theory, perturbation problems and scattering theory.

636. Astrophysics. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: PHYS 556. Theory of radiative equilibrium of stars, formation of stellar spectra, the physics of stellar atmosphere, the internal structure of stars and stellar evolution.

639+-640+. Selected Topics: Honors Workshop in the Physical Sciences. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. This course is designed for the elementary teachers of grades 4, 5, and 6. It is to give teachers a broader coverage of the physical sciences to enrich their teaching. Emphasis on demonstration techniques and visual aids with inexpensive material. Special investigative projects will be assigned to each student.

641+-642+. Contemporary Physics I and II. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: 641 is prerequisite to 642. The 641 course is designed for science teachers at the junior and high school level. 642 is continuation of 641.

643+. Concepts and Research in Physics. Lecture 1 hour; laboratory 9 hours; 4 credits. This course for science teachers at all levels offers the opportunity to associate with a research team in a physics laboratory. In addition, teachers attend classes on topics in physical science and develop teaching aids for use in their own classrooms.

695. Selected Topics in Pure and Applied Physics. 1-3 credits. Prerequisite: permission of the instructor.

696. Individual Study and Methods of Research. 3 credits. Prerequisite: permission of the instructor. Introduction to methods of research through guided individual study of one or more advanced problems.

697. Seminar. 1 credit.

698. Research. 3 credits. Master’s thesis.

699. Research. 3 credits.

701/801. Mathematical Methods of Physics II. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: PHYS 601. Further mathematical methods and applications used in theoretical physics.

704/804. Electromagnetic Theory II. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: PHYS 604. Further development of the classical theory of electromagnetism.

707/807. Statistical Mechanics. Lecture 3 hours; 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisites: PHYS 554 and 603. Topics in classical and quantum statistical mechanics.

708/808. Applied Physics Laboratory I. Laboratory 6 hours; 3 credits. Experimental techniques encountered in research activities involving skills in basic shop procedures, vacuum and glass technology and digital interface methods.

709/809. Applied Physics Laboratory II. Laboratory 6 hours; 3 credits. Experimental techniques encountered in research activities such as a study of various transducers used in laser, optical, plasma and nuclear physics.

711/811. Computational Physics. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Studies of high level computer languages. Computational techniques used in physics. Numerical techniques for differential and integral problems. Algebraic processing languages. Introduction to scientific visualization techniques.

712/812. Applied Physics. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Lectures on contemporary problems in applied physics.

721/821. Quantum Mechanics II. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: PHYS 621. Hilbert space formulation of quantum mechanics; stationary and time dependent perturbation theory; variational methods; spin; many-particle systems. Boson and Fermi particles.

722/822. Nuclear Physics. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: PHYS 621. Nuclear force, models of nuclear structure and reactions. Intermediate energy hadron and lepton scattering.

723/823. Introduction to Particle Physics. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: PHYS 722/822. Introduction to hadron spectroscopy and the parton model. Discrete and continous symmetries and application to particle physics. Introduction to the quark model and application to static properties. Klein-Gordon and Dirac equations, quantum electrodynamics and Feynman rules applied to weak interactions, the parton model and deep inelastic scattering.

724/824. Solid State Physics I. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: PHYS 621. Theoretical study of atomic and nuclear spectroscopy with emphasis on hyperfine interactions in solids. Superconductivity, magnetism and the magnetic properties of materials. Introduction to x-ray, electron and neutron diffraction techniques.

726/826. Group Theory and Quantum Mechanics. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: PHYS 621. Theoretical description of the physical properties of solids, with emphasis on mechanical, thermal, electrical and magnetic properties.

727/827. Atomic Physics. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: permission of the instructor. Irreducible tensor methods. Radiative excitation and ionization processes. Atom-atom scattering. Time-evolution of atomic observables in external fields. Multiple channel quantum defect theory and complex atomic and molecular spectra.

731/831. Seminar in Applied Physics I. Lecture 1 hour; 1 credit. Written and oral communication skills as applied to physics. Data display techniques for scientific reports.

732/832. Seminar in Applied Physics II. Lecture 1 hour; 1 credit. Methodology of scientific information retrieval. Organization of information in selected research areas.

733/833. Seminar in Applied Physics III. Lecture 1 hour; 1 credit. Report and proposal writing including the submission by the student of a proposal for the Ph.D. dissertation.

737/837. Surface Physics. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: permission of the instructor. Introduction to the nature and properties of solid surfaces, liquid and gas interactions with surfaces, physical absorption and chemical absorption.

739+-740+. Selected Topics: Advanced Workshop in Physical Sciences. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. This course is designed for elementary teachers of grades 4, 5 and 6. Topics from various fields of physics will be covered. Emphasis will be placed on preparing teachers to present inservice instruction in physical sciences.

741+-742+. Physical Science for Elementary Teachers I and II. Lecture 1 hour; laboratory 3 hours; discussion 1 hour; 3 credits. Prerequisite: PHYS 740. This course is designed for elementary teachers. Topics include various principles of physics and how to present them to students. Emphasis will be placed on preparing these teachers to give in-service instruction upon completion of the course.

750/850. Quantum Electronics. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisites: PHYS 604 and 621. Theoretical development of the quantization of the electromagnetic field and the interaction of fields with matter. Photon coherence, general theory of the laser and topics in nonlinear optics are developed. Applications are selected from topics of current research interest.

763/863. Plasma Physics. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: permission of the instructor. Development of plasma theory, including collision processes, orbit theory, hydrodynamic theory and solar relationships.

770/870. General Relativity and Cosmology. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: PHYS 704/804. Review of special relativity and certain applications. Elements of tensor analysis; the gravitational field equations. The Schwarzschild and Kerr blackhole solutions; the linearized field equations and gravitational waves. Descriptive cosmology and models; recent topics.

797. Research. 1-6 credits each semester.

825. Solid State Physics II. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: PHYS 724/824. Phonons, plasmons, magnons, and polarons; introduction to many body techniques; superconductivity; Bloch functions, Brillouin zones, electron dynamics; energy bands and Fermi surfaces; correlation functions and neutron diffraction.

841. Many-Body Physics. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisites: PHYS 621, 704/804, 707/807. Review of second quantization and statistical mechanics. The Green’s function method of perturbation theory at zero and finite temperatures for fermion and boson systems. Selected applications in nuclear and condensed matter physics.

842. Advanced Quantum Mechanics. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisites: PHYS 603, 704, 721. Introduction to relativistic quantum mechanics; symmetries in relativistic wave equations; solutions to relativistic wave equations for bound states and scattering processes; classical field theory and role of symmetries in construction of conserved currents; introduction to second quantization of fields.

Advanced Topics Courses. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: permission of the instructor. These courses provide students with knowledge of methods and background necessary for pursuit of research. Subject matter is variable.

890. Hadron Physics with Chromodynamics. Lecture 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: at least introductory courses in elementary particle phenomenology and field theory. This course describes the constituent quark model picture of hadronic structure and its conceptual basis. It begins with a general introduction to QCD, approaching the confinement regime via a Hamiltonian lattice formulation of the theory. The course will close with a discussion of some implications of the constituent quark model for the NN interaction.

898. Doctoral Research. Credit varies, 1-12 credits each semester.

899. Dissertation. Credit varies, 1-9 credits.