PHYS 2140
Physics for Students of Science and Engineering
Part II: Electrons and Photons
Spring
Semester 2009
CLASS HOMEPAGE: http://astro1.panet.utoledo.edu/~cet/Physics-2140.htm
Or go to www.physics.utoledo.edu and click on “course links” and then “Physics
2140”.
TEXT: Fundamentals of Physics, Halliday,
Resnick, &
Homework system and electronic text: WileyPlus.
INSTRUCTOR: Constantine E. Theodosiou
Email: cet@physics.utoledo.edu
Phone: (419) 530-2247
Office: MH 4015
Hours: MW 1:00-4:00 or by appointment
PREREQUISITES:
Official prerequisite: Physics 2130 (Mechanics, Heat, Sound)
Recommended prerequisite: Math 1860 (Calculus II)
CLASS TIMES: Class meets MWRF from 12:00 to 12:50 AM for lectures, exams, plus problem sessions on Tuesdays and lab at various times. You must register for a Tuesday discussion group, plus a lab section. Lectures will be MWF in MH1005; there will be an exam or quiz ALMOST every Thursday in DC1019 (check syllabus). The final exam will be on 5/4/2009 in MH1005.
SUBJECT MATTER: The full sequence PHYS2130-2140 provides an introduction to the fundamental concepts of physics. The material for PHYS2140 is contained in Volume 2 of the text, which is one of the most widely used physics textbooks in the world. The division of topics in the text is roughly (a) electromagnetic fields, (b) optics, and (c) atomic and nuclear physics. Of these textbook sections (a) is the largest, because so much of modern science and engineering (from computer chips to lasers and solar cells) is based on the use of electromagnetic fields and waves. The propagation of these fields in space and time is governed by the four equations known as Maxwell's Equations. However this division of topics is becoming outdated. From a fundamental point of view, the subjects of the course are the structure of matter and the laws of nature. In a nutshell the world is made of protons, neutron, electrons and photons; these interact with each other by means of the gravitational, electromagnetic, and nuclear interactions. The principal goal of this course will be to achieve an understanding of these concepts and their applications. Classroom examples and assigned problems will be chosen to illustrate the general ideas and the ways they are applied in practice, not to provide a catalog of results or methods.
STUDY ADVICE: It is very important to keep up to date in this course, doing the reading and the assigned problems on time. When doing the homework problems, after reading the chapter, try to avoid looking at the book if possible. Your first thought should not be "What formula can I find that gives the thing they are asking for?" Instead, ask yourself: (1) "What basic principle applies to this problem?" and (2) "What equation does that principle give me in this particular case?" Once you have written down the one or two basic equations that apply to your problem, the solution then follows from straightforward mathematics, usually just elementary algebra. The goal is to learn the general principles of physics and how to apply them in a variety of situations, not a list of standard procedures for solving a certain set of problems, because that list will be out of date tomorrow. If you master the general principles and the methods of applying them, you can in the future go beyond textbook examples to solve whatever problems you encounter.
GRADING: The course grade will be made up of
the following components, weighted as shown.
Final exam 20%
Midterm exams (3) 30%
Quizzes (7) 25%
Homework 15%
Laboratory 10% (But you must pass the
lab to pass the course.)
Grades are based on absolute standards, not on a "curve": there are no predetermined percentages of A's or of F's. Our goal is that everyone earns an A! Note that the current University Catalog defines C as the lowest "acceptable" grade, even though grades from D- through C- are passing. The target grading scale for PHYS2140 for Spring 2009 will be as follows:
90-100 A
85-89 A-
80-84 B+
75-79 B
70-74 B-
65-69 C+
60-64 C
55-59 C-
50-54 D
0-49 F
PHYSICS 2140
C. E.
Theodosiou
Spring Semester 2009
There
are two required items:
1. The lab manual (Laboratory Experiments for Physics 2140).
2. The online homework
system
You must have
access to the online homework system, WileyPlus.
Again, if you took PHYS 2130 in Fall 2008, then you
should already have this access. You
need only go to http://edugen.wiley.com/edugen/class/cls86827/ and register for the new
semester, Physics 2140. Our homework
assignments must be submitted there and they will count toward your course
grade. This system is designed especially to accompany our textbook,
which is "Fundamentals of Physics" by Halliday,
Resnick and
There are three ways you can purchase access to WileyPlus if you don’t already have it:
(1) You can
buy it on the Internet directly from John Wiley and Sons publishers at their
website, http://egradeplus.wiley.com. (You click on
"purchase a registration code", then "physics", then "Halliday", then enter
(2) You can probably buy it at the UT bookstore.
(3) You
can buy "Fundamentals of Physics" Volume 2 by Halliday, Resnick and
NOTES:
Instructions for WileyPlus registration will be given in lecture.
For the textbook alone the ISBN is 0-470-04474-8
For the textbook with WileyPlus included the ISBN is 0-471-75801-3.
The WileyPlus URL is http://edugen.wiley.com/edugen/class/cls86827/
PHYSICS 2140 SPRING 2009
PLANNED SCHEDULE OF THURSDAY QUIZZES AND EXAMS
ALL QUIZZES AND EXAMS IN DC 1019
Final Exam in MH1005
January 22 QUIZ: Chs. 21, 22
January 28 QUIZ: Chs. 23, 24
February 04 EXAM: Chs.
21-25 "Electrostatics"
February 12 QUIZ: Chs.
26, 27
February 26 QUIZ: Chs.
30, 31
March 06 EXAM: Chs. 26-32 "Electrodynamics"
March 24 QUIZ:
March 31 QUIZ:
April 07 EXAM: Chs. 33-37
April 23 QUIZ: Chs. 40, 41
FINAL EXAM: Monday
4 May 2009 ; 12:30 pm-2:30 pm
Comprehensive
final examination, Chapters 21-44