El Camino College Physics 1D Optics and Modern Physics Spring 2012
Section 1628 meets Mondays and Wednesdays from 12:30 to 1:20 and Fridays from 12:30 to 3:45 in Physics 108.
Instructor: Perry Hacking; Office Planetarium; (310) 660-3593 (x3245); Office Hours: Mondays and Wednesdays 1:30-3:00; Tuesdays and Thursdays 3:30 - 4:00. Although not an official office hour, you can often reach me on Saturdays 1:30-2:30 in Physics 108 or my office - you can chance it or I suggest that you verify it with me in advance. Email: phacking@elcamino.edu
Text: Physics for Scientists and Engineers with Modern Physics, vol. 2, 6th ed, by Serway & Jewett, and also the ECC Physics 1D lab manual.
Prerequisites: Physics 1A with a C-grade or better and Math 191 with a C-grade or better.
Tutor: MESA Center, hours TBA.
Exams: There will be four 50-point exams and a 100 point comprehensive final exam. The exam questions will be similar to the homework questions.
Homework: There will be homework assignments for every chapter of the book that we cover. Homework will be worth 100 points total. No late homework will be accepted. I have assigned the first few homework sets below. NOTE the first one is due the first week of class. Also note that HW set 5 is a difficult one and will require advanced planning.
Homework 1: Lab Manual Problems 171-176. Due Friday, February 17.
Homework 2: Chapter 35 Problems 2, 6, 12, 13, 20, Lab Manual Problems 271-274, 276 Due Wednesday, February 22.
Homework 3: Lab Manual 277, 278, 283, 284 (EXTRA CREDIT - 282 see me for 3 hints). Due Friday, February 24.
Homework 4: Chapter 36, Problems 7, 8, 9, 22, 28, 30, 33, 36, 37, 40. Due Wednesday, Leap Year!
Homework 5: LM: 294, 295, 296, 372, 375, 379, 382, 472, 474, 478 Due Monday, March 5
Homework 6: Chapter 36 46, 47, 48, 50, 51, 53; LM 572. Due Friday, March 9
Homework 7: Chapter 35 Problems 31, 35, 36, 39, 42 LM 280, 281. Due Monday, March 12
Labs: We will perform labs. Your total lab work will be worth 100 points. An extra credit lab will be offered on Saturday, March 24. You are strongly encouraged to do this lab.
Grading: I will total all of your points at the end of the semester to determine your grade. The grade scale is as follows:
each exam for the course
90 - 100 A 450 – 500 A
80 - 89 B 400 - 449 B
65 - 79 C 325 - 399 C
50 - 64 D 250 - 324 D
Students who withdraw after March 9 will have a record of it on their transcript. Those that withdraw after May 11 will receive a letter grade based on the entire semester's requirements.
Preparation: Make certain that you are ahead in your reading, and current on your homework! Homework will be due almost every time we meet (including labs). You will be able to find every topic that we cover in your text and ECC physics 1D manual.
Course Objectives and Student Learning Outcome (SLO): In general, the objectives of this course are to learn the physics optics, wave phenomena, special relativity, and an introduction to general relativity and quantum mechanics. The official course objectives and SLO can be found at: Physics 1D Course Objectives.
About this course: The best way to learn physics is by seeing as many different ways that it can be applied in the real world. That is what we are going to do. Most of the examples that we will use will be simple ones that isolate the concepts that we will be learning about. Of course the real world is more complicated and real world problems often involve many different laws or concepts. The process is the same, however - try to identify the concepts at work in the problem. Before we can tackle the real world, we will start in this course to understand and solve problems that usually involve only one or two concepts, and rarely three or more. Before we are done, we will routinely solve problems that involve multiple concepts.
Advice: This is a very important course for you. I will assume that it shares top priority with your math course in your schedule. If you do not give this course top priority, future physics and related courses will suffer. The Physics 1 series is often thought of as the cornerstone of your college education in any technical field. Make it a strong cornerstone. Even though the homework grade is only worth 20% of the total points, it is probably the most important aspect of this course. Practice, practice, practice. That will be our motto. Homework will be our tool. We will practice a great deal in class also. You can be assured that I will treat this course as your most important one also. I pledge to do my best to make this wonderful course as understandable and interesting as I possibly can. I hope to fill you with the wonder that I have for our physical universe around us.
However, when I stumble and you become confused, it is YOUR responsibility to stop me and ask for clarification or a different explanation or illustration. Silence on your part translates into an assumption on my part that you understand.
Come to class with an active mind ready to learn every time that we meet. Note that we meet at 12:30 so don't show up burned out and hungry. This is not a painting class where you can relax and unwind. I want you to learn some really amazing physics. I require your FULL attention and your mind at top speed. I need fresh brains in my class! Don't skip lunch!
Disabilities: If you have a documented disability and wish to discuss academic accommodations, please contact me as soon as possible.
Here is our schedule - note that Fridays may not always be lab days. Most of your exams will take place on Fridays. Many Fridays will consist entirely of lecture material. I will announce any changes in class.
Week Chapter Subjects Lab
1 35 The Laws of Geometric Optics L-1
2 36 Mirrors, Lenses, and Images L-3 (part I)
3 Instruments L-3 (part II)
4 App A in lab manual Prisms, Dispersion, Aberrations and their Correction L-4
5 App B in manual The Wave Nature of Light, Radiation by Accelerating Charges Exam 1 (based on lectures 1-8)
6 37 Absorption, Scattering, n(l), Interference
7 App E, J in manual, 38 Diffraction, & Polarization Grating spectroscopy lab
8 App K, M in manual Photometry, Fresnel Zones, Holography Extra Credit Lab L-6 (Saturday)
9 39 Spec. Relativity: Dialations and Lorentz xfms Exam 2 (based on lectures 9-18)
10. Hyperbolic Fns, the Velocity Parameter, Boost Matrices
10, cont P, E, 4-vectors, and particle collisions
11 App D in manual Gen. Relativity: curvature, metrics, and the Friedmann equation Start Quantum Physics
12 40 Introduction to Quantum Physics Exam 3 (Relativity)
13 App F, 41 The Schrodinger Equation, particles in boxes, SH Oscillator
14 42, 43 Atoms and Molecules
15 44, 45 Nuclear Structure and Reactions Exam 4
16 46 The Particle Zoo Final Exam