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| Unit name |
Core Physics A |
| Unit code |
PHYS11100 |
| Credit points |
30 |
| Level of study |
C/4
|
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 4 (weeks 1-24)
|
| Unit director |
Dr. Barnes |
| Open unit status |
Open |
| Pre-requisites |
Normally A-level Physics and A-level Mathematics |
| Co-requisites |
|
| School/department |
School of Physics |
| Faculty |
Faculty of Science |
Description including Unit Aims
Students take three lecture elements: Mechanics, Special Relativity, Properties of Matter; 20 weeks of laboratory work and weekly tutorials in groups of 5. The unit builds on A-level Physics A2 and puts the concepts taught in school on a firm mathematical footing. Students will be brought up to a level of understanding and knowledge that will enable them to continue with studies in these areas in the year 2 Physics programmes.
Aims:
- To introduce a mathematical treatment of basic mechanics.
- To provide a framework for the teaching of vector algebra.
- To give students an overview of linear and rotational mechanics
- To provide a good, non-mathematical background to the modern foundations of Physics
- To provide an introduction to macroscopic Thermodynamics
- To give some pointers toward a microscopic understanding of thermodynamics
- To illustrate the importance and widespread applicability of thermodynamics
- To provide training in basic laboratory practice: measurement, note-taking, error analysis and report writing.
Intended Learning Outcomes
- Students should be able to add, subtract and multiply vectors in three dimensions.
- Students will have a good grasp of Newton's laws of motion for both linear and rotational motion.
- Students should understand and be able to apply concepts of conservation of energy, momentum and angular momentum.
- Students should be able to calculate the moment of inertia of regular bodies.
- Students should be familiar with the Lorentz Transformation equations and be able to use them to solve simple problems.
- Students should understand the concepts of quantization and be able to show when and how it should be applied.
- Students should appreciate the principles behind modern particle physics and be able to solve simple problems involving relativistic collisions.
- Students should be familiar with and able to write down different formulations of the 0th, 1st and 2nd Laws of thermodynamics.
- Students should be familiar with the concept of an equation of state and be able to write down the equation of state of an ideal gas.
- Students should be able to solve simple problems involving heat engines, ideal gas, heat flow and entropy changes.
- Students should be familiar with the correct use of basic laboratory equipment and be able to make reliable measurements and estimates of the errors associated with such measurements.
- Students should be able to make appropriate notes of laboratory experiments.
- Students should be able to write clear formal accounts of their own laboratory work.
Teaching Information
The unit includes 55 lectures, over 100 hours of laboratory work and weekly small group tutorials.
Assessment Information
Weekly formative assessment comes from written and electronic problems, for lecture courses and weekly assessment of laboratory work through the marking of the laboratory notebooks kept by the students and the formal reports they produce. The progress examination also provides formative assessment.
The contribution of each element to the final assessment mark for the unit is shown below. A pass in the unit requires a pass in the laboratory element and a pass in the June written examination.
Tutorial and online Problems 20%
June Examination(2 hours) 50%
Laboratory work 25%
Progress Exam 5%
Reading and References
Tipler and Mosca - Physics for scientists and Engineers - Freeman Worth 2008
