Graduate Courses

The faculty has approval to offer the following courses in the academic years 2019–2020 and 2020–2021; however, not all courses are taught each semester or summer session. Students should consult the Course Schedule to determine which courses and topics will be offered during a particular semester or summer session. The Course Schedule may also reflect changes made to the course inventory after the publication of this catalog.

Physics: PHY

PHY 380L. Plasma Physics I.

Particle drifts, equations for plasmas, magnetohydrodynamics, waves and instabilities in the two-fluid model, Vlasov equation, Landau damping, controlled thermonuclear research, plasma diagnostics. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.

PHY 380M. Plasma Physics II.

Plasma containment, stability theory in fluid models, derivation of Vlasov and Fokker-Planck equations, the dielectric tensor, velocity space and gradient instabilities, Nyquist diagrams. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and Physics 380L or consent of instructor.

PHY 380N. Experimental Physics.

Experimental work to provide exposure to physics research techniques. Eighteen laboratory hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and concurrent enrollment in Physics 390.

PHY 380T. Advanced Study in Physics.

Not open to physics majors. Special topics for physics teachers. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit when the topics vary. Prerequisite: Graduate standing, a bachelor's degree in science or mathematics, and consent of the graduate adviser.

PHY 381C. Computational Physics.

Dynamical and statical descriptions and solutions of many-body, nonlinear physical systems by computation. Theory of computation and applications to various branches of physics. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing; and Physics 385K and 387K, or consent of instructor.

PHY 381M. Methods of Mathematical Physics I.

Same as Computational Science, Engineering, and Mathematics 385M. Theory of analytic functions; linear algebra and vector spaces; orthogonal functions; ordinary differential equations; partial differential equations; Green's functions; complex variables. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Computational Science, Engineering, and Mathematics 385M and Physics 381M may not both be counted. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.

PHY 381N. Methods of Mathematical Physics II.

Same as Computational Science, Engineering, and Mathematics 385N. Continuation of Computational Science, Engineering, and Mathematics 385M and Physics 381M. Topology, functional analysis, approximation methods, group theory, differential manifolds. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Computational Science, Engineering, and Mathematics 385N and Physics 381N may not both be counted. Prerequisite: Graduate standing; and Computational Science, Engineering, and Mathematics 385M or Physics 381M.

PHY 382M. Fluid Mechanics.

Flow of ideal and viscous fluids; introduction to turbulence; boundary layers; sound and shock waves. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and Physics 381M, 385K, and 387K.

PHY 382N. Nonlinear Dynamics.

Basic concepts of evolution and stability, examples of instabilities, low dimensional dynamical systems, chaos, characterization of temporal chaos, pattern formation, Hamiltonian systems. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

PHY 382P. Biophysics I.

The cell, small molecules and chemical kinetics, forces on the molecular scale, proteins, lipids and membranes, biopolymers, neurons and electrical signal transduction, and complex pattern formation in cells and cell aggregates. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

PHY 382Q. Biophysics II.

Advanced biophysics with emphasis on biologically relevant questions addressed with physical approaches. Biopolymer mechanics, protein-nucleic acid interaction, protein structure and dynamics, membrane dynamics, cytoskeletal dynamics, motor proteins, cell shape and motility, cell communication, tissue mechanics. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing; and Physics 382P or consent of instructor.

PHY 382S. Seminar in Nonlinear Dynamics.

Three lecture hours a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

PHY 385K. Classical Mechanics.

Classical and relativistic Hamiltonian mechanics; Hamilton-Jacobi theory; Lagrangian mechanics for continuous media; symmetry principles and conservation laws. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.

PHY 385L. Statistical Mechanics.

Equilibrium statistical mechanics; introduction to nonequilibrium concepts; ensembles; classical and quantum gases; statistical physics of solids. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing, and Physics 385K or consent of instructor.

PHY 385S. Seminar in Statistical Physics.

Topics to be announced. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

PHY 385T. Special Topics in Statistical Physics.

Topics to be announced. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. With consent of the graduate adviser, may be repeated for credit. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

PHY 386K. Physics of Sensors.

Physical principles of acoustic, optical, electromagnetic, radiation, and motion sensors. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

PHY 386N. Technical Seminar.

Physics for applied and industrial purposes. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of the graduate adviser.

PHY 386S. Seminar in Applied Physics.

Topics to be announced. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

PHY 387K. Electromagnetic Theory I.

Electrostatics and magnetostatics; boundary value problems; Maxwell's equations; plane waves; wave guides; diffraction; multipole radiation. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.

PHY 387L. Electromagnetic Theory II.

Magnetohydrodynamics and plasmas; relativity; collisions of charged particles; radiation from moving charges; radiation damping. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and Physics 387K.

PHY 387M. Relativity Theory I.

Tensor calculus; Riemannian geometry; geometry of Minkowski space-time; special relativity theory. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Offered in the fall semester only. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and Physics 387K.

PHY 387N. Relativity Theory II.

General relativity theory; gravitational field equations; weak field approximations; Schwarzschild solution, observable consequences; other topics. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Offered in the spring semester only. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and Physics 387M.

PHY 388M. Graduate Colloquy.

Reviews of current topics in physics research. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.

PHY 388S. Seminar in Teaching Physics.

Topics to be announced. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

PHY 389K. Quantum Mechanics I.

Hilbert space and operators; Schroedinger and Heisenberg equations; solutions for systems in one and three dimensions; theory of spin and orbital angular momentum; the effect of symmetries; approximation techniques; elementary scattering theory. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.

PHY 389L. Quantum Mechanics II.

Perturbation techniques; systems of identical particles; quantum theory of radiation; emission and absorption of photons; selection rules; life times; scattering theory for light and particles, S-matrix; relativistic corrections to electron motion. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and Physics 389K.

PHY 190, 290, 390, 690, 990. Graduate Research.

For each semester hour of credit earned, the equivalent of one lecture hour a week for one semester. May not be counted toward the master's degree in physics. Prerequisite: Graduate standing, and written consent of instructor filed with the graduate adviser.

PHY 391M. Nonlinear Plasma Theory.

Quasi-linear theory, weak turbulence, large amplitude waves, plasma radiation, shock waves, shock structure, computer techniques. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and Physics 380L.

PHY 391S. Seminar in Plasma Physics.

Topics to be announced. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

PHY 391T. Special Subjects in Plasma Physics.

Subjects to be announced. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. With consent of instructor, may be repeated for credit. Prerequisite: Graduate standing, Physics 380L, and consent of instructor.

PHY 391U. Seminar in Plasma Theory.

Current topics in plasma theory. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

PHY 392K. Solid-State Physics I.

Lattice vibrations and thermal properties of solids; band theory of solids; transport properties of metals and semiconductors; optical properties; magnetic properties; magnetic relaxation; superconductivity. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing, Physics 389K, and Physics 375S or the equivalent.

PHY 392L. Solid-State Physics II.

Elementary excitations: phonons, electrons, spin waves; interactions: phonon-phonon, electron-electron, electron-phonon; theory of metals and semiconductors; transport theory; optical properties. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and Physics 392K.

PHY 392N. Many-Body Theory.

Overview of many-body theory; second quantization; Green's functions and Feynman diagrams; finite-temperature, imaginary-time Green's functions; the disordered metal; path integrals; broken symmetries; and local moments. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

PHY 392S. Seminar in Solid-State Physics.

Topics to be announced. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

PHY 392T. Special Topics in Solid-State Physics.

Topics to be announced. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. With consent of instructor, may be repeated for credit. Prerequisite: Graduate standing, Physics 392K, and consent of instructor.

PHY 393S. Seminar in Relativity.

Topics to be announced. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

PHY 393T. Special Topics in Relativity.

Topics to be announced. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. With consent of instructor, may be repeated for credit. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

PHY 394U. Special Topics in Theoretical Physics.

Topics to be announced. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit when the topics vary. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

PHY 395. Survey of Atomic and Molecular Physics.

Spectra of atoms and diatomic molecules; quantum electronics; experimental techniques. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit when the topics vary. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

PHY 395K. Nonlinear Optics and Lasers.

Gaussian beam optics, interaction of electromagnetic radiation with matter, semiclassical laser theory, experimental laser systems, nonlinear optical susceptibilities, harmonic generation, wave mixing, electro-optic and acousto-optic effects, coherent transient effects, optical breakdown, laser-plasma interactions. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing, and either Physics 387K and 389K or consent of instructor.

PHY 395M. Laser Physics.

Continuation of Physics 395K. Advanced atomic physics of various laser systems, optical coherence and diffraction theory, pulse propagation and dispersion effects, advanced laser oscillator and amplifier physics, laser amplifier chain design, and chirped-pulse amplification. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing, Physics 387K, 389K, and 395K, and consent of instructor.

PHY 395S. Seminar in Atomic and Molecular Physics.

Topics to be announced. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

PHY 395T. Special Topics in Atomic and Molecular Physics.

Topics to be announced. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. With consent of instructor, may be repeated for credit. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

PHY 396J. Introduction to Elementary Particle Physics.

Historical introduction to elementary particles, elementary particle dynamics, relativistic kinematics, symmetries, bound states, the Feynman calculus, quantum electrodynamics, electrodynamics of quarks and hadrons, quantum chromodynamics, weak interactions, gauge theories. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing, Physics 389K, and knowledge of special relativity and scattering.

PHY 396K. Quantum Field Theory I.

Quantization of the Klein-Gordon, Dirac, and electromagnetic field theories; theory of interacting fields, perturbation theory, and renormalization. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and Physics 389K.

PHY 396L. Quantum Field Theory II.

Path-integral formalism, massless particles, electrodynamics, nonperturbative methods, one-loop calculations in quantum electrodynamics, general renormalization theory, soft photons, bound statics in quantum electrodynamics. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and Physics 396K.

PHY 396P. String Theory I.

Introduction to string theory and conformal field theory. The free string, conformal invariance and conformal field theory, supersymmetry and string interactions. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing, and Physics 396K or the equivalent or consent of instructor.

PHY 396Q. String Theory II.

Advanced conformal field theory, perturbative string theory and compactification. Introduction to nonperturbative aspects of string theory. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and Physics 396P.

PHY 396S. Seminar in Particle Physics.

Topics to be announced. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. With consent of instructor, any topic may be repeated for credit. May be repeated for credit when the topics vary. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

PHY 396T. Special Topics in Particle Physics.

Topics to be announced. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. With consent of instructor, may be repeated for credit. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

PHY 397K. Nuclear Physics.

Systematics of stable nuclei; nuclear structure; decay of the nucleus; cross sections and reaction mechanisms; the elementary particles. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing, and Physics 389K or consent of instructor.

PHY 397S. Seminar in Nuclear Physics.

Topics to be announced. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

PHY 397T. Special Topics in Nuclear Physics.

Topics to be announced. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. With consent of instructor, may be repeated for credit. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

PHY 197U. Graduate Seminar in Nanoscience.

Various seminar topics in nanoscience. One lecture hour a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.

PHY 698. Thesis.

The equivalent of three lecture hours a week for two semesters. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: For 698A, graduate standing in physics and written consent of the supervising professor filed with the graduate adviser; for 698B, Physics 698A.

PHY 398S. Seminar in High Energy Theory.

Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Physics 396U (Topic: Theory Group Seminar) and 398S may not both be counted. May be repeated for credit. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only.

PHY 398T. Supervised Teaching in Physics.

A review of physics teaching strategies, administrative procedures, and classroom responsibilities. Includes a review and critique of each participant's classroom teaching. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and appointment as a teaching assistant.

PHY 399W, 699W, 999W. Dissertation.

May be repeated for credit. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: Admission to candidacy for the doctoral degree.