1998 Physics 133a Course Information

 

General Physics: Waves, Optics, and Modern Physics

Instructor:  Ed Blucher
                   HEP 305
                   702-7486
                   blucher@hep.uchicago.edu

Office hours: to be announced

Secretary: Kathy Visak, HEP 309, 702-7486

Course Coordinator: Stuart Gazes, KPTC 205, 702-7760

Lab Instructor: Dietrich Muller

Textbook: Serway, Physics for Scientists and Engineers, Vols. 1 and 2
 


The course will consist of lectures, discussion sessions, and laboratories. The lectures will be held Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 9:30-10:20 in KPTC 115. Discussion sessions will be held every Tuesday from 7:00 - 7:50 beginning on April 7. Two 1/2 hour quizzes will be given during the discussion sessions.

Seven laboratory exercises are required for this course. The schedule will be posted on the Physics 133 bulletin board in KPTC 101. You will need a copy of the laboratory manual for Physics 123/133/143, which is available at the bookstore, as well as a bound notebook (with duplicate sheets) for recording your work in the lab.

Please check the course bulletin board to confirm your lab section assignment. If your name is missing or highlighted, you should go to Instructional Services (KPTC 205) as soon as possible to check your lab assignment. All changes in either course registration or lab section must be made through the instructional services office. If you anticipate missing a lab at any time during the quarter, contact Charlotte Coles (2-7019) ASAP to see if other arrangements can be made.

Homework problems will be assigned each Wednesday and are due at the beginning of class on the following Wednesday. Homework solutions will be posted after class on Wednesdays, so late homework cannot be accepted.

The course grade will be based on your performance on exams, quizzes, homework, and labs. The relative weights of these items will be approximately:

Final Exam (2 hours)                35%            8 - 10, June 12
Midterm (1 hour)                      20%            in class, May 6 (tentatively)
2 quizzes (1/2 hour)                     5%            in discussion section
Homework                                 20%
Labs                                            20%
 
 
 

Schedule
 
 
Week Topic Chapters Lab
1 Mechanical Waves 16,18
2 Sound 17,18
3 Light 35 I.Wave Motion and Sound
4 Geometrical Optics 36 II. Interference
5 Interference 37 III. Geometrical Optics
6 Diffraction 38 VII. Radioactive Decay
7 Origins of Quantum Theory 40 IV,V. Diffraction
8 Origins of Quantum Theory 40,41 VI. Polarization
9 Quantum Mechanics 41 VIII. Photoelectric Effect
10 Review
 

E. Blucher (blucher@hep.uchicago.edu)