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COURSE INFORMATION
TIME: MW
3:20-4:40pm
PLACE: SERIN 133W
HOMEPAGE: http://www.physics.rutgers.edu/ugrad/389/
INSTRUCTOR Prof. Eva Andrei (eandrei-AT-physics.rutgers.edu)
TEACHING ASSISTANT Phil Rechani
(phillipmyinbox@gmail.com)
COURSE OBJECTIVES
The purpose of this course is to acquire hands-on experience
in the experimental aspects of modern physics and
to develop an understanding of the relations between experiment
and theory. You will carry out experiments
which, when first performed, led to seminal discoveries on the
fundamental laws of physics. In the process you will acquire a set of
basic skills essential to becoming a scientist. You will use advanced
laboratory equipment to acquire data that probe the laws of physics at
atomic and sub-atomic scales. This data will
have the inevitable systematic and random errors that obscure the
relations between the macroscopic observables of our sensory experience
and the physical laws that govern the microscopic world of atoms and
nuclei. You will be challenged to learn how each of the experimental
setups works and to master its manipulation so as to obtain the best
possible data. You will learn to carry out data analysis and
error estimation and to interpret the data in light of theory. You will
acquire the skills to produce credible records of scientific data, and
you wil learn
how to disseminate scientific findings through written reports and oral
presentations.
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GUIDELINES -
for detailed information click links
o Class schedule. Students will work on
experiments in groups of three,
carrying out four experiments during the semester. Groups and lab
schedules will be assigned on the first day of class.
o Laboratory
notebook. Obtain your own bound lab notebook. Each student
will be required to keep an individual lab book. Record all data and
all procedures in your own lab book no later than before leaving the
lab each day.
o
Experiment writeups. Obtain the writeup for each experiment from the course
webpage
o Preparing for the
experiment. Download the preparatory questions and writeup. Read the suggested references or find
your own. The preparatory questions often refer to experimental
procedures and apparatus. During the first session familiarize yourself
with the equipment and start answering the preparatory questions.
In your lab book enter a summary of
objectives and procedures.
Submit
your answer set to the TA either in person or by email. If you
hand in to the TA in person, make sure everything is organized and
stapled, with your name on it. The answer set is not to be placed
in the lab book.
You willl
be allowed to start the experiment only after handing in
your answer set to the TA.
o In
the lab. As a courtesy to the next group leave your work area at least as
tidy as you found it. Return reference
material and tools at the end of each lab.
o Lab
report. Each group should submit a lab report to the course
instructor, preferrably by email, for each completed experiment on or before
the due date listed on the course schedule The report should be
written in collaboration with all the lab partners.
o Oral presentation. Following the
fourth experiment each student will
make an oral presentation before the entire class .
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COURSE
POLICIES AND GRADING (gradebook: 387,
389)
Grading: Grades will be determined by class
participation, preparatory questions, notebook, lab reports
and oral presentation.
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Class attendance is mandatory - each unexcused
absence carries a penalty of
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-10%
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Class work
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15%
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Preparatory questions and homework
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20%
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Notebook
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10%
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Lab reports
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30%
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Oral presentation
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25%
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COURSE TEXTBOOKS
Textbook (useful but not mandatory): Experiments in
Modern Physics, by
A.C. Melissinos and J. Napolitano, 2'nd edition
Available for purchase on amazon.
BOOKS available in the Mathematical Science and Physics
Library (Hill center).
- A.C. Melissinos and J.
Napolitano, Experiments in Modern
Physics
- J. R. Taylor, An
Introduction to Error
Analysis
- P. R. Bevington Data
reduction and error analysis for
the
physical sciences
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STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES:
If you have a disability, you must arrange for me to receive
a letter from your College's Disability Concerns Coordinator. A list of
the College Coordinators can be found at:
Disabilities
Coordinators
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