Optics, Electromagnetism, and Circuits

Upon completion of the course, successful students will be able to:

• use the mathematical equation for a traveling wave to determine the wave speed and direction of the wave’s propagation;
• describe the Doppler effect and calculate the frequency or wavelength of sound heard by an observer due to the motion the source or observer;
• apply the principle of superposition to solve problems involving the interference of mechanical waves (for example, standing waves);
• solve problems that involve reflection, refraction, and total internal reflection of light;
• determine the characteristics of an image formed by a system of converging and diverging lenses by applying the thin lens equation or by using ray tracing;
• solve problems that involve interference of light (for example, interferometers, thin films, single-slits, double-slits, and diffraction gratings);
• describe and sketch the interference pattern produced by a “real” double-slit (including the effects of double-slit interference and single slit diffraction);
• calculate the electric field from continuous charge distributions in geometries such as: along the vertical axis of a ring or disc of charge, at the center of an arc or circle of charge, a finite line of charge, an infinite line of charge, and an infinite sheet of charge;
• apply Gauss’ law to determine the magnitude of the electric field in problems that have spherical, cylindrical, or planar symmetry;
• determine the magnitude and direction of the electric field from the electric potential and the electric force from the electric potential energy;
• solve problems that involve electric and magnetic forces acting on charged particles (for example, the Hall effect);
• calculate the net force and net torque on a current loop placed in a magnetic field;
• apply the Biot-Savart law to determine the magnitude and direction of the magnetic field in geometries such as: a long current carrying wire, at the centre of a circular arc of current, or at any point along the central axis of a current carrying circular loop;
• apply Ampere’s law to determine the magnetic field from a current-carrying wire or current-carrying sheet;
• apply Faraday’s law and Lenz’s law to solve problems that involve electromagnetic induction;
• explain the behavior and function of resistors, capacitors, and inductors in DC and AC circuits;
• apply Kirchoff’s laws to analyze single-loop and multi-loop circuits that contain one or more voltage sources and resistors, capacitors, and inductors;
• determine the currents and potential differences at all points in RC and RL circuits as a function of time;
• determine the current as a function of time in AC circuits where the load is purely resistive, capacitive, or inductive;
• interpret a phasor diagram used to represent the time varying emf, potential differences, and currents in a series AC RLC circuit;
• define and calculate the impedance and phase constant in a series AC RLC circuit;
• determine the current and potential difference across each element as a function of time in a series AC RLC circuit;
• explain the motivation behind Maxwell's correction to Ampere's law;
• qualitatively explain how Maxwell's equations leads to electromagnetic radiation;
• state the relationships between momentum, energy, frequency, and wavelength for a photon;
• define and calculate the de Broglie wavelength of a massive particle;
• state and discuss the precision and accuracy of measurements;
• determine the uncertainty on a quantity calculated from measured values by propagating uncertainty through a calculation;
• present data using computer generated plots (including error bars when applicable), and determine physical quantities using linear and non-linear regressions;
• discuss the outcome of an experiment in order to provide appropriate context for the results;
• communicate details of an experiment (for example, the objective, data, calculations, discussion, and conclusion) in a written report.