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Physics
Physics | Courses
| Physics & Astronomy
Faculty
(See Astronomy following
this section.)
1126 Lederle GRC Towers
Degrees: Bachelor of Science
Bachelor of Arts
Contact: Professor Edward
Chang
Office: 223 Hasbrouck
Phone: 545-0586
Head of Department: Professor John Donoghue;
Undergraduate Program Director: Professor Chang. Professors Byron,
Cook, Dubach, Engelsberg, Gerace, Golowich, Guyer, Hallock, Hertzbach,
Hicks, Holstein, Kofler, Kreisler, Langley, Machta, Mestre, Mullin, Penchina,
Pichanick, Rabin, Sastry, Swift, Wong; Associate Professors Candela, Kumar,
Miskimen, Prokof'ev, Traschen, Walker;
Assistant Professors Blaylock, Menon, Tuominen, Willocq; Lecturers
Foltz, Kastor; Research Assistant Professors Dufresne, Leonard.
The Field
Physics is the basic science
that underlies all of the physical sciences and influences most of the
biological sciences. It treats matter, energy, and interactions at the
fundamental level. Its subdisciplines include acoustics, optics, mechanics,
thermodynamics, atomic physics, nuclear physics, condensed-matter physics,
low-temperature physics, elementary-particle physics, plasma physics,
astrophysics, biophysics, geophysics, relativity, and nonlinear dynamics.
Physics is a laboratory-based science. Experiments reveal the observable
properties of the natural world, and theories provide an understanding
of the observations. Mathematics serves as the essential language for
the analysis of experiment and theory.
The work physicists do can be classified as basic or
applied. The scientist doing basic research typically works in a university
or national laboratory, and is interested in learning about the fundamental
processes of nature. The applied physicist wants to develop uses for knowledge
through technological advances, and is employed most often in an industrial
setting.
Physicists usually choose to be either experimentalists
or theorists. The experimenter uses apparatuses designed to test hypotheses
and theories, to make unexpected discoveries of new phenomena, or to develop
new applications of ideas. The theorist uses that data to develop new explanations, hypotheses, or theories. Occasionally
a particularly broad scientist can act as both experimentalist and theorist.
Physicists may also use the computer to simulate a physical system and
generate data from observations of the simulation in order to gain new
insights into real systems.
Physics is a constantly changing science with aspects
which sometimes cross over into other disciplines. Often a field becomes
very exciting and physicists pursue it vigorously. After the fundamental
principles are established, a particular field may be given over to another
discipline for further exploration. Thus, much of the physics of yesterday
is now regarded as part of chemistry or engineering. It is interesting
to conjecture how the physics of today may evolve in the decades to come.
The Major
The
Department of Physics and Astronomy has
the faculty and facilities to provide unusually strong programs for students
wishing to major in physics. The department offers a variety of courses
and tracks; many options are available at the introductory level, in the
core upper-division courses, and in the advanced electives.
The three available tracks, Professional, Applied,
and General, enable students to tailor the major to suit their goals.
Whether the student plans to continue physics in graduate school,
seek employment immediately after the B.S. degree, study other
fields, or pursue other alternatives, an appropriate set of courses is
available.
Courses for majors generally have low enrollments and
so students are treated as individuals. The student-faculty ratio in the
department is optimal; it is easy for a student to interact directly with
the faculty and get extra help and advice.
Most faculty members are engaged in basic experimental
or theoretical research in one of the following areas: atomic physics,
condensed-matter physics, elementary-particle physics, nuclear physics,
biophysics, polymer physics, low-temperature physics, astrophysics, and
nonlinear dynamics. Excellent facilities have been supplied by the University
and are supported by several million dollars annually in federal research
funds. This activity makes it possible to bring the frontiers of physics
to the classroom and enables undergraduates to participate in original
research activities. These opportunities can be found through independent
study, the departmental honors program, or student employment during the
summer or academic year.
The department has an active chapter of the Society
of Physics Students (SPS), which allows the student to interact socially
with student colleagues and faculty as well as to carry out interesting
extracurricular physics activities. For example, there is a Five College
Undergraduate Physics Colloquium that brings several nationally known
speakers to the area each year. Traditionally, SPS members and faculty
eat together in the dining commons before attending the evening lecture.
PHYSIC 171-174 and 283/285 are the recommended introductory
courses and labs for students considering a major in physics. (Under certain
circumstances, and with approval of an adviser, PHYSIC 151-154 may be
substituted.)
Students intending to go on to graduate school in physics
or closely related fields or simply desiring a complete set of courses
in physics should follow the Professional Track. Those intending to take
jobs immediately after receiving the B.S. degree, or who will go to graduate
school in other areas, can choose one of two other tracks, Applied Track
or General Track.
The latter two tracks include fewer Physics courses,
but require that the student take a coherent program of courses (a concentration)
from other departments together with our own. The details of the concentration
must be worked out with an adviser from the department. The Applied Track
is for majors interested in other technical subjects, for example, computing
or engineering, while the General Track allows a concentration in non-technical
areas, for example, finance, teaching, and science writing.
Core Courses (required for all tracks):
171/3 Physics I with Lab
172/4 Physics II with Lab
283 Physics III
284 Modern Physics I
285 Sophomore Lab I
286 Sophomore Lab II
381 Writing in Physics
MATH 131 Calculus I
MATH 132 Calculus II
MATH 233 Multivariate Calculus
Professional Track (B.S.):
282 Techniques of Theoretical
Physics
290S Introduction to Computational
Physics
421 Mechanics
422 Electricity and Magnetism
423 Statistical Physics
424 Modern Physics II
440 Intermediate Lab I
441 Intermediate Lab II
500-level lab or
ASTRON 337
500-level course or
ASTRON 451 or 452
MATH 431 Differential Equations
Applied Track (B.S.):
Two of 421, 422, 423 and
424
440 Intermediate Lab I
441 or a 500-level
lab
Concentration in scientific/technical
field(s), minimum 18 credits, developed in consultation with Physics adviser.
General Track (B.A.):
One of 421, 422, 423, or
424
440 or 500-level lab
Concentration in non-departmental
field(s), minimum 18 credits, developed in consultation with Physics adviser.
A more detailed description of the programs for majors
in both physics and astronomy is contained in the Handbook for Physics
and Astronomy Majors. Copies may be obtained upon request from the
Undergraduate Program Director.
Career Opportunities
Physics provides an excellent
background for a wide variety of careers in science, and in science-related
and technological fields. A survey of the department's graduates has yielded
the following information. About half of those responding are in science-related
industrial jobs; half of these had received advanced degrees (M.S. or
Ph.D.) before or during employment. About one-third of the respondents
are presently in graduate school or in academic positions following graduate
school. One-tenth of those surveyed are in the medical professions, and
another one-tenth are employed in other fields. Graduates are in a wide
variety of professions. Some examples include a chemical engineer, a supervisor
in charge of inspection techniques for nuclear power plants, a systems
engineer in ship design, and a graduate student in oceanography. Several
graduates are M.D.s or medical students. One of our former majors is now
a Professor of Physics at the University of Massachusetts.
Industrial research and development is an appealing
career opportunity; for this goal a highly laboratory-oriented physics
curriculum is recommended. A master's degree increases the number of opportunities
in industry. For teaching at the secondary school level one needs also
to complete the education courses necessary for certification. These courses
can easily be fitted into a Physics major's program, especially the General
Track. For teaching at the community college level a master's degree is
usually the minimum requirement; at the college or university level (and
for many research jobs in government or industrial laboratories) a Ph.D.
is required.
Many students take courses in other sciences, in mathematics,
or in engineering, in addition to their physics curriculum, to strengthen
their industrial "marketability" or to prepare for graduate school in
programs such as astronomy, biophysics, meteorology, geophysics, oceanography,
computer science, polymer science, etc. The Applied and General tracks
are particularly useful in this regard.
The undergraduate program of a physics major is frequently
taken by individuals planning to apply to medical or dental school. Some
medical professions, such as nuclear medicine and health physics, are
directly related to physics. Physics can also be a reasonable preparation
for law school. Patent law, for example, requires a technical background.
Few individuals with bachelor's or advanced degrees
in physics are unemployed or seriously underemployed. A physics education
provides a broad background of fundamental principles and develops skills
in solving complex problems, enabling effective contribution in many kinds
of traditional and novel activities.
Material relating to job opportunities and graduate
schools is kept up to date by the senior adviser.
The Minor
To satisfy the requirements
for a minor in physics the student must complete 15 credits at the 200
level or above.
Courses for Nonmajors
The department offers a
variety of courses for students with varied interests and needs. Introductory
courses intended mainly for nonscience majors are PHYSIC 100, 114, 115,
116, 117, 120, 139, and 190B. (114 is of special interest to Communication
Disorders majors, 115 to Music majors.) PHYSIC 131-134 are for life-science
majors; 151-154 are for majors in engineering, chemistry, and other physical
sciences.
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Faculty
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