Download Physics 120b – Quantum Physics and Beyond – Spring 2017

Physics 120b – Quantum Physics and Beyond – Spring 2017
Course Homepage – see course info on Canvas
or go directly to the course homepage at http://star.physics.yale.edu/~harris/physics_120/
Course Syllabus
Students for this Course – Students in this course are non-science majors who have a desire to
read, learn and discuss exciting concepts in modern physics today and have had either a physics
course in High School or an introductory college physics course.
General Course Description – This course will be held in a seminar-type format. The class
enrollment will be limited to 20 students, to facilitate discussion of the material. Please
complete the Quantum Questionnaire (located in the files for this course in Canvas) and
email it to me ([email protected]) or hand in during the first class. The course is intended
to provide a forum for learning and discussion of exciting topics in modern physics from
quantum physics, Einstein’s special and general relativity, gravity waves, Big Bang cosmology,
astrophysics, atomic/nuclear/particle physics, the Higgs Boson, extra dimensions and string
theory. See a full list of topics and the class schedule in the course outline below. Prerequisites
for this course are a substantial physics course in High School or an Introductory College
Physics Course at any level and a desire to learn and discuss exciting new concepts in modernday physics. There is no mathematics requirement. This course fulfills requirements for a
science credit, but is not a QR course.
Goals – The goals of this course are 1) to introduce to the student current topics in modern
physics from quantum physics through today’s new concepts, and 2) to provide a forum for the
student to develop skills in reading, understanding, formulating a perspective and discussing
thought-provoking new topics in modern science. This is done through a combination of
required reading, in-class discussion of concepts and active student participation. This course
should provide the student with a broader and deeper understanding of modern physics and the
contemporary world. It will also instill confidence in the student to be able to read, understand
and discuss new concepts in science today at a basic level, allowing for a more profound basis
for understanding and future decisions about science and new technologies.
Approach – The classes will be a mixture of discussion and lecture with an emphasis on topics
in the reading that students identify as difficult, complicated, or of specific interest for
discussion. The course will emphasize assigned reading material, identification of issues before
class and participation in class discussion. The normal class meeting time will be Mondays from
4 – 5:50 PM. An optional discussion session is held weekly on Wednesday from 4 – 4:50 PM for
questions, answers, and discussion. The Wednesday session is optional with the exception of
possibly one or two Wednesdays (announced ahead of time) where attendance will be required.
Homework: Weekly reading assignments. The goal of the reading assignments is to familiarize
the student with new concepts, to prepare for class discussion, and to identify issues that need
emphasis and/or discussion in class. The reading assignments are completed by answering
several questions online that are due by 10 PM on the night before class. It is essential to answer
the online questions in order to receive credit for the reading assignment. The responses to these
questions will be graded and returned in a timely manner. Late submissions will not be accepted.
The reading assignment and questions will be posted the week before class. There may be a few
collaborative homework assignments during the term.
Examinations & Grading: Grading will be based on the reading/homework assignments (total
20% of grade), 2 in-class quizzes (total 20% of grade), a mid-term examination (20% of grade), a
final paper (25% of grade), and participation in class (total 15% of grade).
Required Books & Reading: There is no textbook for this course. Students will be required to
purchase 2 popular paperback books on modern physics from which reading assignments will be
made. There will also be specialized reading assignments, typically Scientific American style
articles or other articles available on the web. The books for the course will be
“The Moment of Creation” – James S. Trefil
[This book is currently unavailable from the publisher through the Yale Bookstore. However,
there are many inexpensive copies available on EBay and Amazon.]
“In Search of Schroedinger’s Cat” – John Gribbin
[This book is available in paperback at Barnes & Noble and likewise online from the web.]
Some copies are on 24-hour reserve at the Bass Library.
Classes meet – Mondays, 4:00 – 5:50 PM, in location to be announced.
There is also an optional* 50-minute question, answer and discussion session on Wednesdays
(4:00-4:50 PM).
(*attendance on one or two Wednesdays may be required, and will be announced ahead of time)
Professor – John Harris (432-6106, [email protected], Wright Lab West, Room 311)
Graduate Teaching Assistant – Salvatore Aiola ([email protected], Wright Lab West,
Room 301)
Office hours – Will be available before class and usually for an hour after class (except when
dashing to the airport), and of course by appointment (at other times).
Physics 120b – Quantum Physics and Beyond – Spring 2017
Class Date
General Course Outline listed with “General Topics” & Concepts Covered
Subject to modification & updating (with notice)
1. Fri-Jan 20 “The Big Picture”
Course Overview – An Introduction:
The Beginning (the Big Bang), the Four Forces Split Up
Inflation & Expansion of the Universe
The Building Blocks of Nature, Quark Soup & Matter Formation
A Few More Things You Will Learn:
Quantum Mechanics & It’s Implications
Black Holes, Gravity & Gravity Waves, the Higgs, String Theory..
2. Mon-Jan 23 “The Big Bang & Universal Expansion”
Some Basics
Doppler Effect (Red Shift)
Making Matter from Energy and Vice Versa (E = mc2)
The Standard Model of Physics
The Early Universe and Big Bang Cosmology
The Cosmic Microwave Background
3. Mon-Jan 30 “After the Big Bang, Part 1 – Picking up the Pieces”
What Have We Learned from the Big Bang?
Problems with the Big Bang
Resolving Issues of the Big Bang
Gravity - the Force We Think We Know
What we can and cannot see, feel or imagine
The force we want to get to know better
Symmetries and Symmetry Breaking
The Inflationary Universe (quantum tunneling) & the Big Bang
Multiple Phases (“Freezings”)
4. Mon-Feb 6
“After the Big Bang, Part 2 – New Discoveries”
What have we learned from the Cosmic Microwave Background?
Remnants of early times
The energy accounting problem of the Universe
Dark Matter and Dark Energy
Gravity - the Force We Think We Know
What we can and cannot see, feel or imagine
The force we want to get to know better
The Gravity Wave Experiment (LIGO)
Discovery of Gravity Waves & Implications
5. Mon-Feb 13 “Quantum Mechanics is the Answer”
The Impossible Atom (and Its Nucleus)
A New Theory is Needed – Let there be light (quanta)!
Bohr’s Model with Quantum Orbits
Particle/Wave Duality & Wave Functions
The Standard Model of Physics
6. Mon-Feb 20 “Quantum Mechanics Part 2 – Exclusion and Uncertainty”
Spin and the Exclusion Principle
The Uncertainty Principle
Chance and Uncertainty
The Schrödinger Equation
6. Mon-Feb 27 “Quantum Mechanics, Part 3”
Schroedinger vs Einstein –
Are we just pawns in the big scheme of things?
Free will vs predetermination?
Does the Light Go Through the Left or Right Slit? Both?
Interpretations, Puzzles and Continuing Debate
8. Mon-Mar 6 “More Quantum Mechanics”
Schroedinger vs Einstein –
Are we just pawns in the big scheme of things?
Free will vs predetermination?
Does the Light Go Through the Left or Right Slit? Both?
Interpretations, Puzzles and Continuing Debate
Mon-Mar 14
Mon-Mar 21
NO CLASS (SPRING BREAK)
NO CLASS (SPRING BREAK)
9. Mon-Mar 27 “Einstein’s Relativity – Traveling at the Cosmic Speed Limit”
and “Quantum Entanglement, a Threat to Special Relativity?”
Relative Motion (Galileo vs. Einstein)
Moving Clocks and Rulers
Weird Space-time Effects
Quantum Entanglement and Special Relativity
10. Mon-Apr 3 “Intro to General Relativity”
A Revelation (Difference with Classical View)
E = mc2
Black Holes and the Fabric of the Universe
Space-time Effects
11. Mon-Apr 10 “Quantum Mechanics versus Gravity – Bambi Meets Godzilla!”
A Conflict of Cosmic Proportions
Is Gravity just an Illusion?
12. Mon-Apr 17 “String Theory to the Rescue – Untangling the Problems”
A Theory of Everything, Unseen Dimensions in Our World,
Quarks, Particles and Universes
All the Forces Re-Unified,
The Clash of the Universes
13. Mon-Apr 24 “Extra Dimensions & the Higgs – the Last Pieces of the Puzzle?”
The Higgs Particle - creating mass
Supersymmetric Particles - the new kids on the block?
Are there Extra Large Dimensions?
Is there a Grand Unified Theory of Everything?
“Where Do We Go from Here?”
The Fate of the Universe
Black Holes are Everywhere
The Far Out Future
Thursday-May 4 - Final paper due