•  Electric field: Coulomb's law, superposition principle, electric field and electrostatic potential, field patterns and equipotentials, Gauss' law, capacitance, conductors and insulators, analogy to gravity

•  Magnetic field: vector product, Lorentz force, Ampere's Law, electric motors, magnetic field patterns, magnetic induction (Faraday's law), dynamo, mutual and self inductance, transformers

•  Electric circuits: Ohm's law and resistance.

Learning & teaching methods

Assessment methods

Weekly course work will be set and assessed in the normal way, but only the best ‘n-2’ attempts will contribute to the final coursework mark. Here n = the number of course work items issued during that Semester. As an example, if you are set 10 sets of course work across a Semester, the best 8 of those  will be counted.

-   In an instance where a student may miss submitting one or two sets of course work, those sets will not be counted. Students will however, still be required to submit Self Certification forms on time for all excused absences, as you may ultimately end up missing 3+ sets of course work through illness, for example. The submitted Self Certification forms may be considered as evidence for potential Special Considerations requests.

-   In the event that a third (or higher) set of course work is missed, students will be required to go through the Special Considerations procedures in order to request mitigation for that set. Please note that documentary evidence will normally be required before these can be considered.

Referral Method: See notes below

By examination, the final mark will be calculated both with and without the coursework assessment mark carried forward, and the higher result taken.

The course begins with a brief introduction (shared with an introduction to the Maths Module) in the first week; weeks 2 and 3 are dedicated to a short course in Data Analysis. For the nine weeks of experiments that then complete the semester, the class is divided into 3 groups (X, Y, and Z), each of which is further divided into 3 sub-groups. Each sub-group cycles through the following 3 sets of experiments: 

• Linked experiments, in which a particular subject is explored via an extended set of experiments;
• Stand-alone experiments, in which specific topics related to the first year syllabus are explored experimentally. Each stand-alone experiment is expected to be completed within a single 4-hour session;
• Mini-projects, which give students an opportunity to develop their creativity by tackling a novel problem with little prior instruction.

To prepare for the 'linked' experiments, Lab Prelim classes are sometimes held on Thursday afternoons.

Learning & teaching methods

Assessment methods

No more than 4 laboratory sessions may normally be omitted for a mark to be returned for the course.

Late Submissions: Unless explicitly approved by the Faculty Special Considerations Board late submissions are not permitted for this module.

Referral Method: There is no referral opportunity for this syllabus in same academic year

Classical mechanics

Newton’s laws of motion                                                    

Conservative forces and potentials                                      

Conservation of Energy and momentum       

Projectiles

Circular motion                                                                   

Angular momentum                                                            

Newton’s law of gravitation

Oscillations

Harmonic Oscillator – equation of motion – and solutions     

Examples of oscillatory motion                                            

Damping                            

Q-factors    

Relativity

Postulates of Special Relativity                                            

Michelson- Morley experiment                                             

Simultaneity, Lorentz-Fitzgerald contraction, time dilation    

Lorentz transformations                                                      

Relativistic Doppler Effect                                                   

Relativistic transformation of velocities                                

Relativistic momentum and kinetic energy

E=mc^2 and application

Learning & teaching methods

Assessment methods

Weekly course work will be set and assessed in the normal way, but only the best ‘n-2’ attempts will contribute to the final coursework mark. Here n is the number of course work items issued during that Semester. As an example, if you are set 10 sets of course work across a Semester, the best 8 of those will be counted.

In an instance where a student may miss submitting one or two sets of course work, those sets will not be counted. Students will, however, still be required to submit Self Certification forms on time for all excused absences, as you may ultimately end up missing 3+ sets of course work through illness, for example. The submitted Self Certification forms may be considered as evidence for potential Special Considerations requests.

In the event that a third (or higher) set of course work is missed, students will be required to go through the Special Considerations procedures in order to request mitigation for that set. Please note that documentary evidence will normally be required before these can be considered.

Referral Method: See notes below

By examination, the final mark will be calculated both with and without the coursework assessment mark carried forward, and the higher result taken.

Atoms and molecules Kinetic theory model of the pressure of an ideal gas Boltzmann factor; definition of absolute temperature Equation of state of an ideal gas Internal energy and the classical equipartition theorem; heat capacity Thermal equilibrium and thermal radiation Thermal conduction, diffusion, viscosity; the mean free path Interatomic forces Young’ modulus and bulk modulus Thermal expansivity 1st Law of Thermodynamics Work, heat and internal energy

o       Reversible and irreversible processes

Calculation of reversible work and heat transfer Ideal gases; isothermal, isochoric and isobaric processes Specific heat capacities CP and CV Heat engines, heat pumps and refrigerators 2nd Law of Thermodynamics Alternative equivalent statements of the 2nd Law Efficiency of heat engines; Carnot’s Theorem The concept of entropy from thermodynamic and statistical viewpoints Irreversible processes; the principle of increase of entropy Calculation of entropy changes Direction of spontaneous processes Thermodynamic potentials and the concept of free energy

Learning & teaching methods

Assessment methods

Weekly course work will be set and assessed in the normal way, but only the best ‘n-2’ attempts will contribute to the final coursework mark. Here n is the number of course work items issued during that Semester. As an example, if you are set 10 sets of course work across a Semester, the best 8 of those will be counted.In an instance where a student may miss submitting one or two sets of course work, those sets will not be counted. Students will however, still be required to submit Self Certification forms on time for all excused absences, as you may ultimately end up missing 3+ sets of course work through illness, for example. The submitted Self Certification forms may be considered as evidence for potential Special Considerations requests.In the event that a third (or higher) set of course work is missed, students will be required to go through the Special Considerations procedures in order to request mitigation for that set. Please note that documentary evidence will normally be required before these can be considered.

Referral Method: See notes below

By examination, the final mark will be calculated both with and without the coursework assessment mark carried forward, and the higher result taken.

Basics of wave motion. Rays and images: Huygens' construction and Fermat's principle, rays and propagation matrices. Geometrical optics: mirrors, lenses, simple optical systemes (magnifier, telescope, microscope). Dispersion and polarisation: prisms, rainbows, polarisation, polarizers, birefringence. Wave phenomena: superposition and interference, diffraction; slits, gratings and interferometers. Quanta and wave-particle duality: photon energy and momentum, de Broglie waves, electron diffraction, wavepackets and uncertainty, quantum wavefunction.

Learning & teaching methods

Assessment methods

Weekly course work will be set and assessed in the normal way, but only the best ‘n-2’ attempts will contribute to the final coursework mark. Here n is the number of course work items issued during that Semester. As an example, if you are set 10 sets of course work across a Semester, the best 8 of those will be counted.

In an instance where a student may miss submitting one or two sets of course work, those sets will not be counted. Students will however, still be required to submit Self Certification forms on time for all excused absences, as you may ultimately end up missing 3+ sets of course work through illness, for example. The submitted Self Certification forms may be considered as evidence for potential Special Considerations requests.

In the event that a third (or higher) set of course work is missed, students will be required to go through the Special Considerations procedures in order to request mitigation for that set. Please note that documentary evidence will normally be required before these can be considered.

Referral Method: See notes below

By examination, the final mark will be calculated both with and without the coursework assessment mark carried forward, and the higher result taken.

The aim of this course is to provide students with a background in nanotechnology and its applications in biomedical and physical sciences by focusing on selected research topics within these areas.  This will provide students with a basic knowledge and grounding in cutting edge research being undertaken within this field. 

This is an interdisciplinary course provided by the Schools of Chemistry (HE3) and Physics (HE4).

Lecture Content

•  Introduction to nanotechnology:  Moore’s law, silicon microfabrication techniques such as photolithography/electron beam lithography and their advantages and limitations, importance of nanotechnology and its potential impacts, historical milestones in nanotechnology, pre-requisites to make transition into nanotechnology era, nanotechnology products.

•  Colloidal nanoparticles: Metal nanoparticles, semiconductor nanoparticles, metal oxide nanoparticles, fundamentals of nucleation, influence of ligands in the crystal growth and colloids stabilization, synthesis of anisotropic nanocrystals.

•  Spectroscopic characteristics of nanoparticles, Raman spectroscopy and surface enchanced raman spectroscopy.

•  Self-assembly of nanomaterials: Layer by Layer assembly, block copolymers, self-assembled monolayers, ionic self-assembly, DNA based self-assembly.  Self-assembly of inorganic nanospheres and anisotropic particles, suplerlattices, tip to tip assembly.

•  Scanning Probe Microscopies: Operating principle of Scanning Tunnelling Microscope (STM), tunnelling through a rectangular 1-D barrier with definition of tunnelling probability, modes of operation (constant current and constant height imaging), advantages and disadvantages of STM, STM imaging of metals and semiconductor surfaces with examples, tunnelling spectroscopy, quantum corral as an example for particle in a 2-D circular box.

•  Atomic Force Microscope (AFM): operating principle, different techniques such as contact, tapping, lateral and phase-sensitive mode and their strengths and weaknesses, limitations of current probe design and how these can be overcome by carbon nanotube (CNT) modified probes, fabrication methods of CNT probes and their application with examples.

•  Coulomb blockade effect, Transport properties in nanostructures

•  Electron microscopies: Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM): operating principle, strengths and weaknesses of each technique, application to the characterisation of nanostructured materials as an example.

•  Carbon nanotubes: discovery of nanotubes, types of carbon nanotubes, fabrication methods, carbon nanotube FET, STM studies on carbon nanotubes, mechanical, physical and chemical properties with examples.

•  Quantum dots, wells and wires: Definition, fabrication, physical properties

Learning & teaching methods

Assessment methods

Referral Method: By examination

Principles of Least Action Calculus of variation: the Euler-Lagrange equations Fermat's Principle of least time: light in vacuum and in media Lagrangian dynamics and examples First integrals Special Relativity Postulates Lorentz transformations as generalized rotations, 4-vectors and index conventions Proper time and definitions of rel. μu, au, pu and derivation of  E = mc2 Eqns of relativistic dynamics and 4-momentum conservation Examples - Compton effect, Doppler effect, particle decay Electromagnetism Maxwell's equations in differential form Wave equations in free space Potential, Vector Potential and Laplace's equation Gauge transformations 4-vector current, 4-vector potential and Fµvand their Lorentz transformations Relativistic formulation of Maxwell's equations. Aspects of Quantum Mechanics Momentum space wave functions Completeness and orthogonality Klein-Gordon equation, interpretation of negative energy states 

Learning & teaching methods

Assessment methods

All 3 sheets count for the purposes of assessment, and mitigation for missed modules requires students to make a request to the Special Considerations Board in the usual way.

Referral Method: See notes below

By examination, the final mark will be calculated both with and without the coursework assessment mark carried forward, and the higher result taken.

•  general principles of wave propagation; derivation and solution of wave equations

•  transverse waves; travelling, standing and harmonic solutions; initial conditions

•  linearity, interference, superposition and the Huygens construction for wave propagation

•  Fourier series and transforms; the convolution theorem

•  wave packets, dispersion and phase and group velocities

•  diffraction: single slit, double slit, grating and general Fraunhofer results

•  energy and momentum transport in wave motions

•  continuity conditions and interfaces

•  longitudinal waves; waves in various physical systems

•  Absorption, skin depth

Learning & teaching methods

Assessment methods

Weekly course work will be set and assessed in the normal way, but only the best ‘n-2’ attempts will contribute to the final coursework mark. Here n is the number of course work items issued during that Semester. As an example, if you are set 10 sets of course work across a Semester, the best 8 of those will be counted.

In an instance where a student may miss submitting one or two sets of course work, those sets will not be counted. Students will, however, still be required to submit Self Certification forms on time for all excused absences, as you may ultimately end up missing 3+ sets of course work through illness, for example. The submitted Self Certification forms may be considered as evidence for potential Special Considerations requests.

In the event that a third (or higher) set of course work is missed, students will be required to go through the Special Considerations procedures in order to request mitigation for that set. Please note that documentary evidence will normally be required before these can be considered.

Referral Method: See notes below

By examination, the final mark will be calculated both with and without the coursework assessment mark carried forward, and the higher result taken.

The course will consist of Laboratory and Computing sections. In the Laboratory section of the course students will perform and record a selection of experiments from the list below and make a short presentation on one of the experiments.

The Computing section will cover basic ideas in programming and applications to physics covering functions, arrays, series and sums, graph plotting, numerical integration, random numbers, data fitting and differential equations. 

Learning & teaching methods

Assessment methods

For the Laboratory part of the course, each experiment will be assessed in the following way.  The preparation before the start of each experiment, including answers to set prelim questions and the understanding of the relevant, background physics will count for 15% of the final mark for the practical.  The remaining 85% of the mark will come from the assessment of the quality of work, data presentation and analysis. Lab books have to be submitted on time for marking; no late submissions will be accepted and the practical will get a mark of zero. Students have to arrive punctually for the lab sessions; the attendence list is taken down at 10:15 am and students arriving after that will not be allowed to start a practical and will receive zero marks for this experiment.                   

Referral: Students must get at least 40% mark in all three parts (Teaching Lab, Computing Module and Conference).  Failure to meet this target without good cause will mean that the student will not have referral rights, and will have to register as a part time student (with part time fees) in the next academic year.  There are no referrals or deferrals for this module in the Summer Supplementary Examination period. If you fail in this module (or are deferred), the normal referral (deferral) procedure is to take the module again in the following academic year as an internal student. You will not pass the corresponding Part of your degree programme until you pass this core module

For the COMPUTING MODULE referral is possible by mean of a special one-day session during the summer break. Sections 1-8 will be marked and contribute to the average determining the final mark.  Files have to be submitted within deadlines. No late submissions will be accepted.  

Referral Method: See notes below

• Scientific computation: Languages for scientific computation, getting answers right and fast, recurrence relations, computer exercise: Fourier series.

•  Monte Carlo and random numbers: Monte Carlo simulations, generating random numbers, computer exercise: Buffon, random flights, random number generation.

• Numerical integration: Trapezium rule and improvements, multidimensional integrals, computer exercise: Gaussian integration, random flights.

• Finite differencing: Approximations to differentials, matrix calculations, eigenvalues, computer exercise: diffusion, harmonic oscillator, Heisenberg model.

• Differential equations: Principles of numerical solution and stability, quantum mechanics, computer exercises: hanging chain, Morse potential, harmonic oscillator.

• Signal processing: High and low pass filters, Fourier analysis, computer exercise: digital filter, Fourier transform.

Learning & teaching methods

Assessment methods

Referral Method: By set coursework assignment(s)