face Lecture

5 min.

Guide to Professional Typography in Physics

Contemporary Challenges 2022 (4 years)

typography

This is really a handout, which gives students guidelines on how to type up physics content.

group Small Group Activity

30 min.

Time Dependence for a Quantum Particle on a Ring

Theoretical Mechanics (6 years)

central forces quantum mechanics eigenstates eigenvalues angular momentum time dependence hermitian operators probability degeneracy quantum measurements

Quantum Ring Sequence

Students calculate probabilities for energy, angular momentum, and position as a function of time for an initial state that is a linear combination of energy/angular momentum eigenstates for a particle confined to a ring written in bra-ket notation. This activity helps students build an understanding of when they can expect a quantity to depend on time and to give them more practice moving between representations.

group Small Group Activity

30 min.

Travelling wave solution

Contemporary Challenges 2022 (4 years)

travelling wave

Students work in a small group to write down an equation for a travelling wave.

group Small Group Activity

30 min.

Wavefunctions on a Quantum Ring

Central Forces 2023 (2 years)

group Small Group Activity

30 min.

Magnetic Vector Potential Due to a Spinning Charged Ring

Static Fields 2022 (5 years)

compare and contrast mathematica magnetic vector potential magnetic fields vector field symmetry

Power Series Sequence (E&M)

Ring Cycle Sequence

Students work in groups of three to use the superposition principle \[\vec{A}(\vec{r}) =\frac{\mu_0}{4\pi}\int\frac{\vec{J}(\vec{r}^{\,\prime})}{\vert \vec{r}-\vec{r}^{\,\prime}\vert}\, d\tau^{\prime}\] to find an integral expression for the magnetic vector potential, \(\vec{A}(\vec{r})\), due to a spinning ring of charge.

In an optional extension, students find a series expansion for \(\vec{A}(\vec{r})\) either on the axis or in the plane of the ring, for either small or large values of the relevant geometric variable. Add an extra half hour or more to the time estimate for the optional extension.

face Lecture

120 min.

Thermal radiation and Planck distribution

Thermal and Statistical Physics 2020

Planck distribution blackbody radiation photon statistical mechanics

These notes from the fourth week of Thermal and Statistical Physics cover blackbody radiation and the Planck distribution. They include a number of small group activities.