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Phys 4C Light and Modern Physics - 2020
Spring
Course syllabus: please read
carefully.
Instructor: Professor
Ringwald
E-mail: ringwald[at]csufresno.edu and
replace [at] with @
|
Phone: (559) 278-8426
Also: (559) 278-2371
|
Office: Room 11 of the J-wing of McLane Hall.
(This is east of the large McLane 161 lecture
hall.)
Office hours (between January 21 and May 7): I am sorry, but
because of the coronavirus pandemic, I must suspend office hours for the
rest of 2020 Spring semester. If students have questions, please send me
email.
Please feel free to contact me if you have any
problems in this course, or if you're doing well, and
just want to talk. It's in my interest, and I care,
that you do well!
Course Description (from the Fresno State
2019-2020 General Catalog): (3 credits).
Prerequisites: Phys 4B with a grade of C or better,
Math 77 with a grade of C or better. Maxwell's
equations, geometrical optics; electromagnetic
radiation; physical optics; introduction to special
relativity; quantum physics; and the physics of
atoms, nuclei, and the solid state.
Lecture meeting times and location: Schedule 34960 (Section 03),
but in-class meetings have been suspended due to the coronavirus
pandemic.
Iclickers or clickers are NOT required
for Phys 4C. I never use them! I also never use
Mastering Physics.
Required Course Texts, which should be
available in Kennel Bookstore:
(1) Physics: California State University,
Fresno (10th edition), by Raymond A. Serway and
John W. Jewett, Jr. (Cengage C, 2019) (ISBN-13:
978-1-337-93176-2). This is taken from Physics for
Scientists and Engineers, Volume 2, 10th Edition,
by Raymond A. Serway and John W. Jewett, Jr. (2018)
(ISBN-13: 978-1337553582; ISBN-10: 1337553581).
MAKE SURE your copy has Chapters 33 to
43!
Recommended Course Texts, all of which are
excellent sources of worked examples:
(1) Schaum's Outline of Optics by Eugene Hecht
(ISBN 0-070-27730-3).
Schaum's outlines typically
have hundreds of worked examples, and are available
for a wide variety of science and engineering fields.
If they aren't available with the other Phys 4C
texts, look for the large display of the Schaum's
outline series in Kennel Bookstore's lowest level.
(2) Schaum's Outline of Modern Physics by
Ronald Gautreau and William Savin (ISBN
0-070-24830-3).
(3) Schaum's Outline of Mathematics for Physics
Students by Robert Steiner and Philip Schmidt
(ISBN 0-071-46158-2).
Course webpage:
http://zimmer.csufresno.edu/~fringwal/phys4c.html
. This is not on Canvas: I do all my own
web programming.
The Homework Assignments are available on the
course webpage, at:
http://zimmer.csufresno.edu/~fringwal/hw4c.html.
Solutions to the homework assignments will be posted
to the course webpage the day after they are due.
Course grades will be awarded for the
following final percentages:
85.000-100% = A;
70.000-84.999% = B; 60.000-69.999% = C;
50.000-59.999% = D; 0-49.999% = F.
These percentages will be computed from the following:
25% Mid-Term Exam 1, tentatively scheduled for
Thursday, February 27.
25% Mid-Term Exam 2, which will be a take-home exam due by email by
11:59 p.m. on Thursday, April 23, which Professor Ringwald will email to
students on April 21.
10% Homework, due on the dates throughout the
semester given on the list of Homework
Assignments for Phys 4C.
40% Final Exam, which will be a take-home exam due by email by 11:59
p.m. on Thursday, May 14, which Professor Ringwald will email to
students on May 12.
Do the homework, even though it counts only a little. If you don't,
you won't know the material on the exams, which count a lot.
A favorite pastime is to try and determine a
``running'' grade (in other words, trying to figure
out a grade based on a single exam or some subset of
it). Since there are many contributors to the final
grade, this isn't very useful. The above grading
scale will not be moved: how any student's grade is
determined doesn't depend on any other student's
grade.
Professor Ringwald will be happy to fix any errors
that occur in the grading. If after any errors are
fixed, students still want to contest their grades,
the students are required to do it in writing. This
written request must be typed and must be a minimum
of half a single-spaced page of 12-point type for
exam or Final Exam questions, and a minimum of one
single-spaced page of 12-point type for the overall
grade. It is to be submitted one time, either
to Professor Ringwald during his office hours, or to
his mailbox in McLane 173.
Mid-Term Exams and the Final Exam: There
will be two Mid-Term Exams which will be given on the
dates in the course outline below. The Mid-Term
Exams will consist of some concept questions as well
as some problems that must be worked out in detail.
The Final Exam will follow the format of the Mid-Term
Exams, although it will be longer. Example Mid-Term
Exams and Final Exams will appear on this website
before the exams.
How to do well in this course: Physics is
different from many subjects you may have taken. It
requires intelligent reasoning, not merely
memorizing. It is impossible to learn physics
by ``cramming.'' Here is advice that should help
students with the course.
- Do the homework yourself. Not only
does it count in the grading of the course, but it
should let you know how well your understanding the
material. Doing the homework will also prepare you
for the Mid-Term Exams and Final Exams. Don't expect
verbatim homework problems, however. Please do
the homework problems on 8.5 X 11 inch paper. If
you like, you may fold your papers in half, so that
other students won't be able to see what scores you
got, but be sure to write your name, Physics 4C,
the date, and the assignment number on the upper half
of the outside. Any homework not bearing a
student's name will not be accepted.
- Read the material in the text before you come to
lecture. It's much harder to understand a lecture if
one doesn't know at least roughly what the lecture
will cover. Also, if you find something obscure in
the reading, then you can ask Professor Ringwald
about it during lecture. The readings are indicated
in the course outline.
- Plan to spend a minimum of 12 hours a week
outside of class on this course. This course requires
significantly more time in order to understand the
material than most other courses.
- As soon as something is unclear please ask
Professor Ringwald to clarify it,
by email.
TENTATIVE Course Schedule (updated 2020 May 3). Always do the
readings before class:
Please note:
Always show all work in all course
assignments, especially in homework involving
mathematical calculations, including the
units. Not showing all work, and the correct
units, will be cause for the grader to take off
points. Also make sure to write the correct number of
significant digits, also called significant
figures: this error looks bad, and writing more than
two excessive digits will be grounds for one point
being deducted, for each instance.
Exams: There will be two Mid-Term Exams
and a comprehensive Final Exam. The material for
these exams will come from the lectures and assigned
reading and, especially, the homework probelms.
If any student must miss the Final Exam for a very
compelling reason (such as an illness documented by a
physician's note), that student will receive a grade
of I (incomplete) for Phys 4C for the semester. It
will then be that student's responsibility to contact
the university administration within the first 15
working days of the next semester to make the
necessary arrangements to remove the I grade. See the
California State University, Fresno General Catalog
for regulations concerning the Incomplete (I) grade.
Only students who can document very compelling
reasons to miss Final Exams (such as with a
physician's note) will be eligible for incompletes:
other students missing the final exam will get a 0%
on the Final Exam.
Students with Disabilities: Upon identifying
themselves to the instructor and the university,
students with disabilities will receive reasonable
accommodation for learning and evaluation. For more
information, contact Services to Students with
Disabilities in Madden Library (559-278-2811).
Honor Code: Members of the California State University, Fresno
academic community adhere to principles of academic integrity and mutual
respect while engaged in university work and related activities.
Students should: (a) understand or seek clarification about expectations
for academic integrity in this course (including no cheating, plagiarism
and inappropriate collaboration); (b) neither give nor receive
unauthorized aid on examinations or other course work that is used by
the instructor as the basis of grading. (c) take responsibility to
monitor academic dishonesty in any form and to report it to the
instructor or other appropriate official for action. Instructors may
require students to sign a statement on exams and assignments that “I
have done my own work and have neither given nor received unauthorized
assistance on this work." (This section on the honor code was a
required syllabus policy statement by Fresno State.)
Cheating and Plagiarism: Cheating is the
actual or attempted practice of fraudulent or
deceptive acts for the purpose of improving one's
grade or obtaining course credit; such acts also
include assisting another student to do so.
Typically, such acts occur in relation to
examinations. However, it is the intent of this
definition that the term 'cheating' not be limited to
examination situations only, but that it include any
and all actions by a student that are intended to
gain an unearned academic advantage by fraudulent or
deceptive means. Plagiarism is a specific form of
cheating which consists of the misuse of the
published and/or unpublished works of others by
misrepresenting the material (i.e., their
intellectual property) so used as one's own work. For
more information on the University's policy regarding
cheating and plagiarism, refer to the Class
Schedule (Legal Notices on Cheating and
Plagiarism) or the University Catalog
(Policies and Regulations).
Do the homework yourself: you will gain
the maximum benefit from it this way. Remember: you
NEED to practice doing these problems yourself
for the exams, which count for most of the course
grade. Professor Ringwald will be photographing this
class several times, to get to know the class, and
during exams, to prevent various forms of cheating.
Computers: At California State University,
Fresno, computers and communications links to remote
resources are recognized as being integral to the
education and research experience. Every student is
required to have his/her own computer or have other
personal access to a workstation (including a modem
and a printer) with all the recommended software. The
minimum and recommended standards for the
workstations and software, which may vary by academic
major, are updated periodically and are available
from Information Technology Services
(http://www.fresnostate.edu/adminserv/technology/) or
the University Bookstore. In the curriculum and class
assignments, students are presumed to have 24-hour
access to a computer workstation and the necessary
communication links to the University's information
resources.
Disruptive Classroom Behavior: The classroom
is a special environment in which students and
faculty come together to promote learning and growth.
It is essential to this learning environment that
respect for the rights of others seeking to learn,
respect for the professionalism of the instructor,
and the general goals of academic freedom are
maintained. Differences of viewpoint or concerns
should be expressed in terms which are supportive of
the learning process, creating an environment in
which students and faculty may learn to reason with
clarity and compassion, to share of themselves
without losing their identities, and to develop and
understanding of the community in which they live.
Student conduct which disrupts the learning process
shall not be tolerated and may lead to disciplinary
action and/or removal from class.
Copyright policy: Copyright laws and fair use
policies protect the rights of those who have
produced the material. The copy in this course has
been provided for private study, scholarship, or
research. Other uses may require permission from the
copyright holder. The user of this work is
responsible for adhering to copyright law of the U.S.
(Title 17, U.S. Code). To help you familiarize
yourself with copyright and fair use policies, the
University encourages you to visit its copyright
webpage: http://www.fresnostate.edu/home/about/copyright.html
For copyright Questions & Answers: http://libguides.csufresno.edu/copyright
This syllabus and schedule are subject to change in the event of
extenuating circumstances. If you are absent from class, it is your
responsibility to check on announcements made while you were absent.
Your being registered in, and not dropping, this Phys 4C lecture section
that Professor Ringwald is teaching means that you accept all the above
terms on this syllabus.
Go to the Phys 4C webpage.
Go
to Professor Ringwald's home page.
Last updated 2020 August 10. Webpage by Professor Ringwald
(ringwald[at]csufresno.edu and replace [at] with @)
Department of Physics,
California State University,
Fresno. Please read this disclaimer.