PHYS

2213B: Introduction to Modern Physics (3 credits)

Fall 2016, MWF 11:05-11:55pm, Howey Bldg S204
Instructor: Prof. Tamara Bogdanovi
Email: tamarab@gatech.edu
Office: 1-62 Boggs Building
Telephone: 404-385-0113
Office hours: Monday 4:30pm -5:30pm or by appointment
TA: Maryrose Barrios
Email: mbarrios8@gatech.edu
Description and pre-requisites: This is a semester-long calculus based honors-level course
in which you will learn about the key experiments and discoveries that defined the physics of
the 20th century and set foundation for the modern physics. The course builds upon the
concepts of mechanics (Physics I), electromagnetism (Physics II) and calculus, which
constitute pre-requisite knowledge for this course.
Course goals and learning outcomes: You can think of Modern Physics as the tapas of physics:
this course presents a collection of topics that gave birth to many areas of contemporary physics.
Upon successful completion of this course you should be able to (a) understand the basic principles
of relativity, quantum mechanics, atomic and nuclear physics; (b) make connections between the
concepts of classical physics (mechanics and electromagnetism) and modern physics; (c) use
physical intuition and problem solving skills gained in this class in your upper level courses in
physics; (d) understand what prompted the key discoveries in modern physics and how were they
made.

General information and resources:

Office hours: You may come to my office hours for help with the course material; my office
hours are given at the top of this page. If you cannot make the scheduled office hours, please
contact me to make an appointment.
Class online platform: We will use Piazza for various class management purposes, such as the
organization and distribution of online materials, homework and quiz solutions, communication
with your TA, etc. https://piazza.com/gatech/fall2016/phys2213b (important)
Class website: http://www.tbogdanovic.gatech.edu/PHYS2213.html

(exists but not important)

Primary textbook: Modern Physics, 6th edition by P. A. Tipler and R. A. Llewellyn (W.H.
Freeman and Company, 2012) (important)
Other suggested textbooks (optional):
1. Student Solutions Manual for Modern physics, 6th edition by P. A. Tipler and R. A. Llewellyn
(W.H. Freeman and Company, 2012)
2. Modern physics (Schaums solved problems) by R. Gautreau & W. Savin (McGraw-Hill)
3. The Feynman Lectures by Feynman, Leighton and Sands (Basic Books)

Outline of topics:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.

Relativity (Ch 1 and 2)

Quantization (Ch 3)
The nuclear atom (Ch 4)
The wavelike properties of particles (Ch 5)
The Schrdinger equation (Ch 6)
Atomic physics (Ch 7)
Nuclear physics (Ch 11)
Molecular structure and spectra (Ch 9, final project topic)
Solid state physics (Ch 10, final project topic)
Particle physics (Ch 12, final project topic)
Astrophysics and cosmology (Ch 13, final project topic)

Course requirements and grading:

Grading policy:
Quiz
Homework
Final project: presentation
Peer review of presentations
Class attendance and participation
Letter grades: A=90-100; B=80-89; C=70-79; D=60-69; F 59

40%
40%
10%
5%
5%

Quiz (40%): There will be four one-hour quizzes. You will be allowed to earn redo points on
quizzes by turning in within a specified number of days detailed written solutions (with lots of
written explanations) for those questions for which your scores were below 70%. If the detailed
solutions are correct, they can earn up to 50% of the points you missed. For example, a student
who got 60/100 for a problem on the original exam could earn up to 20 redo points by following
through on the detailed solution. The quiz dates are indicated on the 2213B calendar.
Homework (40%): Six homework sets will be assigned. The most important thing you can learn
from homework is how to solve problems for yourself. Therefore, please try each problem for at
least one hour before discussing it with anyone else. After you have made an honest attempt at a
problem for at least one hour, you may discuss it with others currently in the course who have also
made honest attempts at the problem. If your answers differ, you may argue your case at the
blackboard, but you may not look at each others papers or copy things off the blackboard
afterward.
Final project and peer review (10% + 5%): At the end of the semester students will give
in-class presentations on an advanced Modern Physics subject of their choice. I will suggest
the material to be covered in these presentations. The presentations will be peer reviewed by
other students in the class and also graded by the instructor. Peer reviews will be done using
the "Peer Review Form for Student Presentations" which will be distributed to the class. I will
use the criteria on this form for my grading of the presentations. I will be reading the
presentation peer-review forms and using them in my grading of the reviewers. High-quality
presentation reviews are expected.

Class attendance and participation (5%): Class participation will be assessed in about 15
in-class assignments. Class assignments will be short (5-10 minute) calculations carried out by
students during class time and designed for practice of the newly learned concepts. Every
reasonable attempt at a solution will earn full credit (i.e., no penalty for incorrect solutions)
but will require physical and mental presence in the classroom.
Reading assignments: Students will receive reading assignments from the primary textbook
ahead of each lecture. The main purpose of the reading assignment is to prep you for the new
material that will be discussed in the upcoming lecture, so that we can focus on developing the
intuition and practicing problem solving during lecture time. This approach has been shown to
increase the retention of new material by physics education researchers, so that you learn
more in class and have less to catch up on at home. While reading assignments do not
contribute to your grade directly, completing them ahead of each lecture will let you get the
most out of each class. You can find the regularly updated schedule of reading assignments in
the Course Schedule file, posted on Piazza.

Course expectations and guidelines:

Academic integrity: The policies on academic integrity as stated in the Georgia Techs
Academic Honor Code applies to this course. These can be found at:
http://www.catalog.gatech.edu/rules/18b.php . Any student suspected of cheating or
plagiarizing on a quiz, exam, or assignment will be reported to the Office of Student Integrity,
who will investigate the incident and identify the appropriate penalty for violations. Students
can work and discuss problems together but written and presented work must be your own.
Accommodations for individuals with disabilities: If you are a student with learning needs
that require special accommodation, contact the Office of Disability Services (often referred
to as ADAPTS) at (404) 894-2563 or http://disabilityservices.gatech.edu/ , as soon as
possible, to make an appointment to discuss your special needs and to obtain an
accommodations letter. Please also e-mail me as soon as possible in order to set up a time to
discuss your learning needs.
Assignment turn-in: Homework sets will be due at the start of class, usually on Wednesday,
unless you are instructed differently (they will otherwise be marked as late and receive
reduced credit). For each homework assignment, only one homework submission will be
accepted from each student; i.e., you cannot turn one part of your homework on time and then
another part of it late. Please write your homework solutions in a standard and extremely
clear manner. It will not be possible to give credit for work that is not clearly explained.
Please show your work since this will allow partial credit to be given even if you cannot solve
the whole problem. When it is relevant, use general formulae for as long as possible and only
"plug in" numbers at the end of a problem. Your homework solutions should follow the order
in which the problems are given (don't present problem 7, then problem 1, then problem 5,
etc.). Please staple your homework before handing it in.
If you think there is something wrong or unfair with how your homework has been graded,
you should discuss this with the instructor within the week of the time from the day when the
homework is returned in class.

Extensions, late assignments and missed exams: In absence of a serious medical excuse
(documented by an official physician's note), late homework will receive reduced credit
according to the following policy: 75% of earned credit will be given for late assignments
turned in within 24 hours from the due time, 50% within 48 hours, 25% within 72 hours, and
zero credit beyond this point. If you have medical excuse or absence due to an approved
Institute activity, you must contact me as soon as possible to arrange a new due date for your
assignment, or to make an alternative arrangement for a missed exam. In all cases, you may
not look at any solutions handed out in class (or at the homework of anyone else).
Etiquette and student-faculty expectations: Students are expected to be civil and
considerate in class. They should refrain from any actions that distract their classmates or the
instructor or otherwise disrupt the class. A specific example is cell phones (and other
electronic devices unrelated to the class): they should be turned off and put away during class.
See this page for an articulation of some basic student-faculty expectations that you can
have of me, and that I have of you: http://www.catalog.gatech.edu/rules/22.php .