PHYS 5400 - Electricity & Magnetism with Applications

3 Class Hours 0 Laboratory Hours 3 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: Admission to MAT program and a C or better in MATH 2202 and PHYS 2212 (or equivalent).
The primary objective of this course is to present the experimental and theoretical basis of the principles of electricity & magnetism and their application in everyday phenomena and devices. The course begins with the concept of an electric field and develops the idea of electric potential energy differences. Application to conductor, capacitors and simple electric circuits is discussed. Next magnetic forces and field are introduced as well as the concept of inductance and magnetic field energy. Applications to RL circuits and devices (e.g., security screens, electric generators and motors) are considered. Lastly unification of electricity and magnetism is established through the Theory of Special Relativity and culminates in the derivation of the electromagnetic waves equation from Maxwell’s Equations. To underscore all of the conceptual developments of the course, electromagnetic phenomenon is further explored in the natural world in both terrestrial and astrophysical contexts. Mathematical ideas of vector calculus (e.g., curl, divergence) and simple differential equations are developed in parallel with the course content. General concepts used and developed in this course (waves, energy conservation, special relativity, vector calculus all overlap with other courses in the sequence and significantly reinforce student learning.

Notes The lab involves hands-on work with both analog and digital electronic components.