Undergraduate Courses

Physics

Particle kinematics and dynamics; conservation of energy and linear momentum; rotational kinematics; rigid body dynamics; conservation of angular momentum; simple harmonic motion; gravitation; the statics and dynamics of fluids.

Wave motion and sound; temperature, first and second law of thermodynamics; kinetic theory of gases; Coulomb’s law; the electric field; Gauss’s law; electric potential; capacitors and dielectrics; D.C. circuits; the magnetic field; Ampere’s and Faraday’s laws.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS101

Particle kinematics and dynamics, work, energy, and power. Kinetic theory of gases. Temperature, first and second laws of thermodynamics. Heat transfer. Wave motion and sound. Electricity and magnetism. Light and optics.

A continuation of PHYS 101 and 102. Topics covered include: inductance; magnetic properties of matter, electromagnetic oscillations and waves; geometrical and physical optics. Relativity, introduction to quantum physics, atomic and molecular physics, nuclear physics, particle physics and cosmology. For non-Physics Majors

Pre-Requisites: PHYS102 And MATH102

Electronic structure of isolated atoms; atoms bonding, crystal structure, energy bands in solids; electrons and holes in semiconductors, drift and diffusion, mobility, recombination and lifetime, conductivity; PN junctions, I(V)characteristic, applications; photo detectors, Light emitting diodes, Solar-cell, Bipolar transistor, MOSFET and JFET, Lasers, Magnetic Properties.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS102

Inductance; magnetic properties of matter, electromagnetic oscillations and waves; geometrical and physical optics. Relativity, introduction to quantum physics, atomic physics, solids, nuclear physics, particle physics and cosmology.

Pre-Requisites: MATH102 And PHYS102

This is the Lab component of General Physics III. It consists of selected experiments in electrical circuits, geometrical and physical optics as well as modern physics.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS204*

Co-Requisites: PHYS 204

Vector Calculus, Matrix algebra, Fourier Series and Transforms, Functions of a complex variable; Contour integration and Residue theorem; Orthogonal Polynomials; Partial differential equations; Introduction to tensors. (Not open for credit to students who have taken MATH 333 or Math 302)

Pre-Requisites: MATH202* Or MATH208*

Co-Requisites: MATH 202 , MATH 208

An introductory course in Geometrical and Physical Optics. Topics covered include: nature and propagation of light; image formation-paraxial approximation; optical instruments; superposition of waves; standing waves beats; fourier analysis of harmonic periodic waves and wavepackets; two-beam and multiple-beam interference; polarization; Fraunhofer and Fresnel diffraction; holography; lasers.

Special relativity; quantum mechanics: the particle and wave aspects of matter; quantum mechanics in one and three dimensions, quantum theory of the hydrogen atom; atomic physics; statistical physics; selected topics in solid state physics; nuclear physics. Not open for credit to students who have taken PHYS 201.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS102

Quantum mechanics: the particle and wave aspects of matter; quantum mechanics in one and three dimensions, quantum theory of the hydrogen atom; atomic physics; statistical physics; selected topics from molecular Physics, solid state physics, nuclear physics, elementary particle physics, and cosmology.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS102

Celestial mechanics; the solar system; stellar measurement; stellar magnitudes and spectra; galaxies; cosmology, Light and Telescopes, Parallaxes, Early and Modern History of Astronomy including contributions of Arab and Muslim Scientists.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS102

Selected topics from materials engineering, nuclear physics, aerodynamics, energy, electronics, communications, biological systems, terrestrial and celestial natural systems.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS102

A survey of energy sources and resources; a quantitative evaluation of energy technologies; the production, transportation, and consumption of energy. Topics covered include Nuclear energy; fossil fuels; solar energy; wind energy; hydropower; geothermal energy; energy storage and distribution; automotive transportation.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS102

Properties of space-time; the Lorentz transformation; paradoxes; four vector formulations of mechanics and electromagnetism.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS102

Newton’s laws of motion and conservation theorems, Forced damped Oscillations; Coupled Oscillations; Lagrangian Dynamics, Hamilton’s equations of motion; Central-force motion; Dynamics of systems of particles, Motion in a non-inertial reference frame, Dynamics of Rigid bodies including properties of Inertia tensor.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS101 And (MATH202 Or MATH208)

Topics covered include: Newton's laws of motion and conservation theorems, oscillations; non-linear oscillations and chaos; Computational study of forced oscillatory motion and nonlinear motion; gravitation; Hamilton's variational principle- Lagrangian and Hamiltonian Dynamics; Central force; Motion in a non-inertial reference frame.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS101 And (MATH202 Or MATH208)

Lagrangian formalism in the study of Euler equations for rigid body motion and coupled oscillations; continuous systems and waves; special theory of relativity and relativistic kinematics; Hamiltonian dynamics, Poisson Brackets and conserved quantities, introduction to chaos.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS300

An introductory course in electronics and the methods of experimental physics. The physics of semiconductors; junction transistor; amplifiers; feedback circuits; oscillators; nonlinear devices; digital electronics; digital logic; counters and registers; analog to digital converters.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS102

Method of experimental physics. Analysis of experimental data. Relationship between theory and experiment. Curve fitting processes; fundamental of the theory of statistics; evaluation of experimental data; estimation of errors. Selected experiments in physics will be performed in conjunction with lecture material.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS303 Or PHYS308

Electrostatics; Laplace and Poisson’s equations; Dielectric media, Magnetostatics and magnetic fields in matter.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS102 And MATH201 And (MATH208 Or MATH202)

Maxwell’s Equations, Conservation Laws, Electromagnetic waves, Potentials and fields, Electromagnetic Radiation, Relativity and Relativistic Electrodynamics.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS305

Introduction to lasers; laser in time-resolved and in frequency-resolved spectroscopy; basic elements of spectroscopy; rotational, vibrational, and electronic spectroscopy.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS204 Or PHYS213

Physics of semi-conductors; junction transistors; amplifiers; feedback circuits; oscillators; nonlinear devices; digital electronics; digital logic; counters and registers; analog-to-digital converters.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS205

Curve fitting processes; fundamentals of the theory of statistics; evaluation of experimental data; estimation of errors; computer interfacing and data acquisition. Selected experiments in physics will be performed in conjunction with lecture material.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS308

Fundamentals of non-relativistic quantum mechanics. Mathematical tools and basic postulates of Quantum Mechanics. The Schrödinger equation and its applications to various one-and three dimensional systems. Spin and identical particle effects. Addition of angular momenta.

Pre-Requisites: (PHYS213 Or PHYS204) And (MATH202 Or MATH208)

Nature and propagation of light; image formation-paraxial approximation; optical instruments; superposition of waves; standing waves; beats; Fourier analysis of harmonic periodic waves and wave packets; two-beam and multiple-beam interference; polarization; Fraunhoffer and Fresnel diffraction; holography; lasers.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS204 Or PHYS201

Stellar positions, size, luminosity, spectra. Newtonian gravitation, spectral analysis, Doppler shift, interaction of matter and radiation. Modeling the structure of stars. Pulsating stars, novae and supernovae. Collapsed stars (white dwarfs, neutron stars, and black holes). Stellar systems and clusters, Galaxies, systems of galaxies, filament and voids.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS102

Nuclear reactions and fission; the multiplication factor and nuclear reactor criticality; homogeneous and heterogeneous reactors; the one-speed diffusion theory; reactor kinetics; multi group diffusion theory; Computer will be used in simple criticality calculations and reactor kinetics.

Pre-Requisites: (MATH202 Or MATH208) And PHYS102

Electronic structure of isolated atoms; atoms bonding, crystal structure, energy bands in solids; electrons and holes in semiconductors, drift and diffusion, mobility, recombination and lifetime, conductivity; PN junctions, I(V)characteristic, applications; photo detectors, Light emitting diodes, Solar-cell, Bipolar transistor, MOSFET and JFET, Semiconducting Lasers.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS102

Introduction to atomic and nuclear structure, Radioactivity, Properties of ionizing radiation, interaction of radiation with matter, detection methods, dosimetry, biological effects of radiation, external and internal radiation protection.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS102

Biomechanics, sound and hearing, pressure and motion of fluids, heat and temperature, electricity and magnetism in the body, optics and the eye, biological effects of light, use of ionizing radiation in diagnosis and therapy, radiation safety, medical instrumentation.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS102 And (MATH202 Or MATH208)

A one-semester course of mathematical topics chosen because of their importance and usefulness to physics. Topics covered may include functions of a complex variable; contour integration; partial differential equations; special functions; numerical techniques. Not open for credit to students who have taken MATH 301.

Computer simulation of physical systems; simulation techniques; programming methods; comparison of ideal and realistic systems; limitations of physical theory, behavior of physical systems. (Not open for students who have taken MATH 371 or CISE 301) .

Pre-Requisites: (ICS101 Or ICS102 Or ICS103 Or ICS104) And (PHYS213 Or PHYS204 Or PHYS212 Or PHYS201)

Students are required to spend one summer working in industry prior to the term in which they expect to graduate. Students are required to submit a report and make a presentation on their summer training experience and the knowledge gained. The student may also do his summer training by doing research and other academic activities.

Pre-Requisites: ENGL214

This course deals with the fundamentals of non-relativistic quantum mechanics. Failures of classical physics in describing microscopic phenomena. Mathematical tools and basic postulates of Quantum Mechanics. Matrix formulation of Quantum Mechanics. The Schrodinger equation and its application to various one-dimensional systems. Orbital angular momentum. Applications of Quantum Mechanics to the study of three-dimensional systems. Wavefunctions for some of the above systems and related expectation values obtained via computer packages.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS301 Or PHYS300

This course is continuation of Physics 401. Addition of angular momenta. Timeindependent perturbation theory. The variational method and its applications. Schrodinger, Heisenberg and Interaction pictures. Time-dependent perturbation theory. Scattering Theory. Identical particles systems. Approximate solutions of several Schrodinger equations obtained via computer packages.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS401 Or PHYS310

Students are introduced to some experiments that are selected both for their importance in the historical development of physics and their educational value in presenting the techniques used in experimental physics, correlation of the experimental work with theory is stressed.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS309 Or EE315

A laboratory course, which offers an opportunity for student to carry out experimental projects, based on their special interests and ideas to study physical phenomena. Faculty help students to determine the feasibility of proposed projects.

A laboratory course which offers an opportunity for students to carry out experimental projects, based on their special interests and ideas to study physical phenomena. Faculty help students determine the feasibility of proposed projects.

Students are given the opportunity to present and attend lectures on topics of current research interest.

Time-independent perturbation theory. The variational method and its applications; WKB Approximation, The adiabatic approximation, Time-dependent perturbation theory. Scattering Theory. Approximate solutions of several Schrödinger equations obtained via computer packages.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS310 Or PHYS401

An advanced study of Physical Optics. Topics covered are: Fourier transforms and applications, theory of coherence, interference spectroscopy, auto correlation function, fluctuations, optical transfer functions, diffraction and Gaussian beams, Kirchhoff diffraction theory, theory of image formation, spatial filtering, aberrations in optical images, interaction of light with matter, crystal optics, nonlinear optics, lasers.

Topics covered are: Stimulated emission and coherence; population inversion; Gaussian beam propagation; optical resonators and cavity modes; stability criteria; unstable resonators; phase conjugate resonators; oscillation threshold and gain; line broadening; gain saturation; density matrix formulation and semi-classical theory of laser; lasers without inversion; Q-switching, mode-locking and pulse compression.

Fourier transforms and applications, theory of coherence, interference spectroscopy, auto-correlation function, fluctuations, optical transfer functions, diffraction and Gaussian beams, Kirchhoff diffraction theory, theory of image formation, spatial filtering, aberrations in optical images, interaction of light with matter, crystal optics, nonlinear optics, lasers.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS306 And PHYS311

Stimulated emission and coherence; population inversion; Gaussian beam propagation; optical resonators and cavity modes; stability criteria; phase conjugate resonators; oscillation threshold and gain; line broadening; gain saturation; density matrix formulation and semi-classical theory of laser; lasers without inversion; mode-locking and pulse compression.

Pre-Requisites: (PHYS212 Or PHYS213) And PHYS311

Basic physics of laser, theoretical formulations and experimental foundations; stimulated emission, population inversion, optical pumping; Solid, liquid and gas lasing media and metastable states; Laser resonators and geometries; transverse and longitudinal modes of the laser; CW and pulsed laser; temporal characteristics of the laser; tuneable laser/ optical parametric oscillation, harmonic generation; Q-switching, mode locking, cavity dumping; key laser parameters; temporal and spatial coherence of laser; different kinds of lasers; Laser based remote sensor (LIDAR); DIAL, fluorescence, Raman, Doppler, wind, air born, and space born LIDAR systems.

Relativity, Gravitational phenomena, Cosmological models, Thermal history of the universe, Cosmic Inflation, Cosmic Microwave Background, Cosmic Structures and Dark Matter.

Pre-Requisites: (MATH202 Or MATH208) And (PHYS204 Or PHYS213)

Review of Special Relativity, Tensor Calculus and Spacetime curvature, Equivalence Principle, Einstein Field Equations and their spherical solution, Black Holes; Experimental Tests of General Relativity Prerequisite: PHYS 306 or Consent of Instructor

Pre-Requisites: PHYS306

Nuclear properties, forces between nucleons, nuclear models, radioactive decays and detectors, nuclear reactions, accelerators. Selected Applications.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS310 Or PHYS401

Introduction to fundamental properties of the neutron. Reaction induced by neutrons, nuclear fission, slowing down of neutrons in infinite media, diffusion theory, the few-group approximation, point kinetics, and fission-product poisoning. The bases of thermal reactor design and its relationship to reactor engineering problems.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS102 And (MATH202 Or MATH208)

Concepts of temperature, laws of thermodynamics, entropy, thermodynamic relations, free energy. Applications to phase equilibrium, multicomponent systems, chemical reactions, and thermodynamic cycles. Introduction to Kinetic theory and transport phenomena. Introduction to Maxwell-Boltzmann, Bose-Einstein and Fermi-Dirac statistics.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS213 Or PHYS204

Review of pertinent topics in classical and quantum physics. Gibb’s statistical ensembles, MB, BE, and FD statistics with simple applications to solids. Theoretical foundations of Monte Carlo simulation, Markov chains, random walks. Study of phase transitions in the 2D and 3D Ising models as well as in the Landau Ginsburg Model using Monte Carlo simulations. Selected Topics in Kinetic Monte Carlo Simulations.

Crystal bonding; lattice vibrations; thermal properties of insulators; free electron theory of metals; band theory; semiconductors, introduction to superconductivity. Simple band structure calculations using computer software packages.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS310 Or PHYS401

A course may be offered in conjunction with current research at the Surface Science Laboratory. Topics covered include: preparation of clean surfaces; experimental methods such as XPS, UPS, Auger, and LEED; thin films; surface states; temperature effects.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS432

The two-fluid model, electrodynamics of superconductors. Thermodynamics of phase transition in type I and type II superconductors. Landau-Ginzburg phenomenological theory of type II superconductors: coherence length, vortices, Abrikosov vortex lattice, critical fields and vortex flow dynamics. The microscopic theory of BCS, electron pairing.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS432

Symmetries and conservation laws; the quark model, Bound States, Feynman diagrams; Selected topics in Quantum Electrodynamics, Weak Interactions, Quantum Chromodynamics, and Gauge theories. Survey of particle accelerators and particle detectors..

Pre-Requisites: PHYS310 Or PHYS401

Relativistic spin zero particles and the Klein-Gordon equation; relativistic spin one-half particles and the Dirac equation; propagator theory; Selected Applications.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS410 Or PHYS402

Physical concepts, techniques and applications of nanoscale systems. Quantum Mechanics in the nano-regime. Special properties of Nano-materials: nano-slabs, nano-wires and quantum dots. Magnetism at the nano-level and characterization techniques

Pre-Requisites: PHYS213 Or PHYS212

Single-particle motions; plasmas as fluids; waves in plasmas; diffusion and resistivity; equilibrium and stability; a simple introduction to kinetic theory; nonlinear effects; controlled fusion.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS306

Review of relevant Quantum Mechanics concepts including linear vector spaces, Entanglement, the EPR paradox, and Bell’s inequality. Quantum Computation including the qubit, quantum gates and search algorithms. Quantum Communication including cryptography and teleportation. Overview of some experimental implementations.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS210 Or MATH208 Or MATH225 Or MATH260 Or MATH280

Introduction to ion trap, spin, NV-center, and circuit qubit, Quantum electrical circuits, superconductivity, Josephson Junction (JJ)-based non-linear harmonic oscillators, JJ-based superconducting circuit-qubits, noise and decoherence, cavity and circuit quantum electrodynamics (QED), microwave-based measurements in circuit QED.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS471

The course provides an introduction to materials informatics, which is an intersection between materials science, computational methods, and big-data sciences. The emphasis will be toward foundational backgrounds including machine and statistical learning, ML-based materials science modeling, and implementations. As the field is expanding, a short overview of the contemporary trends in the field will be provided.

Selected topics of special interest to students. This course may be repeated for credit as an in-depth investigation of a single topic or as a survey of several topics. Prerequisite: Consent of the Instructor

Guided reading and reporting on special topics by individual students under the guidance of faculty members.

The Student is trained in the process of carrying out scientific research under the supervision of a faculty member. This includes carrying out literature search, writing research proposal, and conducting experimental or theoretical research. The student is expected to present his work at the end of the semester.

This is a continuation of PHYS 497. The student carries out research, writes a thesis, and defends it at the end of the semester.

Pre-Requisites: PHYS497

Students have the opportunity to present and attend seminars on topics of current research interest.