FY546: Advanced Mechanics and Relativity Theory
Comment
Entry requirements
Academic preconditions
Course introduction
- Give knowledge and understanding of the laws of motion including relativistic and non-inertial coordinate systems.
- Give the competence to apply the basic concepts of Special Relativity to basic and relevant physical problems.
- Give knowledge and understanding of the physical principles behind Kepler's laws and Rutherford's picture of atomic structure.
- Apply accelerated coordinate systems, fictitious forces and understand the Foucault pendulum.
- Give the competence to Use Lagrange and Hamilton formalism to easily write down and solve dynamical systems.
- Give skills to apply conservation of energy, momentum and angular momentum to rigid bodies.
- Give skills to apply the dynamical laws controlling fluid motion, with and without friction.
Expected learning outcome
- Apply the mathematical formalism of classical physics, special relativity and fluid mechanics to formulate and solve physical problems. The course theme is thus to apply Newton’s laws of motion under more general circumstances than point mechanics.
Content
- Special relativity: Michelson’s experiment, the Lorentz transformation, relativistic kinematics and dynamics.
- Central conservative force fields: Kepler’s laws and the solar system, Rutherford scattering and atomic and subatomic phenomena.
- Accelerated coordinate frames: Fictive forces, the Foucault pendulum.
- Lagrangian mechanics: Lagrange and Hamilton equations.
- Particles and rigid bodies: Energy, momentum, angular momentum; center of gravity and moment of inertia.
- Continuum physics: Deformation of solids, sound in gases, liquids and solids, ideal and viscous fluids.
Literature
J.M. Knudsen and P.H. Hjorth: Elements of Newtonian Mechanics, Springer.
B. Lautrup: Physics of Continuous Matter, Second Edition: Exotic and Everyday Phenomena in the Macro-scopic World, CRC Press
See Blackboard for syllabus lists and additional literature references.
Examination regulations
Exam element a)
Timing
Tests
Mandatory homework assignments
EKA
Assessment
Grading
Identification
Language
Examination aids
ECTS value
Additional information
The examination form for re-examination may be different from the exam form at the regular exam.
Reexamination in the same exam period or immediately thereafter.
The homework assignments a) must be passed. The final grade for the course is the average of the two partial results from exam element b) that are graded. The two exams must be passed together with a minimum of 02. Grade -3 or "absent" must not occur in any of the exams.
Exam element b)
Timing
Rules
Tests
Oral exam after first half of the course
EKA
Assessment
Grading
Identification
Language
Examination aids
ECTS value
Additional information
The examination form for re-examination may be different from the exam form at the regular exam. Reexamination in the same exam period or immediately thereafter.
Written exam
EKA
Assessment
Grading
Identification
Language
Examination aids
ECTS value
Additional information
The examination form for re-examination may be different from the exam form at the regular exam.
The final grade for the course is the average of the two partial results from the oral exam and the written exam. The two exams must be passed together with a minimum of 02. Grade -3 or "absent" must not occur in any of the exams.
Indicative number of lessons
Teaching Method
The teaching method is based on three phase model.
- Intro phase: 54 hours
Skills training phase: 36 hours, hereof:
- Tutorials: 36 hours
The teaching format is lectures and computational classes (eksaminatorietimer). In the computational classes the students solve problems and are trained in applying the theory taught in the course to explicit physical problems within the course topics. Each week the lectures are followed by computational classes.