The lecture units are as follows; only prescribed texts are included. Physics units with insufficient enrolment may not be presented and students will be advised as to appropriate alternatives.
Acoustics
Synopsis Building acoustics: reverberation, absorption coefficients and sound absorbing materials. Community noise measurements: noise indices and instrumentation, noise dose, estimation of noise levels in factories and in suburban areas, recording long term and transient sounds, frequency analysis, sound intensity measurements. Outdoor sound propagation: basic equations and ray model approach, effect of wind and temperature gradients, ground impedance effects. Active noise control: random and periodic systems, sound absorbers and reflector classes, applications.
Advanced instrumentation
Synopsis Signals and systems, representations. Analog signals and systems, modulation and demodulation. The phase-locked loop. Noise and its characteristics, methods of noise reduction. Discrete and digital signals and systems. Digital signal processing and filter design. Time and frequency domains for both analog and discrete cases. Fourier transform and z-transform and the convolution theorem. Instruments for signal-to-noise improvement.
Prescribed texts
Haykin S Communication systems 2nd edn Wiley, 1983
Advanced materials syntheses
Synopsis The synthesis of materials has reached a stage where desired properties can be `engineered' into the material as a result of the method of preparation or modification. This has come about with the advent of many synthesis techniques as the result of which bulk and/or surface properties of materials can be controlled. In this unit the following topics will be discussed: rapid solidification techniques including thermal spraying; chemical vapour deposition; physical vapour deposition; molecular beam epitaxy; sol-gel processing; ion-beam modification and laser processing. This unit will include inspections of relevant facilities at Melbourne research/industrial laboratories. Each of these will occupy one afternoon and will require each student to complete a short assignment relating to the process involved. These assignments will constitute 40 per cent of the assessment. The balance will comprise a library research project for which each student will be given an individual topic.
Classical field theory
Synopsis The aim is to consider general formulations of classical field theories, such as the Maxwell field, which are germane to relativistic quantum field theory. Variational principle for classical fields. Lagrangian formulation of the field equations. Energy-momentum tensors and conservation theorems. Hamiltonian formulation of the field equations. Canonical transformation theory for fields. Classical field theory. Introduction to the quantised Maxwell field.
Computational methods
Synopsis Modelling methodology, boundary problems, finite element analysis, non-linear systems. Monte Carlo methods in scattering problems and materials science, inverse scattering problems, computed tomography. Neural networks and cellular automata in applied physics. Hardware requirements, computer architectures, parallel algorithms.
Prescribed texts
Koonin S E Computational physics Benjamim, 1985
Diffraction
Synopsis The interaction of x-rays, electrons and neutrons with condensed matter. Diffraction from a perfect periodic array. The phase problem. The Debye-Waller factor. Thermal diffuse scattering. Diffuse scattering from imperfections, short range order and local strains. Diffraction from amorphous materials.
Prescribed texts
Schwartz L H and Cohen J B Diffraction from materials 2nd edn, Springer-Verlag, Berlin, 1987
Electrodynamics
Synopsis This unit will provide an advanced treatment of Maxwell's equations: Photon mass; Proca equation. Boundary value problems; numerical methods. Green's function method. Vector potential in quantum mechanics; Aharonov-Bohm effect. Gauge transformations. Poincaré transformations. Field tensor and its dual; energy-momentum tensor. Differential forms. Lagrangian density; the Maxwell field; symmetries and conservation laws. Electromagnetic waves; dispersion, Kramers-Kronig relations. Coherent and incoherent scattering. Goedicke's condition. For PHS4200 students, the last few lectures will address specific topics in applied physics, instrumentation and measurement.
Prescribed texts
Jackson J D Electrodynamics 2nd edn, Wiley, 1975
Experimental design and data handling
Synopsis The scientific method, logic and science. Empiricism and models. Experimental design, controlled and non-controlled experiments. Numbers and scales, methods of counting, measurement and dimensional analysis. Representation of data in digital and discrete forms. Interpretation of results, transformations, normalisation, curve fitting. Statistics, parametric and non-parametric statistics. Error, regression, orthogonal polynomials. Analysis of variance, correlation and cluster analysis.
Prescribed texts
Lyons L A A practical guide to data analysis for physical science students CUP, 1992
Lasers and optics
Synopsis A selection of topics from laser principles and applications and modern optics. Crystal optics (linear and nonlinear). Fourier optics. Light scattering and fibre optics. Holography, speckle interferometry. Atomic absorption spectroscopy.
Magnetism
Synopsis This unit will describe various concepts and techniques in magnetism, with emphasis on metallic systems. The topics covered will include experimental techniques, classification of magnetic properties, magnetic anisotropy, domains, hysteresis loop, origins of magnetism, classical paramagnetism, localised moment model, band magnetism, magnetic impurities.
Many-body theory
Synopsis An introduction to the basic tools of many-body physics: Green's functions and Feynman diagrams, with applications to band magnetism and superconductivity.
Prescribed texts
Mahan G D Many-particle physics 2nd edn, Plenum, 1990
Nuclear physics
Synopsis Estimation of magnetic dipole and electric quadrupole nuclear moments from the shell model, comparison with experiment, measurement, hyperfine interactions. The Nilsson model and non-spherical nuclei. Collective motions. The scattering and reaction cross-sections of nuclei. The optical model.
Quantum field theory
Synopsis Introduction to quantum field theory. Review of relativistic quantum mechanics. Propagators and scattering theory: Green's functions and propagators, the S-matrix, symmetry, properties of the S-matrix, propagators for electrons and positrons. Quantum electrodynamics: Coulomb scattering of electrons and positrons, identities involving the [gamma]-matrices, scattering of identical fermions, electron-positron scattering, scattering of Dirac particles, bremsstrahlung, Compton scattering and the Klein-Nishina formula, annihilation of a particle with its antiparticle, pair creation, the Feynman rules for QED. The scattering matrix in higher orders: electron-positron scattering in fourth order, vacuum polarisation, self energy of the electron, vertex corrections, introduction to gauge theories.
Prescribed texts
Greiner W and Reinhardt J Quantum electrodynamics Springer-Verlag, 1992
Quantum mechanics
Synopsis The relativistic Dirac equation, positrons and the natural occurrence of Pauli's theory of spin. The form of a spin eigenstate, and the observation of interference effects after a rotation by 2[pi]. Wavepacket motion and how the analysis of Stern-Gerlach and other experiments leads to the formal Hilbert space structure of quantum theory. Hilbert space as a product space, correlations in problems with more than one particle, particle creation and destruction operators.
Prescribed texts
Merzbacher E Quantum mechanics 2nd edn, Wiley, 1970
Quantum scattering theory
Synopsis Scattering cross-section. The partial wave method: asymptotic solution, phase shifts. Cross-section as a function of the phase shifts. Optical theorem. Born approximation and the criteria for its applicability. Screened Coulomb potential and other applications. Scattering of identical particles, spin-dependent forces. Parity, symmetry and spin-dependent cross-sections. Scattering from a lattice impurity. Bound state and scattering-amplitude pole.
Readings in applied physics
Synopsis This unit is a directed course of study on the topic selected by the students in consultation with their supervisor. This may include selected reading, attending seminars and tutorials. Topics might include impulse acoustics, computer vision, x-ray imaging, tomography.
Scientific visualisation and image analysis
Synopsis Representation of physical data as images, visualisation methods for multi-dimensional data, continuous and discrete data spaces. Features and feature extraction from images, multiple resolution representations. Graphs and trees as image structures. Principle component, co-occurrence and covariance analysis. Data-to-image interface, spreadsheets and image processing software.
Prescribed texts
Pratt W K Digital image processing 2nd edn, Wiley, 1991
Solid state physics
Synopsis A knowledge of both third-year solid state physics units will be assumed. Excitations and transport phenomena in metals, semi-conductors and disordered systems.
Prescribed texts
Ashcroft N W and Mermin N D Solid state physics Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1976
Spectroscopy
Synopsis Transitions in quantised systems. Nuclear magnetic resonance and nuclear quadrupole resonance. Mössbauer spectroscopy. Electron spin resonance. Microwave, infrared and Raman spectroscopy. Electronic spectroscopy of atoms and molecules.
Statistical mechanics
Synopsis Review of ensemble theory. Canonical ensemble and grand canonical partition functions treated classically and quantally. Fluctuations. Special topics: a selection from the Ising model, imperfect gases, liquid helium, Green's functions.
Prescribed texts
Huang K Statistical mechanics Wiley, 1963
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