Syllabus
Physics 436
Spring 2015

Here are the weekly topics, reading, and homework assignments.

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Week:     Topic:     Reading:     Homework:     Discussion:    
 
January 21 Introduction. Conservation laws. 2.4.3-4, 7.2.4, 8.1 Due Jan. 26 Solution
23 Poynting vector, stress tensor. 8.2.1-2 Solution

January 26 Conservation of momentum. 8.2.3 Due Feb. 2 Solution
28 Angular momentum. Subtleties. 8.2.4 Solution
30 The Wave equation. Superposition. 9.1.1-2

February 2 Boundary conditions. 9.1.3-4 Due Feb. 9 Solution
4 Polarization. EM waves in vacuum. 9.2 Solution
6 E and p. Materials & interfaces. 9.2.2, 9.3.1-2

February 9 Oblique incidence. 9.3.3 Due Feb. 16 Solution
11 Brewster's angle. Solution
13 Waves in conductors. Skin depth. 9.4.1

February 16 Conducting surfaces. 9.4.2 Due Feb.23 Solution
18 Dispersion (video) 9.4.3 Solution
20 Wave guides. 9.5.1

February 23 TE modes 9.5.2 Due Mar. 2 Solution
25 Exam (Solution). 2014: Exam (Solution) Solution
27 Coaxial cables. Impedance. 9.5.3

March 2 Resonant cavities. Due Mar. 9 Solution
4 Vector potential. 10.1.1 Solution
6 Gauge invariance. 10.1.2-3

March 9 Retarded potentials. 10.2.1 Due Mar. 16 Solution
11 Point charges. Liénard-Wiechert potentials. 10.3.1 Solution
13 Fields produced by a moving point charge 10.3.2

March 16 Begin radiation 11.1.1 Due Mar. 30 Solution
18 Electric dipole radiation 11.1.2 Solution
20 Magnetic dipole radiation 11.1.3

March 23
25 -- Spring Break --
27

March 30 Arbitrary sources 11.1.4 Due Apr. 6 Solution
April 1 Radiation from a point charge 11.2 Solution
3 Special relativity. 1905 papers: 1, 2 12.1.1-2

April 6 4-D rotations. t-dilation & l-contraction. 12.1.3 Due Apr. 13 Solution
8 Exam (Solution). 2014: Exam (Solution) Solution
10 Writing manifestly covariant expressions. 12.2.1-2

April 13 Kinematics and conservation laws. 12.2.3 Due Apr. 20 Solution
15 Relativistic dynamics 12.2.4 Solution
17 Moving emitters (Doppler effect).

April 20 Begin electrodynamics. 12.3.1 Due Apr. 27 Solution
22 How E & B transform. The field tensor 12.3.2-3 Solution
24 Electrodynamics with tensors. 12.3.4

April 27 Field invariants. Due May 4 Solution
29 The 4-vector potential. Solution
May 1 Scattering.

May 4 Scattering -- None -- Solution
6 Course review

May 12 Final exam (Solution). 2014: Exam (Sol) Tuesday, May 12, 8-11 AM in 144 Loomis

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