Syllabus
TR 12:30pm - 2:10pm in Bracy 126/112/152
Instructor Information
Dr. Julie Butler
Email: butlerju@mountunion.edu
Office: Bracy 107
Office Hours: Monday 11:00am - 12:30pm, Tuesday 2:30pm - 4:00pm, Friday 12:30pm - 1:30 pm, or by appointment
Cell Phone: 864-993-7133
Course Description
A hands-on course in the methods of experimental physics, with a focus on the interfacing of software and hardware for data acquisition and analysis. The course will cover advanced topics from classical mechanics, thermodynamics, electrodynamics, and quantum mechanics, and the communication of scientific results through written and oral presentations.
Learning Outcomes
Below are the overarching learning outcomes for the course. Specific learning outcomes will be provided with each experiment.
Generate and solve analytical models which describe a physical system.
Use numerical methods (both traditional and machine learning-based) to describe a physical system.
Design experiments that allow for certain physical properties of a system to be measured.
Be able to collected data from experiments in a way that can be analyzed with programming.
Use programming to analyze experimental data including creating graphs, extracting physical constants, and calculating error scores.
Compare analytical, numerical, and experimental models of a system using graphs and error scores.
Course Policies
Student Expectations:
All students are expected to come to class ready to learn and help contribute to an environment that allows other students to learn. This means arriving on time and participating in lectures, not creating distractions for other students, and being courteous to students and the professor.
It is expected that you completed all graded assignments and submit them on D2L by the posted deadline unless you are using an extension as detailed in the late policy.
Attendance Policy: Attendance at all lab sessions is required, but attendance at lectures is not required and will not be taken. If you choose not to attend a lecture you are still responsible for the material and assignments covered during that class. A reasonable and documented excuse is needed for a missed lab session. If you experience an extended absence due to illness or family emergency, please email me, and we can work out a solution.
Accessibility: The University of Mount Union values disability as an important aspect of diversity and is committed to providing equitable access to learning opportunities for all students. Student Accessibility Services (SAS) is the campus office that collaborates with students with disabilities to provide and/or arrange reasonable accommodations based on appropriate documentation, the nature of the request, and feasibility. If you have, or think you have, a temporary or permanent disability and/or a medical diagnosis in any area, such as physical or mental health, attention, learning, chronic health, or sensory, please contact SAS. The SAS office will confidentially discuss your needs, review your documentation, and determine your eligibility for reasonable accommodations. Accommodations are not retroactive, and the instructor is not obligated to provide accommodations if a student does not request accommodation or provide documentation. Students should contact SAS to request accommodations and discuss them with their instructor as early as possible in the semester. You may contact the SAS office by phone at (330) 823-7372; or via e-mail at studentaccessibility@mountunion.edu.
Academic Honesty: All work you submit with your name on it is expected to be original work. You can consult any outside source, including the internet and AI chats, for help on assignments, but you are not allowed to copy any solutions you find there directly. Additionally, you should be able to thoroughly explain how you arrived at your answer for all work you turn in. If you work closely with other classmates on an assignment, please indicate that the solution results from collaboration and list the names of all students who contributed (this is allowed and encouraged). If it can be proven that you used Chegg, ChatGTP, or another person to solve your homework (i.e., you are copying your solutions directly from these sources or others), or if you are found to be cheating on exams, you will receive a zero for the assignment and be reported for academic dishonesty.
Technology in the Classroom: All electronic devices are allowed in the classroom, provided that you do not use them to distract other students. All devices should be muted and notifications silenced for the class duration. If a device distracts other students, you will be asked to put the device away or leave the classroom.
Communications with the Professor: The best way to ask a question about an assignment is to post it to the class Teams. Even if I do not see the message quickly, other students may be able to help you. If you wish to contact me directly, the best way to reach me is by email or to come by my office. My cell phone number is also provided at the top of the syllabus if you need to contact me quickly.
Grading
Deliverables: 40%
Poster Presentation: 20%
Final Lab Report: 20%
Participation and Engagement: 20%
Percentage grades can be converted to an A-B scale using the following:
A: 100-94
A-: 93-90
B+: 89-87
B: 86-84
B-: 83-80
C+: 79-77
C: 76-74
C-: 73-70
D+: 69-67
D: 66-64
D-: 63-60
F: 59 and below
Deliverables
Throughout each lab description are a series of questions for you to answer about the experiments and data and graphs to be produced. Turning in these questions by the deadline for each experiment will earn you half of your deliverable grade. The other half of the grade is earned through the following assignments. For the written components, refer to the lab report guidelines located here. The video analysis assignments are to be ~10-minute videos where you explain the purpose of the experiment, the methodology, the results and discussion of the results, and any conclusions using slides and appropriate visuals. Guidelines for the video analysis assignments are located here. Except for the videos, all deliverables are to be turned in as a physical copy. They can be handled to be or turned into my office before the end of the day on the posted due date. The video reports will be submitted to D2L dropboxes.
Experiment 1: Methodology (Written)
Experiment 2: Results and Discussion (Written)
Experiment 3: Introduction (Choose Part A or B only) (Written)
Experiment 4: Abstract (Written) and Video Report
Experiment 5: Introduction and Conclusion (Written)
Experiment 6: Video Analysis
Experiment 7: Introduction (Written)
Poster Presentation
A poster presentation covering any of the seven experiments will be given during the last course. The poster presentations are open to the department and friends. You will be graded on both your poster design and your poster presentation. Guidelines for creating the poster and the poster presentation can be found here.
Final Lab Report
A full lab report for Experiment 4 (double chaotic pendulum) is before the end of the finals period of the course. This report should follow the guidelines for a lab report posted here and a physical copy needs to be turned in by the deadline.
Schedule
Experiment 1 (Concurrent with Experiment 2): Freefall with Drag
Experiment Dates: January 9 - 30
Deliverables Due: February 6 at the start of class
Experiment 2 (Concurrent with Experiment 1): Bouncing Balls
Experiment Dates: January 9 - January 30
Deliverables Due: February 13 at the start of class
Experiment 3: Rotation and Motion of Rigid Bodies
Experiment Dates: February 5 - 15
Deliverables Due: February 22 at the start of class
Experiment 4: Chaotic Double Pendulum
Experiment Dates: February 20 - March 21 (Spring Break is March 1 through March 8)
Deliverables Due: March 28 at the start of class
Experiment 5: Magnetic Force and Torque
Experiment Dates: March 26 - April 11
Deliverables Due: April 19 by 5pm
Experiment 6: Two-Slit Single Photon (Choose either Experiment 6 or Experiment 7)
Experiment Dates: April 16 - 25
Deliverables Due: May 6 by 9am
Experiment 7: Connecting to a Quantum Computer (Choose either Experiment 6 or Experiment 7)
Experiment Dates: April 16 - 25
Deliverables Due: May 6 by 9am