PHYS 201: Waves and Optics
Fall 2011

Instructor: Jason H. Hafner, Brockman Hall 262, x3205, hafner@rice.edu, "jasonhafner"
Meets: MWF 9:00 - 9:50 am, HZ 210
Homework Problems; Syllabus; Pedrotti 3rd edition TOC; Big Pendulum; Pendula?; Swingin'; Normal Modes; Ben Burtt; Ice Sheets
Calendar
August 22 Simple Harmonic Motion French: p.3-7 Demo: Mass on a Spring |
August 24 Real Oscillators French: p. 45-59 Demo: The Pendulum |
August 26 Superposition French: p.7-27 Demo: Feel the Beat!
|
August 29 Damped SHM French: p.62-70 Demo: The Longest Demo |
August 31 Driven SHM French: 83-110 Demo: Mass on a Shim Problems 1-5 due |
September 2 Coupled SHM French 119-127 Demo: Two Pendulums |
September 5 No Class Labor Day
|
September 7 Continua French: 161-167 Demo: Racing the String Problems 6-11 due |
September 9 Continua Continued French 201-209 Demo: Testing String Theory |
September 12 Fourier Analysis French 189-196 Demo: Barry Manilow's Fourier Components |
September 14 Wave Motion French 213-216 Demo: The Triangular Pulse Problems 12-15 due |
September 16 Dispersion [doing it the old fashioned way] French 230-234 Demo: How to lecture for 50 minutes without a demo |
September 19 Reflection, Absorption, and Transmission French 253-264 Demo: The Wave Machine |
September 21 NO CLASS
|
September 23 Sound [old fashioned Friday] Problems 16-19 due |
September 26 Electromagnetic Field |
September 28 Electromagnetic Wave Equation |
September 30 Electromagnetic Waves: Plane Pedrotti 100-107 Demo: Sound FX Problems 20-24 due |
October 3 Light Pedrotti 100-107 Demo: Radiation Pressure? |
October 5 Polarization States Pedrotti 333-341 |
October 7 Catch up and Review Problems 25-28 due Exam 1 out |
October 10 NO CLASS Midterm Recess |
October 12 Light in a Dielectric Pedrotti 535-543
|
October 14 Light in a Dielectric II Pedrotti 535-543 Demo: UV Absorption Exam 1 in |
October 17 Light on a Dielectric Pedrotti 491 - 502 Demo: The Naked Now |
October 19 Light on a Dielectric II Pedrotti 491 - 502
|
October 21 Light on a Dielectric III Demo: The Milky Fishtank Problems 29-32 due |
October 24 Linear Polarizers Pedrotti 341-347;350-355 Demo:Why I can't wear polarized sunglasses |
October 26 Circular Polarizers Pedrotti 341-347;357-361 Demo: Pretty Polarization |
October 28 Other Anisotropies [ppt pdf] Pedrotti 361-369 Demo: Seeing Double with Calcite Problems 33-36 due |
October 31 Huygen's and Fermat's Principles Pedrotti 16-22 |
November 2 Plane Wave Interference Pedrotti 163-169 |
November 4 Young's Double Slit Pedrotti 163-175 Demo: Two Slits Problems 37-41 due |
November 7 Thin Film Interference Pedrotti 175-182 Demo: The Lawrence Welk Memorial Demonstration |
November 9 NO CLASS |
November 11 Multi-Beam Interference Pedrotti 184-188 Demo: Fancy Filters Problems 42-47 due |
November 14 Fraunhofer Diffraction Pedrotti 267-274 Demo: One Slit |
November 16 Aperture Diffraction Pedrotti 274-279 Demo: Diffraction for Squares |
November 18 Double Slit Diffraction Pedrotti 274-279 Demo: Holey Diffraction! Pedrotti 281-288 |
November 21 Multi-Slit Diffraction Demo: Grating on your Optical Nerves |
November 23 Diffraction and Image Formation Pedrotti 279-281 Demo: Fourier Transforms at the Speed of Light Problems 48-52 due |
November 25 NO CLASS Thanksgiving
|
November 28 Scattering Demo: The Polarized Sky |
November 30 The Laser [ppt pdf]
|
December 2 Quantum Optics [ppt pdf] Problems 53-54 due |