PH350 Classical Physics (Fall 2009)

This is the home page for the course PH350 (Classical Physics) being offered to IIT Madras undergraduates as a part of the minor program in Physics.

Objectives: This is the first course in the Physics minor stream at IIT Madras. It introduces the students to aspects of classical mechanics, statistical physics and to elementary ideas in special relativity.

Assessment

Two scheduled quizzes	15x2	30%
Three surprise quizzes*	10x2	20%
Final	50x1	50%
Total		100%

*Best two contribute to the grade (I haven't forgotten my arithmetic!).

Assignments

There will be several ungraded assignments that will be handed out to the student.

Did I learn anything in this course?

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Course Notes

I plan to include notes (or links to notes by others) on various topics that are discussed in the class lectures.

Handout 1: Scalars, Vectors & Tensors || Handout 2: Lie groups and Lie algebras || Symplectic Matrices || The state of a system || Recap of Thermodynamics || Phase Transitions || Handout 3: Phase transitions of real gases|| Special Relativity || Handout 4: Electromagnetism and Special Relativity || Handout 5: Relativistic Kinematics -- the Compton effect

Online Resources

Prof. Balakrishnan's Classical Physics Lectures on Youtube (Lec 1 on scales is a must view)

Prof. J. B. Tatum's book on Heat and Thermodynamics

Prof. Somen Bhattacharjee's SERC lectures on Critical Phenomena (of a somewhat higher level but the first few sections are worth the effort!)

English Translation of Einstein's 1905 SR paper — This is worth taking a look.

Official Course Content

+ See course content

Dynamics in classical phase space: degrees of freedom, generalized coordinates and velocities, phase space and phase trajectories. Lagrangian formalism, Euler-Lagrange equations. Generalized momenta, Hamiltonian formulation. Periodic and non-periodic motion. Physics examples.

The need for statistical physics. Coarse-graining of phase space. Density of states for physical systems, examples. Microstates and
macrostates. The concept of thermal equilibrium. Ensembles and ensemble averages.

Relationship between thermodynamics and statistical physics.

Ideal and real gases.

Phase transitions. Mean field theory of paramagnet-ferromagnet transition and solid-liquid-gas transitions.

Elementary aspects of special relativity. The principle and postulate of relativity. Lorentz transformations. Length contraction, time dilation. Addition of velocities. Four-vectors.

Symmetry, invariance and conservation principles. Importance of symmetries in physics. Discrete and continuous symmetries. Energy,
momentum and angular momentum conservation. Charge conservation.

Text Books:

1. D.T. Greenwood, Classical Dynamics, Prentice-Hall, New Delhi,1985
2. W. Greiner, Classical Mechanics: Systems of Particles and Hamiltonian Dynamics, Springer-Verlag, New York, 2003.
3. L. N. Hand and J. D. Finch, Analytical Mechanics, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1998.
4. F. Reif, Fundamentals of Statistical and Thermal Physics, McGraw-Hill International Student Edition, New York, 1988.
5. F. Mandl, Statistical Physics, 2nd edition, ELBS & Wiley, New York, 1988.
6. R. Resnick, Introduction to Special Relativity, Wiley Eastern, New Delhi, 1985.

References:

1. T. W. B. Kibble and F. H. Berkshire, Classical Mechanics, 5th edition, Imperial College Press, London, 2004.
2. D. Kleppner and R. J. Kolenkow, An Introduction to Mechanics, Tata McGraw-Hill, New Delhi, 1999.
3. S. T. Thornton and J. B. Marion, Classical Dynamics of Particles and Systems, Brooks Cole, 2003.
4. C. Kittel, Elementary Statistical Physics, Wiley, New York, 1966.
5. A. J. Walton, Three Phases of Matter, 2nd edition, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 1989.
6. J. M. Yeomans, Statistical Mechanics of Phase Transitions, Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1992.
7. W. Rindler, Introduction to Special Relativity, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2004.
8. E. F. Taylor and J. A. Wheeler, Spacetime Physics, W. H. Freeman, San Francisco, 1992.
9. A. P. French, Special Relativity, W. W. Norton, 1968.

Fun stuff

If you have seen the following xkcd cartoon for the rotation matrix,

here is one for a Lorentz boost (courtesy Naveen Sharma):

Last year, this was handed out as an ‘assignment’ to the Physics minor students by me. If you can do any better than Naveen, show me your version.