PHYS406: Subatomic Physics

Lecturer: Irina Mocioiu
Office: Osmond 320G
Email: irina@phys.psu.edu
Website: http://www.phys.psu.edu/~irina/sap.html

Prerequisites: Phys410: Introductory Quantum Mechanics
Credits: 3

Schedule: Tu,Th 2:30P - 3:45P, 202 Electrical Engineering West
Office hours: Osmond 320G: We 10:00A - 11:00A and by appointment

Textbook:   A.Das, T.Ferbel, Introduction to Nuclear and Particle Physics will be the primary textbook for the course, even though it will not always be followed closely. Additional materials will be added to the course website on a regular basis.

Description: This course will provide an overview of ideas of subatomic physics (elementary particle and nuclear physics) and, briefly, nuclear astrophysics. Very few derivations will be provided. The course is aimed at senior undergraduate students who have some understanding of electromagnetism, special relativity, and quantum mechanics.

Goals: By the end of the course students will have a good understanding of our present description of matter and its interactions and how this was achieved. Appreciating how we know what we cannot see (or touch, hear, etc.) and the power of indirect observation is a major step toward understanding subatomic physics and will be emphasized throughout the course. The students will also learn about unsolved problems that are under investigation in present research. This course will also provide a step toward independent learning, increasing students' capacity to acquire knowledge and understanding of new material on their own, for example, by reading books, magazines, newspapers, and scientific journals.

Objectives: I will provide fairly explicit learning objectives throughout the course, at the beginning of each unit of study (chapter in the textbook, topic, etc.). The assigned homework problems will always provide an implicit list of objectives. Some of the more general objectives are listed below. Students will:
     make quick order-of-magnitude estimates.
     make use of symmetries and conservation laws in order to easily solve complex problems.
     use simple physical system as a model for understanding the behavior of a more complex system.
     identify elementary particles and the type of fundamental interaction responsible for a given elementary process.
     describe some particle detection techniques
     identify some applications of nuclear or particle physics processes and the environments where these might be relevant.

Grading:
      Exams:    
            Midterm 1: 20%, Th October 15
            Midterm 2: 20%, Tu. Dec. 8
            The first midterm tests the material covered in class up to one week before the exam (October 8). The second midterm tests the material covered in class up to
            one week before the exam (December 1st) and not covered by the first midterm.
      A project on a subject in particle/nuclear physics/ astrophysics: 20%:
            10-15 page essay (12pt fonts); please email file by December 18
              Possible topics for essay. Please email me your choice of topic before October 22nd.
      Homeworks: 40%
      Grading scale:

Homework:
Homeworks will be posted on the website. There will be about one homework per topic. They should be a good assessment for reaching the course objectives. The scope of the assigned homework is to help you learn the material and learn from difficulties you encounter. You are expected to work yourselves through the course material. You are encouraged to discuss the course material among yourselves. If you have questions please feel free to ask them! Homework must be handed in on time in lecture. The solutions should be clearly written, showing all the steps and arguments. Late homework will be penalized at the rate of 1 point per day (out of 10 points). You are encouraged to discuss homework problems with your classmates, but you must write up your solutions on your own.

Course notes
Chadwick paper
Intro
Nuclear structure
Radioactivity
Fission,fusion
Linear attenuation coefficient
X-ray mass coefficients
Electron Gamma Shower (EGS)
Strong Interactions
Weak Interactions
Cloud Chamber movies

Additional reading material
Particle Data Group http://pdg.lbl.gov : very convenient source of particle physics information.
You can also order for free: Particle Physics Booklet (320 pages); Review of Particle Physics (1200 pages, if you need more detailed information); Pocket Diary for Physicists (just for fun). These materials contain the same information you can find on the website.
Other books:
R.Cahn and G.Goldhaber, The experimental foundations of Particle Physics (1989).
B.R. Martin, Nuclear and particle physics, an introduction (2006).
W.S.C. Williams, Nuclear and Particle Physics (1991)
W.N. Cottingham and D.A. Greenwood, An introduction to Nuclear Physics (2001) for the nuclear part of the course.
H.Frauenfelder and E.M.Henley Subatomic Physics (2007) (the first part).
B.R. Martin, G. Shaw, Particle Physics (1997)

Topics to be covered:
Introduction and overview: particles and forces. (1/2 week)
Elements of special relativity. (1/2 week)
Nuclear structure: the simplest models of nuclear structure: Fermi gas model, Liquid Drop Model, the shell model. (2 weeks)
Applications of nuclear physics: technology, medical, etc. (1/2 week)
Nuclear Astrophysics: Stellar energy, Nucleosynthesis, Stellar Collapse and neutron stars. Big Bang. Cosmic rays. (1 week)
Particle zoo: leptons, quarks, hadrons, gauge bosons. (1 week)
Conservation laws and symmetries. (1 week)
Bound states. (1 week)
Feynman diagrams and visualization of electromagnetic, weak interactions. (1 week)
Elements of electromagnetic interactions. (1 week)
Neutrino masses and neutrino oscillations. (1 week)
Hadron interactions and ideas of quantum chromodynamics. (1 week)
Standard model and beyond.(1 week)
Your suggestion (if time allows).
Visit to on-campus nuclear reactor. (tentatively Nov. 19)
The time allocated for each subject might change depending on student feedback