Ateneo - UPO

The course illustrates the fundamental elements of electromagnetism and optics.

R. Wolfson, “Fisica” vol. 2 (Pearson)
M. Mazzoldi, P. Nigro, C. Voci, “Elementi di Fisica” vol. 2 (EdiSES)
D. Halliday, R. Resnick, J. Walker, “Fondamenti di Fisica”, vol. 2 (Zanichelli)

Knowledge of the main electric and magnetic phenomena and of the theory of electromagnetism. Conceptual and quantitative understanding of the following topics: electric and magnetic field, electromagnetic phenomena, the nature of light and optical phenomena.
Ability to apply this knowledge to the description of relevant physical systems and to the resolution of specific problems.
The student must achieve a certain mastery of the topics covered in the course, which manifests itself both through the analytical and synthetic exposition of the subject, and through the ability to face and solve numerical problems.

Basics of algebra, geometry, vector calculus and mathematical analysis (derivatives and integrals of functions of one or more variables).

In class lectures

The slides of the lectures will be made available on DIR.

Oral exam

Electricity
Electric charge. Quantization and conservation of the electric charge.
Conductors, insulators, semiconductors.
Electric field. Gauss's law for the electric field and applications. Coulomb's force. Electric potential and applications.
Capacitors: capacitance of a capacitor, electrostatic energy of a capacitor.
Electric current. Resistance and Ohm's law. Conductivity and electrical resistivity.
Energy and electrical power. Electric circuits and Kirchhoff's laws. Measurements of voltages, currents and resistances.

Magnetism
Magnetic field. Magnetic force (of Lorentz). Ampère's law and applications.
Gauss's law for the magnetic field. Motion of a charged particle in a magnetic field. Force between current carrying wires.
Electromagnetism
Electromagnetic induction: Faraday-Lenz law. Self-induction and inductance. Circuits in alternating current.
Maxwell's equations.

Electromagnetic waves and optics
General characteristics, spectrum and intensity of an electromagnetic wave. The light. Propagation in a medium and refractive index. Geometrical optics.
Dispersion. Interference and diffraction. Photons.

"Knowledge and understanding": Acquisition of in-depth knowledge on the basic phenomena of physics,of knowledge of the concepts and main applications of the fundamental laws of classical physics (mechanics, thermodynamics, optics and electromagnetism), acquisition of an appropriate scientific language.

“Applied knowledge and understanding”: knowing how to identify the data necessary to characterize a physical phenomenon; ability to interpret data and understand orders of magnitude, ability to apply the fundamental principles and laws of physics to solve problems and describe natural phenomena. Ability to use the provided didactic material for a critical and reasoned study.

"Autonomy of judgment": acquisition of a conscious autonomy of judgment with reference to the evaluation and interpretation of physical phenomena and experimental data, with particular attention to the ability to observe, describe and compare the phenomena of physics, to the ability to propose generalizations and the ability to apply theoretical models to solve problems.

"Communication skills": improvement of the disciplinary lexicon in the field of physics.

"Learning skills": acquisition of the ability to acquire, deepen and update independently, through the reading of scientific texts. Ability to use the didactic material for a critical and reasoned study.