View real-time listing of classes and sections offered.
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For students interested in a one-semester survey physics course. Covers the fundamentals of classical and modern physics. Includes mechanics, fluids, heat, waves and sound, electricity and magnetism, light, optical, relativity, atomic and nuclear physics. Includes lectures, classroom interaction, demonstration, and problem solving. Canvas Course Mats $96/Pearson applies.
Examines physics as a field of study. Introduces students to the UVU physics program and faculty research. Develops learning strategies specific to physics coursework and an awareness of available career paths in the sciences.
Is an application-oriented, hands-on introduction to physics and engineering mathematics. Teaches the tools needed to solve problems commonly encountered in the first two years of core physics and engineering courses. Presents topics within the context of a physics or engineering problem, and reinforces through extensive examples and computational tools taken from physics and engineering courses.
Surveys the principles and processes behind nanotechnology and nanomaterials, basic tools for fabrication and characterization of nano and microstructures, and applications of nanotechnology. Examines fundamental principles and laws of electronics, atomic physics, solid-state physics and chemistry that are essential to nanotechnology will be introduced. Includes conducting virtual reality training exercises for tools such as electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, nanolithography, and sputter deposition, and they will then complete hands-on laboratory experiments with these instruments. Covers special topics such as graphene, carbon nanotubes, quantum dots and molecular electronics.
Introduces the science of sound, music and speech and the physical principles and technology used to manipulate, store and broadcast it.
Discovers the principles of physics that form the basis of music and provide the foundation for the design of musical instruments. Investigates the physics of music production, transmission and reception, and perception. Examines the five fundamental elements of the musical instrument, namely power supply, oscillator, resonator, amplifier, and pitch modifiers. Satisfies one general education physical science elective.
Answers the question, "Where does energy come from, and where does it go?". Examines the methods of energy production, distribution, and consumption in society and their environmental impacts. Examines the personal impact of energy use on the environment and explores alternatives, such as fuel cell cars, and a hydrogen economy. Examines prospects for alternative energy sources, such as solar, wind, nuclear and geothermal energy at length. Intended for non-science majors interested in energy use in society.
Uses the medium and modes of flight and modern aviation to introduce elementary physics. Includes vectors, kinematics, forces, momentum, energy, torques, elementary fluid dynamics and thermodynamics. Uses Algebra extensively. Presents and develops concepts of physics as exercises in modeling constructed from examples used in aviation. Canvas Course Mats $72/Pearson applies.
For students desiring a two semester algebra based course in applied physics. Covers mechanics, fluids, waves, heat, and thermodynamics. Canvas Course Mats $78/Pearson applies.
Designed to accompany PHYS 2010. Provides firsthand experience with the laws of mechanics, fluids, waves, heat, thermodynamics, and data analysis. Course Lab fee of $15 applies.
A continuation of PHYS 2010. Covers electricity, magnetism, waves, sound, optics, and nuclear physics.
Designed to accompany PHYS 2020. Provides firsthand experience with the laws of electricity, waves, optics, nuclear physics, and data analysis. Course Lab fee of $15 applies.
Introduces mechanics, fluid dynamics, thermodynamics, vibrations, and waves to the budding scientist or engineer utilizing the quantitative tools of calculus. Includes 1 hour of recitation per week.
Designed to accompany PHYS 2210. Provides firsthand experience with the laws of mechanics, thermal physics, vibrations, and waves. Introduces methods of scientific data analysis. Course Lab fee of $15 applies.
Continues from PHYS 2210. Covers electricity and magnetism, including Maxwell's equations. Develops the theory of electromagnetic waves and optics. Presents introductory electronics and modern physics topics. Includes one hour of recitation.
Accompanies PHYS 2220. Provides students first hand experience with the laws of electricity and magnetism, electric circuits, and optics. Emphasizes principles of data collection and analysis.
Presents a mathematically rigorous introductory description of fluid mechanics, thermodynamics, and heat transfer beyond that presented in PHYS 2210. Presents applications in both physics and engineering.
Covers the thermodynamics and statistical mechanics of biological systems, the mechanics of biologically important molecules, and the laws of fluid mechanics as applied in biological systems. Uses calculus-based mathematical models to treat specific reactions, particularly those treating biological systems as molecular machines.
Covers the atomic structure of materials and their properties, including electronic, thermal, and optical properties. Addresses experimental methods for creating and studying materials, and current topics in materials science including thin films, surface physics, metamaterials, and nanostructured materials.
Working under faculty supervision, allows research on a project determined jointly with a faculty member and approved by the department chair. Emphasizes experimental technique, data collection, modeling, and analysis techniques. May be repeated for no more than six hours of elective credit.
For secondary education students. Emphasizes physics or chemistry. Addresses pedagogical methods for student physics laboratory exercises and demonstrations. Studies currently available commercial laboratory equipment for teaching physics in a lab setting. Includes ideas and methods for building inexpensive demonstrations and lab exercises. Provides training in safe and effective use of lab equipment.
Addresses topics of special relativity, development of quantum mechanics, physics of the atom, elementary solid state physics, and elementary particle physics.
Addresses topics of error analysis and statistics, wave mechanics, special relativity, development of quantum mechanics, and atomic physics.
Introduces selected experiments of classical and modern physics in a laboratory setting. Addresses topics of measurement, error analysis, data analysis, and report writing.
Covers topics in special and general relativity, and addresses applications of modern quantum mechanics including molecular physics, solid state physics, statistical mechanics, nuclear physics, particle physics, and cosmology.
Introduces selected experiments of classical and modern physics in a laboratory setting. Addresses topics of measurement, data analysis, report writing.
Introduces electronic measurement instruments commonly used in experimental physics laboratories. Covers principles of electronic measurements using transducers, solid-state devices, circuit analysis, logic circuits, and computers. Includes lab experience.
Covers the applications of mathematical tools to experimental and theoretical research in the physical sciences. Introduces problems and systems common to physical science that can be modeled by the application of vector and tensor algebra, curvilinear coordinates, linear algebra, complex variables, Fourier series and transforms, differential and integral equations.
Explores mathematics as applied to physics. Covers many families of orthogonal polynomials and the special functions of physics, such as the Gamma, Beta, and Error functions. Presents topics in contour integration and applications of conformal mapping. Investigates probability, random processes, statistical analyses, and probability distribution functions.
Covers computational algorithms with specific applications to the description of physical systems. Covers iterative approximation methods, computations using matrices and vectors, numerical integration, solutions of differential equations. Uses a computer programming approach to problem solving.
Develops programming skills in LabVIEW. Utilizes LabVIEW as the primary interface for analog and digital I/O for applications in physics experiments. Includes a student-directed group project that demonstrates effective use of LabVIEW in hardware interfacing in a physics experiment.
Treats classical mechanics of particles and systems using advanced mathematical techniques. Covers conservation principles, Lagrangian dynamics, harmonic oscillators, motion of rigid bodies and non-inertial reference frames.
Addresses topics of heat, temperature, ideal gases, laws of thermodynamics, entropy, reversibility, thermal properties of solids, phase transitions, thermodynamics of magnetism, and negative temperature.
Covers the phenomena of reflection, refraction, diffraction, interference, optical behavior in materials and lasers. Presents a mathematically rigorous description of optical phenomena. May Include equipment-based class projects.
Introduces the Standard Model of particle physics, which enumerates the elementary particles that make up the universe and describes their interactions. Addresses particle accelerators and detectors. Examines unresolved questions in particle physics and possible extensions to the Standard Model.
Covers the science of energy production and consumption. Quantitatively analyzes various methods of energy production, distribution, and end use in all sectors of our society, including transportation, residential living, and industry. Examines the impacts of our energy consumption on the environment and prospects for alternative energy sources. Is intended for science majors interested in energy use in society or in an energy related career, and for students in other majors who feel that a technical understanding of energy use will help them to understand and mitigate its impact in our society.
Explores the theory and applications of physics to medicine. Covers signal analysis, ultrasound, X-rays, optical, nuclear, and X-ray imaging techniques, nuclear medicine, magnetic resonance imaging, and nanomedicine.
Introduces students to the process of developing, designing, proposing, building, executing, analyzing, revising, and presenting a scientific experiment. Teaches a variety of advanced experimental technical skills and helps students learn to embark independently on scientific research.
Covers radiation, radioactive decay, nuclear structure, interactions of radiation with matter, radiation detection, nuclear reactions, fission, fusion, and applications of nuclear physics.
For licensed teachers or teachers seeking to recertify, an update course in physics and/or basic physics core courses for teachers needing physics or physical science endorsements from the Utah State Office of Education. Teaches principles of physics and pedagogy of teaching physics for teachers in public or private schools. Emphasis will be placed on correlation with the Utah Core Curriculum, the National Science Education Standards, and the Benchmarks of Project 2061. Topics will vary.
Presents directed topics in research methods. Emphasizes practical methodologies in measurement, instrumentation, error analysis, statistical analysis and computational modeling. Requires a class project that may require MATLAB, LABView or other programming languages. Includes producing oral presentations, posters and journal articles using contemporary software and LaTeX.
Explores the theory of electrostatic phenomena in a mathematically rigorous manner. Covers Gauss' Law, the Laplace and Poisson equations, boundary-value problems, and dielectrics.
Explores the theory of electrodynamic phenomena in a mathematically rigorous manner. Covers Ohm's and Kirchhoff's Laws, magnetic induction, the Biot- Savart Law, Ampere's Law, Ferromagnetism, Plasmas, Maxwell's Equations, and Special Relativity.
Covers postulates of quantum mechanics, state functions of quantum systems, Hermitian Operators, the Schrodinger Equation, eigenfunctions of harmonic oscillators, and particles in potential wells.
Covers general principles and applications of quantum mechanics. Addresses topics of three-dimensional problems, angular momentum operators, spin wavefunctions, perturbation theory, applications to atomic, molecular, solid-state, and nuclear physics.
Covers phenomena of sound, resonance, acoustics, and human hearing. Treats associated topics of waves, frequency, vibration and interference using appropriate mathematical tools.
Explores topics relevant to the structure, behavior, and properties of crystalline materials. Includes a study of lattice vibrations, free electrons, semiconductors, superconductivity, dielectric and ferroelectric materials and magnetism.
Provides supervised, practical, and research experience for students preparing for careers in physics. May be repeated for a maximum of 6 credit hours. May be graded credit/no credit.
Allows research on a project determined jointly with a faculty member and approved by the department chair. Emphasizes experimental technique, data collection, modeling, and analysis techniques. May be used as part of a senior thesis. May be repeated for a maximum of 9 credits toward graduation.
Exposes students to current research topics in physics and related fields. Provides an opportunity for students to attend bi-weekly lectures presented by department faculty and invited speakers. Lectures are usually a summary of the speaker's recent research results presented at a level appropriate for junior and senior physics majors.
Studies a chosen topic in physics. Topics vary depending upon student demand. Possible topic may be the mathematics for quantum mechanics. May be taken for a maximum of 6 credits toward graduation, but is limited to 3 credits for the BS in Physics.
Working under faculty supervision, allows research on a project determined jointly with a faculty member and approved by the department chair. Emphasizes experimental technique, data collection, modeling, and analysis techniques. May be used as part of a senior thesis. May be repeated for a maximum of 9 credits toward graduation.
Provides an opportunity for senior physics majors to participate in a current research project supervised by a department faculty member. Includes independent study and/or laboratory work as necessary. Culminates in the preparation of a written paper and oral presentation describing the results of the research project as required for PHYS 499B. May be taken concurrently with PHYS 499B.
Continues PHYS 499A. Provides an opportunity for senior physics majors to present the results of a current research project supervised by a department faculty member. Includes independent study as necessary. Culminates in the preparation of a written paper and oral presentation describing the results of the research project.
