This course continues the development of physical principles introduced in the core physics curriculum. Direct application of Newton's laws is used to analyze phenomena such as projectile motion with air resistance, charged particle motion, and motion in a central force field. Harmonic, driven, and damped oscillations are studied in depth, as are systems of coupled oscillators. The formalism of Lagrangian mechanics is studied in depth. The mathematical tools of classical mechanics are introduced, to include vector fields, line integrals, the calculus of variations, linear algebra, and eigenvalue equations. Cadets will be required to develop and demonstrate the ability to use a computer algebra system to solve advanced problems and plot the solutions.
This course continues the development of physical principles introduced in the core physics curriculum. Direct application of Newton's laws is used to analyze phenomena such as projectile motion with air resistance, charged particle motion, and motion in a central force field. Harmonic, driven, and damped oscillations are studied in depth, as are systems of coupled oscillators. The formalism of Lagrangian mechanics is studied in depth. The mathematical tools of classical mechanics are introduced, to include vector fields, line integrals, the calculus of variations, linear algebra, and eigenvalue equations. Cadets will be required to develop and demonstrate the ability to use a computer algebra system to solve advanced problems and plot the solutions.
This course continues the development of concepts introduced in PH203 and PH204. Direct applications of Newton's laws are used to analyze such phenomena as motion under the influence of central forces, motion in noninertial frames of reference, and motion of rigid bodies. The elegant formalisms of Lagrange and Hamilton are studied to provide a foundation for connecting classical mechanics, quantum mechanics, and statistical mechanics.
This course continues the development of concepts introduced in PH201. Direct applications of Newton's Laws are used to analyze such phenomena as motion under the influence of central forces, motion in non-inertial frames of reference, and motion of rigid bodies. The elegant formalisms of Lagrange and Hamilton are studied to provide a foundation for connecting classical mechanics, quantum mechanics, and statistical mechanics.
