Course Outline

Electromagnetism provides a complete description of electric and magnetic forces, which determine all interactions between charged objects. Much of the material world consists of charged particles and the combination of the range and strength of electric and magnetic forces means that these are the dominant interactions which govern our everyday experience. Maxwell's unified description of electric and magnetic forces and the link that he established between electromagnetic waves and light were the crowning glory of 19th century physics. Much of our understanding of the physical world and our abilities for manipulating it stem from the body of work which he synthesized.

Physics 311 offers detailed coverage of the key concepts and techniques of classical electromagnetism, leading up to Maxwell's equations and using the full tools of vector algebra and calculus. One goal of this course is to expose you to the fundamental concepts and mathematical techniques of this theory, which plays an important role in theoretical discussions in most subfields of physics. But electromagnetism is more than a mere theoretical endeavor; it enters into the majority of experiments in the physical sciences. The second goal of this course is to equip you with the theory which is crucial for understanding and managing experimental and applied aspects of the physical sciences.

The course will cover the following topics subject to minor modifications.

  1. Vector algebra and vector calculus.
  2. Electrostatics, Coulomb's law, Gauss' law.
  3. Work and energy in electrostatics, electric potential, Poisson's equation, Laplace's equation.
  4. Multipoles.
  5. Magnetic fields and forces, Biot-Savart law, Ampere's law, magnetic vector potential.
  6. Induction, Faraday's law.
  7. Maxwell's equations.
  8. Electric fields in matter, polarization, dielectrics.

Homework Assignments

Due: 23 August 2019 Homework 1
Due: 27 August 2019 Homework 2
Due: 30 August 2019 Homework 3
Due: 3 September 2019 Homework 4
Due: 6 September 2019 Homework 5
Due: 10 September 2019 Homework 6
Due: 13 September 2019 Homework 7
Due: 17 September 2019 Homework 8
Due: 20 September 2019 Homework 9
Due: 24 September 2019 Homework 10
Due: 27 September 2019 Homework 11
Due: 1 October 2019 Homework 12
Due: 10 October 2019 Homework 13
Due: 15 October 2019 Homework 14
Due: 22 October 2019 Homework 15
Due: 25 October 2019 Homework 16
Due: 29 October 2019 Homework 17
Due: 1 November 2019 Homework 18
Due: 5 November 2019 Homework 19
Due: 8 November 2019 Homework 20
Due: 12 November 2019 Homework 21
Due: 19 November 2019 Homework 22
Due: 22 November 2019 Homework 23
Due: 5 December 2019 Homework 24

Exams

There will be two hour long exams during class on the following dates: Friday 4 October 2019 and Friday 15 November 2019. There will be a comprehensive final exam on Wednesday 11 December 2019.

Exams and solutions from previous semesters.

Fall 2014 Class exam 1
Fall 2014 Class exam 1: Solutions
Fall 2014 Class exam 2
Fall 2014 Class exam 2: Solutions
Fall 2014 Final exam
Fall 2014 Final exam: Solutions
Fall 2017 Class exam 1
Fall 2017 Class exam 1: Solutions
Fall 2017 Class exam 2
Fall 2017 Class exam 2: Solutions
Fall 2017 Final exam
Fall 2017 Final exam: Solutions

Exams and solutions from this semester.

Solutions will be posted after each exam has been graded.

Fall 2019 Class exam 1
Fall 2019 Class exam 1: Solutions
Fall 2019 Class exam 2
Fall 2019 Class exam 2: Solutions

Supplementary Reading

There are many additional texts which are potentially suitable for this course. The following is a selection.

  1. Electromagnetism

    1. R. P. Feynman, R. B. Leighton and M. Sands, Lectures on Physics, Vol II, Addison-Wesley (1965).

      Pitched somewhere between a sophomore and junior level text, this is still a classic. Feynman was renowned for his unique approaches at explaining physics.

    2. P. Lorrain, D. R. Corson and F. Lorrain, Fundamentals of Electromagnetic Phenomena, Freeman (2000).

      Another standard undergraduate level text.

    3. R. K. Wangsness, Electromagnetic Fields, Wiley (1986).

      Similar to other undergraduate electromagnetism texts but includes a chapter on waveguides.

    4. L. Eyges, The Classical Electromagnetic Field, Dover (1972).

      More of an introductory graduate level text but sections are still accessible to an undergraduate audience. This is generally an excellent text.

    5. A. Zangwill, Modern Electrodynamics, Cambridge University Press(2012).

      Excellent graduate-level text.

    6. J. D. Jackson, Classical Electrodynamics, John Wiley (1998).

      The default graduate level text, probably more as a result of its scope than its explanatory qualities. Encyclopedic but frequently confusing coverage of everything to do with electromagnetism. Tortuous problems.

Links and Animations

  1. Reference Sources
    1. Physlink Reference information and data, including decimal system notation, physical constants, math constants, astro-physical constants, etc,....
    2. Eric Weinstein's World of Physics Encyclopedia of Physics maintained by Wolfram Research. Entries at a variety of technical levels.
    3. Periodic Table of Elements WebElements site.
    4. NIST Databases Administered by the National Institute for Standards and Technology. The final word in physical data. Intended for professionals.
  2. Animations
    1. PhET From the University of Colorado.
    2. LTU Applets Collection of simulations provided by Scott Schneider, Lawrence Technological University.
    3. Animations for Physics and Astronomy Collection of simulations from the Penn State University, Schuylkill.
    4. Physclips Collection of simulations from the University of New South Wales, Australia.
  3. Electrostatics
    1. Electric Field Hockey. PhET simulation from the University of Colorado.
    2. Charges and Fields. PhET simulation from the University of Colorado.
    3. Electrostatics applet. Applet from Paul Falstad.
    4. Capacitor Lab. PhET simulation from the University of Colorado.
    5. Trapped Ions for Quantum Information Processing. From the University of Innsbruck.
    6. Trapped Ion Quantum Information. From Chris Monroe's group, University of Maryland.
  4. Magnetic Fields
    1. Magnets and Electromagnets. PhET simulation from the University of Colorado.
    2. Charged Particles in Magnetic Fields. From the Penn State University, Schuylkill.