Overview
This is the first semester of the required physics course for biologists, pharmacists and geologists. The main subjects covered are mechanics and thermodynamics. Knowledge of high school level mathematics is required, including understanding of basic geometry, trigonometry, vectors and calculus (derivatives and integrals). See university course description
Format and Requirements
The course consists of two 2-hour lectures per week and one 2-hour exercise session per week. Optional exercises will be assigned and reviewed in the exercise sessions throughout the semester. The final exam is based on and resembles these exercises. The lectures and exercise sessions are conducted in English. Whenever possible, all course materials, including exercises and the final exam will be available in both English and German. The lecturers are Prof. Dr. Dominik Zumbühl and Prof. Dr. Michel Calame.
- The language of the lecture and the exercise classes is English. For better understanding all exercise sheets are also available in German
- The exercise classes are optional. Students do not have to hand in solutions of the exercises. However, the participation is highly recommended for the preparation of the exam.
- The students are distributed in an alphabetic order among their study program (Bio, Pharma, Geo). Bachelor of Arts students and other studies are attributed to Biology for the exercise classes. See overview sheet of the exercise classes here. Exercise classes cannot be changed.
- The exercise classes start the week after the first lecture, namely on Tuesday/Wednesday, 25./26.09.2018
- The exercise sheets and solutions are published online in the ADAM folder of the lecture: link
Schedule
Lectures: Thursdays and Fridays, 10:15 - 12:00, Grosser Hörsaal (1.03)
Exercise session: Schedule
Exam
Date: to be announcedTwo hour written exam, similar to problem sets, comprised of all topics from the lecture and exercise classes. The exam will be both in English and German.
Exam regulations (see
- A pocket calculator
- One A4 sheet with handwritten text on both sides
- A formulary (either one of the recommended ones from the lecture or your own, no notes inside allowed; post-its to mark pages are allowed)
- A dictionary
- Devices with wireless internet access are completely forbidden
Literature
The course is based on Physik für Mediziner, Biologen, Pharmazeuten, 8. Auflage (pdf) by Trautwein, Kreibig and Hüttermann (De Gruyter, 2014) in German. The recommended English textbook is Physics for Scientists and Engineers, Vol 1, 6th Edition by Paul A. Tipler, Gene Mosca (Freeman and Co., 2008) or - for a full version including material beyond this course - Physics for Scientists and Engineers, 6th Edition by Paul A. Tipler, Gene Mosca (Freeman and Co., 2008). Specific readings in both books are recommended in preparation for each lecture below. In addition, a German skriptum which covers the topics of the course can be purchased in class or downloaded (pdf). A German version of the Tipler text book, Physik für Wissenschaftler und Ingenieure, 7. Auflage by Paul A. Tipler, Gene Mosca and Jenny Wagner (Springer, 2008) (pdf), is available in online form as is a work book, Arbeitsbuch zu Tipler/Mosca Physik by David Mills and Alexander Knochel (Springer, 2008) (pdf), with practice problems and solutions.
Thursday
Friday
20.09.2018 - Introduction and Math review
Introduction, course organization, outline and expectations; literature; mathematical review: vectors, geometry, trigonometry, derivates, integrals
Trautwein (German): chapters A.3, A.5
Tipler (English): chapters 1-6, 1-7, M-7, M-8, M-11, M-12
Lecturer: Prof. Dr. Zumbühl
04.10.2018 - Mass and Force I
Mass; inertia; Newton's laws; gravity; inertial forces
Trautwein (German): chapters 2. to 2.2.5
Tipler (English): chapter 4
Lecturer: Dr. Mohammad Samani
Downloads: Notes+Slides, Reading
05.10.2018 - Mass and Force II
Torque; moment of inertia; angular momentum; centre of mass
Trautwein (German): chapters 2.2.6 to 2.2.9
Tipler (English): chapter 5
Lecturer: Dr. Mohammad Samani
Downloads: Notes+Slides, Reading
11.10.2018 - Work, Energy and Power I
Friction, work, energy, power, forms of energy and power
Trautwein (German): chapter 3
Tipler (English): chapter 6
Lecturer: Prof. Dr. Zumbühl
Downloads: Notes+Slides, Reading
12.10.2018 - Work, Energy and Power II
Friction, work, energy, power, forms of energy and power
Trautwein (German): chapter 3
Tipler (English): chapter 6
Lecturer: Prof. Dr. Zumbühl
Downloads: Notes+Slides, Reading
18.10.2018 - Conservation Laws I
Conservation of energy, conservation of momentum
Trautwein (German): chapter 4 to 4.3
Tipler (English): chapters 7, 8 (excluding 7-4, 7-5)
Lecturer: Dr. Taras Patlatiuk
Downloads: Notes+Slides, Reading
19.10.2018 - Conservation Laws II
Conservation of angular momentum
Trautwein (German): chapter 4.4
Tipler (English): chapters 9, 10 (excluding 10-4)
Lecturer: Dr. Taras Patlatiuk
Downloads: Notes+Slides, Reading
25.10.2018 - Mechanical Properties of Solids
Binding, molecular picture, forms of matter, properties of solids
Trautwein (German): chapter 5 to 5.2
Tipler (English): chaptes 37, 38-1, 12
Lecturer: Prof. Dr. Zumbühl
Downloads: Notes+Slides, Reading
26.10.2018 - Mechanical Properties of Liquids I
Properties of liquids, surface tension, hydrostatics, capillary forces
Trautwein (German): chapter 5.3 to 5.3.2.1
Tipler (English): chapter 13
Lecturer: Prof. Dr. Zumbühl
Downloads: Notes+Slides, Reading
01.11.2018 - Mechanical Properties of Liquids II
Pressure in fluids, hydrodynamics, continuity equation
Trautwein (German): chapter 5.3.2.2 to 5.3.3.1
Tipler (English): chapter 13
Lecturer: Prof. Dr. Zumbühl
Downloads: Notes+Slides,
02.11.2018 - Mechanical Properties of Liquids III
Viscosity, laminar flow, turbulence
Trautwein (German): chapter 5.3.3.2 to 5.3.3.2.4
Tipler (English): chapter 13
Lecturer: Prof. Dr. Zumbühl
Downloads: Notes+Slides
08.11.2018 - Mechanical Vibrations I
Harmonic oscillators, pendulum, undamped oscillator, damped oscillator, driven oscillations
Trautwein (German): chapter 6 to 6.4
Tipler (English): chapter 14
Lecturer: Prof. M. Calame
Downloads: Notes+Slides
09.11.2018 - Machanical Vibrations II
Anharmonic oscillations, superposition, decomposition, beating, coupled pendulum
Trautwein (German): chapter 6.5 to 6.6
Tipler (English): chapter 14
Lecturer: Prof. M. Calame
Downloads: Notes+Slides
15.11.2018 - Waves I
Propagation of vibrations, acoustics, Doppler effect
Trautwein (German): chapter 7 to 7.4
Tipler (English): chapter 15
Lecturer: Prof. M. Calame
Downloads: Notes+Slides
16.11.2018 - Waves II
Damped waves, anharmonic waves, superposition of waves, Huygens' principle
Trautwein (German): chapter 7.5 to 7.8
Tipler (English): chapter 15
Lecturer: Prof. M. Calame
Downloads: Notes+Slides
22.11.2018 - Waves III
Interfaces, standing waves, music, human voice, ultrasound
Trautwein (German): chapter 7.9 to 7.13
Tipler (English): chapter 16
Lecturer: Prof. M. Calame
Downloads: Notes+Slides
23.11.2018 - Heat and Temperature
Definition of temperature, heat energy, heat capacity, temperature scales, temperature measurements
Trautwein (German): chapter 8
Tipler (English): chapter 17-1, 17-2, 18-1
Lecturer: Prof. M. Calame
Downloads: Notes+Slides
29.11.2018 - Macroscopic Thermal Effects
Thermal expansion, heat transport, internal energy and introduction to 1st law of thermodynamics
Trautwein (German): chapter 13. to 13.2
Tipler (English): chapter 20-1, 20-4, 18-3
Lecturer:
Downloads: Notes + Slides
30.11.2018 - Dies Academicus
No lecture
06.12.2018 - Ideal Gases
Ideal gas law, change of state, adiabatic changes, gas pressure, kinetic gas theory
Trautwein (German): chapter 9, 10
Tipler (English): chapter 17-3, 17-4
Lecturer:
Downloads: Notes + Slides
07.12.2018 - Kinetic Gas Theory
Kinetic energy and temperature, equipartition, brownian motion, work, heat capacity, real gases
Trautwein (German): chapter 10, 11
Tipler (English): chapter 17-4, 18-1, 18-2
Lecturer: Prof. M. Calame
Downloads: Notes + Slides
13.12.2018 - Law of Thermodynamics I
Internal energy, 1st law, reversible and irreversible process, entropy
Trautwein (German): chapter 12.1 to 12.4
Tipler (English): chapter 18-3, 18-4, 18-5, 18-6, 18-7, 18-8, 18-9
Lecturer:
Downloads: Notes + Slides
14.12.2018 - Law of Thermodynamics II
2nd law, energy balance, heat engines
Trautwein (German): chapter 12.5
Tipler (English): chapter 19
Lecturer: Prof. M. Calame
Downloads: Notes + Slides
20.12.2018 - Thermal Properties of Matter
Mixing, solutions, diffusion, osmosis
Trautwein (German): chapter 13.3 to 13.3.7.6
Tipler (English): chapter 20-2, 20-3
Lecturer:
Downloads: Notes + Slides