Learning of electromagnetism principles and laws, stationary and time-dependent, including simple analysis methods.
Course Prerequisites
Concepts and methods from 1st year courses. In particular: vector calculus, vector derivatives and fundamental theorems related to gradient, divergence and rotor. In addition, it is essential to have good knowledge of all topics covered in the Physics 1 course.
Teaching Methods
Lectures (hour/year): 45 Excercise classes (hour/year): 38 Practical activities (hour/year): 0 Lectures are based on explanations and practical examples, using the blackboard. Excercise classes consists in solution of problems and exam exercises on the blackboard, encouraging students’ active participation.
Assessment Methods
The examination is conducted with a written test and a possible oral test. All students may participate in the oral test if they want a grade higher than 24/30 (maximum grade obtainable with the written alone). The lecturer, on a discretionary basis, may require that a student also take the oral test compulsorily if the written is not completely sufficient or is not carried out clearly. The written test lasts 2 hours and is required to solve 6 problems. Normally 3 correctly solved exercises guarantee passing the exam. The oral test is concerned with a review of the written paper and other possible follow-up questions on general course topics, with the degree of complexity depending on the student's preparation. The duration of the oral test is 15-20 minutes.
Texts
Reference textbook: Mazzoldi-Nigro-Voci, ISBN: 8879591525. There are many equivalent textbooks, however. The main course information can be found on KIRO e-learning platform. In addition, information, exam texts and background notes can be found on the course website, which is continuously updated: https://sites.google.com/unipv.it/fisica2-bioing/home
Contents
Electric phenomena in vacuum Coulomb force; electric field, potential energy and electric potential Electrical phenomena in dense media Conductors, capacitors, dielectrics, electric current Magnetic phenomena in vacuum Lorentz force, magnetic field, Biot-Savart law, Ampère law, induction Magnetism in the matter Fields M and H Electromagnetic waves in vacuum Maxwell equations, energy, power and intensity of the field, radiation pressure Interference, diffraction and polarization Waves in dense media Reflection, refraction, optics
