General physics: Electricity [SPHYB126]
- 8 credits
- 52h+36h
- 2nd quarter
Language of instruction: French / FrançaisTeacher: Sporken Robert
Learning outcomes
Understand the basic concepts of electromagnetism and use them in simple situations. Apply mathematical tools (calculus) to describe physical phenomena. Develop critical thinking and rigourous scientific reasoning.
Objectives
Understand the basic concepts of electromagnetism and use them in simple situations. Apply mathematical tools (calculus) to describe physical phenomena. Develop critical thinking and rigourous scientific reasoning.
Content
Electrostatics: Electrostatic charge and field, Gauss's law, electrostatic potential, conductor in static condition, capacitors, energy of a distribution of charges..
Direct currents: Electric current, Ohm's law, conductivity, semiconductors, principle and characteristics of generators, charging and discharging of a capacitor.
Magnetism: Magnetic field, Lorentz force, motion of charged particles in electric and magnetic fields, Hall effect, cyclotron, Laplace force, Biot-Savart law, Ampere's law, magnetic field produced by a solenoid, force between two currents, Faraday's law, Lenz's law, eddy currents, self-induction.
Alternating currents: Definition, instantaneous quantities, amplitude and rms values, impedance, passive circuits in steady state.
Teaching methods
Lectures illustrated by experiments or slide shows as needed. This course is completed by practical work and problem solving sessions. It is possible to review some parts, at the request of the students, during dedicated sessions in small groups. Video recordings of most of the lectures from prevous years are available on webcampus.
Evaluations
Oral examination. The student is given two questions relating to different chapters of the course. The student will also have to solve at least one exercise. The student prepares the answers for about one hour and then presents the answer orally. Students are expected to use rigorous scientific arguments including appropriate mathematics. They should demonstrate thorough understanding of the physical meaning of the results and be able to present results in a meaningful way, including graphs, tables, and numerical values.
The exam covers the topics that has been presented during the lectures and problem solving session; a detailed list is published in the "General Information" section on webcampus before the start of the examination session.
A short summary of each lecture is available on webcampus (see the "summaries" sub-sections under electrostatics, direct current, magnetism and alternating current). For the practical exercises, an examination is organised separately. The student is given two questions that require him/her to repeat two parts of the experiments. The evaluation of the practical part also takes into account the questions asked during the year and the laboratory notebook. It accounts for 25% of the final grade. If the student does not participate in one or more parts of the examination (oral, practical work), the assessment will result in a mark of 0/20, regardless of the result of the weighted average.
Recommended readings
1. The lecture notes 2. The course website on the Webcampus platform
Language of instruction
French / FrançaisLocation for course
NAMUROrganizer
Faculté des sciencesRue de Bruxelles, 61
5000 NAMUR
Degree of Reference
Undergraduate Degree| Block | Credits | |
|---|---|---|
| Bachelier en sciences physiques | 1 | 8 |
