PHY3207 Nuclear and High-Energy Particle Physics

2001-2002

Code: PHY3207
Title: Nuclear and High-Energy Particle Physics
Instructors: Staff of Foreign Host Institution
CATS credits: 15
ECTS credits: 7.5
Availability: Physics programmes with study abroad only
Level: 3
Pre-requisites: none
Co-requisites: none
Background Assumed: none
Duration: As agreed
Directed Study Time: 45 lectures (approx)
Private Study Time: 105 hours (approx)
Assessment Tasks Time: Included in private study total
Supports School Aims: 1, 2 and 4
Supports School Objectives: 1, 5, 6 and 12
Observation report: not applicable

Aims

Nuclear physics is an important area of application of the ideas of quantum physics, with applications that have significant impact globally. High-energy particle physics discovers and tests the laws of physics at the extreme limits accessible to human experiments. This module will provide a sound understanding of the physical principles underlying these areas.

Intended Learning Outcomes

Students will be able to:

• explain the basic concepts of nuclear physics;
• be able to apply them to the spectra and stability of nuclear systems;
• describe the principles of fission and fusion;
• identify sequences of particles as energy excitations of a ground state,
• identify the quantum numbers that distinguish these sequences and use their conservation to analyse production processes,
• state the relevant conservation laws and use them in analysing meson decays,
• describe the basic weak interaction processes and the significant experiments that elucidate the nature of these
• describe the quark model and be able to construct the quark composition of particles,
• explain the significance of symmetry to the multiplet-structure of elementary particles,
• solve problems on topics included in the syllabus.

Transferable Skills

Methods of detecting radiation.

Learning and Teaching Methods

Lectures and problems sessions

Assignments

Follow host institution's conventions

Assessment

Mid-semester papers (1 hr) and a final examination (3 hrs)

Syllabus Plan and Content

1. Nuclear Physics
   1. Nuclear models and nuclear properties; detection methods
   2. Radioactive decay (alpha, beta, gamma)
   3. Nuclear reactions, fission and fusion
   4. Leptons, nucleons, hadrons, quarks and baryons. Symmetries and groups.
2. High-Energy Physics
   1. QED
      Relativistic quantum theory of electromagnetic interactions; antiparticles, electrodynamics of spinless particles, Dirac equation, electrodynamics of spin-1/2 particles.
   2. Partons
      Structure of hadrons, gluons.
   3. QCD
      Relativistic quantum theory of the strong interactions of quarks and gluons.
   4. Weak-interactions
      General structure, non-conservation of parity, massive neutrinos, neutrino experiments. Inverse [beta] decay. Two-neutrino experiment. CP violation in [beta] decay.
   5. Gauge symmetries
      Gauge bosons

Recommended Modules and Texts in Host Institution

Host Institution	Module	Text
Central Michigan	N/A. Take PHY3135 at Stage 4.
Iowa State	537 (Spring)	D. Griffiths, Introduction to Elementary Particles
Kansas	741 (Spring)	K Krane, Introductory Nuclear Physics
New Mexico	540 (According to demand)
Sydney	TBA
Wollongong	TBA

Core Text

Not applicable

Supplementary Text(s)

Not applicable

Formative Mechanisms

Follows host institution's conventions

Evaluation Mechanisms

In addition to using the host institution's systems, students can raise any matters of concern with the Stage 3 Study Abroad Co-ordinator.