Advanced Physics Lab

PHY 335Z
Spring 2020
Lecture: Wed 12:35PM - 1:30PM, PH 225
Lab Sections to be held in ES B14

Prof. Kevin H. Knuth
Physics Department
University at Albany
Albany NY USA
 

News

Experiments @ Home section added

Essay Opportunities for PRIZE money and class credit:
Mission to Mars Research Challenge (Deadline March 30)
Undecidability, Uncomputability, and Unpredictability Essay Contest (Deadline April 24)
Serious entries into any one of Essay Contests can be submitted as a Lab Report. Prizes/Scholarships are as much as $10,000.

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I hope that you are all doing well.

I am working on developing a handful of experiments that you will be able to perform from home. These will be posted as soon as I have thoroughly vetted them.

I am expecting to carry on with our weekly lecture most probably with Zoom or the like. The first lecture to be performed this way will be next week Wednesday at the usual time of 12:35.

This will be challenging for all of us. Please email me if you expect any problems.

It will be best, at this point, to send ALL of your emails to me (for the class) at kknuth@albany.edu

Most of all, please let me know if you are having problems with anything.

I expect that we are all smart enough to not just pull this off, but to do a brilliant job of it. Remember that Isaac Newton made his discoveries of gravity and optics while Cambridge University was closed because of the Great Plague.

Introduction

This course consists of one lecture (in PH 225)
and
three hours of laboratory time (in ES B14) per week.
Attendance during the Wednesday lecture will be taken. Each lecture will be worth one point of credit to be added to your final score.

You will perform 5 advanced physics experiments during the semester. Each experiment is expected to take two weeks (at least two lab sessions) to complete.

For four of the experiments, you will get to choose which experiment you and your lab partner want to do, and when to do them. There will be an online sign-up sheet where you will sign up and reserve equipment for an experiment for a las session of your choice.

The 'Z' in APHY 335Z stands for writing emphasis. For this reason, much of the focus of this class is on learning how to write a scientific paper, which we will refer to as a lab report.

Each Lab Report must be emailed to knuthclass@gmail.com before 11:59pm on the due date along with a completed Checklist. An identical printout of the report must also be physically turned in to my mailbox in PH 216 within three days after the due date.

I am offering 5pts extra credit for attending any SPS talk (Thu. nights 7:30pm PH 129), 5pts extra credit for attending any Tuesday Seminar (Tue. 3:pm PH 129), and 5 pts extra credit for attending any Physics Colloquium (Fridays, 3pm, PH 129) for a maximum of 15 points. To obtain credit, you must fill out this Extra-Credit Form, have it signed by the talk organizer, and submit it to Prof. Knuth.

Please sign up for labs using the SignUp Genius invitations. There are three Lab Slots each week. Any group of two can sign up for any slot (regardless of what you registered for). These are in

You will be able to select lab partners during the first day of lecture.

The work schedule for the semester is:

Note that after FRI May 1, the lab will be closed.
The last day of class will be on Wednesday, Apr 29.

MUST READ:
How to Write an Abstract
Dealing with uncertainties
Tips on Scientific Writing (Morrison)
Writing Tips (Knuth)
Lab#1 Writing Example

Important Downloads:
MSWord Template File (docx format)(doc format)
LaTeX Template File
AIP Style Guide
Lab Writing Guidelines
AIP Preparing a Scientific Paper
Uncertainty


Technical Reports can be written using your favorite word processor. However, they should be submitted in pdf format.
Latex or Revtex papers will be accepted with extra credit.

Syllabus

Course Description: Introduction to the techniques of experimental research in modern physics. Measurement technique and error analysis are emphasized, as is technical report writing, research presentations, and independence in the laboratory.
3 credits.
Prerequisite(s): A grade of B or better in APHY 250 or permission of instructor

Expectations
In this class, you will be expected to perform five laboratory experiments over the course of the semester (see the section below on Experiments). These experiments can be performed alone or preferably in pairs. Each student is expected to write his/her own technical report describing each of the six experiments (see the section below on Technical Reports). It is expected that each student will attend the Lectures (see the section below on Lectures).

Website
This course has a website that you can check for updates to the schedule or for special announcements. http://knuthlab.org/courses/2020/AdvancedPhysicsLab/pmwiki.php/

Lecture
A brief lecture (~1hr) will be held on Wednesdays from 12:35p through 1:30 pm. I will lecture on useful techniques for data analysis, laboratory techniques, and report writing. Attendance will be taken. Each lecture will be worth one point of credit to be added to your final score.

Quizzes
There will be periodic quizzes given during the lecture. The sum of the scores of the quizzes will be weighted equal to one laboratory experiment. Missed quizzes can be made up only in the case of a signed doctor's excuse or an excuse from the Dean's office. https://www.albany.edu/health_center/medicalexcuse.shtml

Laboratory Experiments
There will be one Homework Assignment (Exp 0) and five Laboratory Experiments (Exp 1 through Exp 5). Completion of ALL homework and laboratory experiments is a necessary, but not sufficient, condition for receiving a passing grade.

The students are responsible for THOROUGHLY researching the experiment prior to coming to the laboratory. This means checking out the lab equipment prior to your reserved slot, reading the relevant manuals beforehand, if available, or performing a literature search on the topic and reading the relevant papers. Anyone who is determined to not be prepared will be turned away from the laboratory.

There are three Lab Slots each week. Any group of two can sign up for any slot (regardless of what you registered for). These are in

Once signed up for a slot, all students in the group are expected to attend. In case, of extreme circumstances, students are required to notify (email) the supervising TA BEFORE meeting time. Students not doing so will have 10 points deducted from that laboratory experiment. Failure to show up without prior notice three times or more will result in an E for the course. Exemptions will be granted only with a signed doctor's excuse or an excuse from the Dean's office. https://www.albany.edu/health_center/medicalexcuse.shtml

Each laboratory experiment is to be written up as a technical report (see details below).
The HW and lab report due dates are:

New experiments requiring both design and construction can be attempted for groups with the permission of the instructor. These will count as two experiments (which will give you a month to perform). These are challenging in that the group members themselves will be responsible for setting up the experiment (from scratch) with *some* (minimal) assistance from the TAs or the instructor. Groups may suggest experiments to consider. Examples include getting an old experiment back up and running, or conceiving of a new experiment subject to the professor's approval. A new experiment can be performed only once per student.

Technical Reports
A technical report is to be written for each experiment. Even though you may work in pairs, each student is to write his or her own technical report. The student writing the report is first author and the lab partners are to be co-authors in alphabetical order. Any reviewers are to be acknowledged in an Acknowledgements section.

Reports can be written using your favorite word processor (eg. MSWord). Technical reports will be written in accordance to the American Institute of Physics (AIP) guidelines. Students may opt to use LaTeX for extra credit (5 points extra for the first lab, 3 points extra for subsequent labs).

Reports will be graded according to each of the following attributes in equal part (20 pts each):
Clarity of Writing
Technical Mastery
Quality of Analysis
Accuracy of Results
Adherence to the AIP Format

Each Technical Report can be turned in by the end of the day 11:59 pm of the Submission Date for 100 points. The Technical Report can be turned in from 1-3 days after the Submission Date for 90 points. The Technical Report can be turned in from 4-7 days after the Submission Date for 80 points. Technical Reports turned in more than 7 days after the Submission Date will receive 0 points. Please do not request extra time to complete a lab report, as the conditions for taking extra time are listed above.

Each report must be emailed to knuthclass@gmail.com before the time at which it is due along with a completed Checklist. An identical printout of the report must also be physically turned to my mailbox in PH 216 within three days after the due date. If a printed version differs from the emailed version, the emailed version will be taken as the official report and it will be considered to be turned in when it was received. (Note that you cannot buy yourself extra editing time by emailing an incomplete version to get it in on time and then physically delivering an improved version.)

Reviews and Editing
It is strongly encouraged that lab partners review each other's lab reports before submission and that the student edits the report according to the review. Submissions consisting of:

• the original report
• the review of the original report
• the author rebuttal statement responding to the reviewer comments
• the revised report

will earn 2.5 points for both the author and the reviewer (for a maximum of 5 points each for a given experiment). You must give your lab partner at least two days to complete the review. Lab partner's must not feel compelled to carefully review a very poorly written lab report. Ignoring reviewer comments in the rebuttal will cost you severely when the report is graded. Treat this process very seriously and you will do well.

Academic Integrity
Students are encouraged to work in pairs on a given experiment. However, each student is to write his or her own technical report. Note that COPYING IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED. Submitting the work of another person as your own is plagiarism and will be treated seriously by assigning an E for the course. Please consult the university's standards on Academic Integrity.

Exams
There will be no exams for this class.

Grading (A-E)
Grades will be computed by taking an average of the grades of the quizzes, the homework (Lab #0) and the technical reports for the five experiments, along with any extra credit.

Note that all labs and homeworks must be completed and submitted to receive better than an E in this class.

Overwhelmed?
Are you overwhelmed by class or things beyond class?
Might you need some sort of help/counseling?
Please don't ignore this!

• If you think it's an emergency, call 911, or go to this link (http://www.albany.edu/counseling_center/emergency.shtml).
• If you think it is serious, but not an emergency you should get in touch with University Counseling and Psychological Services (http://www.albany.edu/counseling_center/index.shtml ). They're very good, and they're absolutely confidential.
• If you think you might need help/support and it's not too serious, send me an email at kknuth@albany.edu and I will find a time to meet, or just stop by my office even outside of office hours. If you find it easier to contact one of the TAs? first, then please do so. We are here to help you succeed!