Quantum Theory

Phys 351, Fall 2020

Course Web Page

Brooks Thomas

Hugel 020
Physics Department
Lafayette College
730 High St.
Easton, PA 18042

Phone: (610) 330-5207
Email: thomasbd@lafayette.edu

Contact Info

Physics at Lafayette

Other Resources

• My Personal Home Page
• Lafayette Physics Department
• Physics Courses

• List of NSF REU Sites
• APS Resources for Students
• Society of Physics Students (SPS)
• CUWiP
• SACNAS National Conference

Course Materials and Other Useful Links

• Syllabus
• Resources and Demos Page
• Course Moodle

Textbook

• David J. Griffiths and Daniel F. Schroeter, Introduction to Quantum Mechanics, 3rd ed. (Cambridge University Press, 2018).

Office hours

During the times designated as my office hours below, I will have a Zoom meeting open, which you can join from the office-hours Zoom link provided on the course Moodle. If I am meeting with another student at the time you join the Zoom meeting, I may ask you to wait in the waiting room for a bit. However, if you and other students in the course have the same question, you can certainly meet with me as a group.


• Mon., 9:00 - 10:00 AM
• Tues., 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM
• Wed., 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM
• Fri., 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM

If you cannot make it during my formal office hours, please email me in order to schedule an appointment.

Course Schedule

Date	Topic	Reading	Homework
Week 1
8/17	Introduction	1.1-1.2
8/19	Probability and the Wavefunction	1.3-1.4
8/21	Quantum Uncertainty and the de Broglie Relation	1.5-1.6	HW 0 Due
Week 2
8/24	The Infinite Square Well	2.1-2.2
8/26	The Free Particle	2.4
8/28	Boundary Conditions and the Finite Square Well	2.6	HW 1 Due
Week 3
8/31	Potential Barriers	2.5
9/2	Quantum Harmonic Oscillator, Part I	2.3.1
9/4	Quantum Harmonic Oscillator, Part II	2.3.2	HW 2 Due
Week 4
9/7	Linear Algebra Review	Appendix A
9/9	Hilbert Space	3.1
9/11	Observables and Eigenvalues	3.2-3.3	HW 3 Due
Week 5
9/14	The Generalized Statistical Interpretation	3.4
9/16	Deriving the Uncertainty Principle	3.5
9/18	Dirac Notation	3.6	HW 4 Due
Week 6
9/21	The Schrödinger Equation in Spherical Coordinates	4.1.1
9/23	Wavefunctions in Spherical Coordinates	4.1.2-4.1.3	Mid-Term Exam I Distributed
9/25	The Hydrogen Atom, Part I	4.2.1	Mid-Term Exam I Due
Week 7
9/28	Enrico Fermi's Birthday (Observed): Catch-Up Day and Film
9/30	The Hydrogen Atom, Part II	4.2.2
10/2	Angular Momentum, Part I	4.3.1	HW 5 Due
Week 8
10/5	Angular Momentum, Part II	4.3.2
10/7	Spin	4.4.1
10/9	Spin and Magnetic Fields	4.4.2	HW 6 Due
Week 9
10/12	Addition of Angular Momentum	4.4.3
10/14	Fermions, Bosons, and the Exclusion Principle	5.1.1
10/16	Exchange forces and Their Implications	5.1.2-5.1.3	HW 7 Due
Week 10
10/19	Time-Independent Perturbation Theory	7.1
10/21	Dealing with Degeneracy	7.2
10/23	The Fine Structure of Hydrogen	7.3-7.4	HW 8 Due
Week 11
10/26	Hyperfine Splitting	7.5	Presentation Topic Approval
10/28	The Variational Principle	8.1
10/30	The Simplest Multi-Electron Atom: Helium	8.2	HW 9 Due
Week 12
11/2	Chemical Bonding	8.3
11/4	Tunneling and the WKB Appoximation	9.1-9.2	Mid-Term Exam II Distributed
11/6	Marie Curie and Lise Meitner's Birthday (Observed): Catch-Up Day and Film		Mid-Term Exam II Due
Week 13
11/9	The WKB Connection Formulas	9.3
11/11	Time-Dependent Perturbation Theory	11.1	Presentation Abstracts Due
11/13	Bell's Theorem and the EPR Paradox	12.1-12.2	HW 10 Due
Week 14
11/16	Final Presentations, Day 1
11/18	Final Presentations, Day 2
11/20	Interpretations of Quantum Mechanics	TBA	HW 11 Due
Final Exam
12/1	Final Exam Distributed at 8:00 AM Eastern
12/3	Final Exam Due at 5:00 PM Eastern