Physics 430 (Quantum Mechanics I)Course Information, Fall 2014Instructor: Jeff GreensiteContact Info: Thornton 304, 338-1600, greensit (at) sfsu.eduOffice Hours: TBAContentThis is the first semester of a two-semester course on quantum mechanics. It will cover:1. A review (or, for some, a n introduction) to Lagrangian and Hamiltonian dynamics.2. The historical background: Black-body radiation, the photoelectric effect, the Comp-ton effection, electron diffraction.3. The Bohr atom, the De Broglie relations, development of t he Schrodinger equation.Ehrenfest’s Principle.4. Hilbert space, bra-ket notation, the Dirac delta function. Hermitian operators andobservables. The Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle.5. Rectangular Potentials. Bound States, Tunneling, and Scattering.6. The Harmonic Oscillator.7. Symmetry a nd Degeneracy.8. The quantization of a ngular momentum.9. The Hydrogen AtomThree lectures, on average, will be devoted to each of the topics listed. As in anyphysics course, you will be asked to demonstrate your mastery of these topics by solvingquantitative problems in each area from first principles, both on homework sets and on theexams.Course objectives: By the end of the course, you should be familiar with the basicprinciples of quantum theory, and be a ble t o solve the Schrodinger equation (as well ascomputing observables of interest) in elementary one, two, and three-dimensional poten-tials.Prerequisites:1. PHYS 320 (Modern Physics),2. PHYS 360 (Electromagnetism), which may be taken concurrently,3. PHYS 385 (Intro to Theor. Phys)4. Math 245 OR Math 376 (Diff. Equations).These prerequisites will be checked and enforced. If yo u wish to request an exception, youmust come a nd talk to me abo ut it.Text:The textbook is my lecture notes, which can be purchased (cheaply, I hope) from thePhysics and Astrono my Club during the second week of classes. You should obtain thetext in this way, rather than downloading and printing the text from t he link on my webpage. (Our department printers cannot absorb the wear from many people doing this, andalso such copies will be missing the illustrations.)Course OrganizationLectures: Tu and Th 3:3 5-4:50 in Thornton 425.Homework: There will be eight homework assignments to be handed in during thesemester. Homework is expected to be handed in on time. Although these assignment sdon’t count heavily in the g r ading, it is essential tha t you do them. Experience shows thatstudents who ignore the homework do very poorly on the exams. Solutions will be madeavailable, periodically, online.You are welcome t o collabora te with other students on homework problems. However,this should be in the form of working out the general approach; you should not simplycopy someone else’s work.Exams: There will be two exams: a midterm and a take-ho me final.Grades:1. Final - 50%2. Midterm - 40%3. Homework - 10%Disability StatementStudents with disabilities who need reasonable accommodations are encouraged to con-tact the instructor. The Disability Programs and Resource Center (DPRC) is available tofacilitate the reasonable accommoda tions process. The DPRC is located in the StudentService Building and can be reached by telephone (voice/TTY 41 5-338-2 472) or by email([email protected]).Withdrawal PolicyPlease consult