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Courses
For complete and up-to-date course information, including pre-requisites, anti-requisites, weight, breadth, and more, please consult the Western Academic Calendar linked in the course. To search and view the Registrar's timetable for courses, please consult the Student Services Timetable .
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Physics
1000 Level Courses
1101A: Introduction to Physics I
Description: An introductory algebra-based course in physics covering the foundation principles of kinematics, forces, conservation of energy and momentum, torque, equilibrium, geometric optics and optical instruments. Fundamental physics concepts are introduced with examples from biological applications.
Instructors: S. Basu
Hours: 3 lecture hours, 3 laboratory/tutorial hours
Weight: 0.5
1102B: Introduction to Physics II
Description: An introductory algebra-based course in physics covering the foundation principles of oscillations and waves, fluids, electricity, and magnetism. Fundamental physics concepts are introduced with examples from biological applications.
Instructor: Next offered in 2023-24
Hours: 3 lecture hours, 3 laboratory/tutorial hours
Weight: 0.5
1201A: Physics for the Sciences I
Description: An introductory laboratory-based course in physics covering the foundational principles of kinematics, force and motion, energy, linear momentum, rotational motion, torque, equilibrium, angular momentum, geometric optics and optical instruments. Fundamental physics concepts are introduced with examples in physical, biological, and medical processes to develop students’ problem-solving skills.
Instructors: E. Wong, N. Zarir
Hours: 3 lecture hours, 3 laboratory/tutorial hours
Weight: 0.5
1202B: Physics for the Sciences II
Description: An introductory laboratory-based course in physics covering the foundational principles of oscillations, waves, fluids, electric fields and potential, DC circuits, magnetic fields, and magnetic induction. Fundamental physics concepts are introduced with examples in physical, biological, and medical processes to develop students’ problem-solving skills.
Instructor: A. Ouriadov, B. Tudose
Hours: 3 lecture hours, 3 laboratory/tutorial hours
Weight: 0.5
1401A: Physics for Engineering Students I
Description: An introductory calculus-based laboratory course in physics covering the foundational principles of kinematics, force and motion, energy, linear momentum, rotation, torque, and angular momentum, gravitation, fluids.
Instructor: B. Tudose, B. Chronik
Hours: 3 lecture hours, 3 laboratory/tutorial hours
Weight: 0.5
1402B: Physics for Engineering Student II
Description: An introductory calculus-based laboratory course in physics covering the foundational principles of oscillations, waves, electric fields, and potential, DC circuits, magnetic fields, magnetic induction.
Instructor: S. Metchev
Hours: 3 lecture hours, 3 laboratory/tutorial hours
Weight: 0.5
1501A: Enriched Introductory Physics I
Description: A calculus-based laboratory course for students intending to pursue further studies in science, particularly the physical sciences. Newton's laws, energy, linear momentum, rotations, and angular momentum, gravitation and planetary motion.
Instructor: P. Wiegert
Hours: 3 lecture hours, 3 laboratory/tutorial hours
Weight: 0.5
1502B: Enriched Introductory Physics II
Description: A calculus-based laboratory course for students intending to pursue further studies in science, particularly the physical sciences. Relativity, the electromagnetic interaction, the strong and weak interactions, oscillations and waves.
Instructor: T. Poepping
Hours: 3 lecture hours, 3 laboratory/tutorial hours
Weight: 0.5
2000 Level Courses
2070A: Understanding Earth's Atmosphere
Description: This course is designed for non-science students and examines the atmosphere in which we live, how it affects our everyday life, and how we in turn, as the technologically dominant earth-born species, affect it. Atmospheric phenomena such as wind, temperature, composition, precipitation, and electricity are used to illustrate basic physical principles.
Instructor: M. Zinke-Allmang
Hours: 3 lecture hours, 3 laboratory/tutorial hours
Weight: 0.5
2101A: Intermediate Physics
Description: Maxwell's equations, electromagnetic waves and induction, geometric optics, the propagation of light, thermal properties of matter and the laws of thermodynamics.
Instructor: M. Campbell-Brown
Hours: 3 lecture hours, 1 tutorial hour.
Weight: 0.5
2102B: Introduction to Modern Physics
Description: Introduction to quantum mechanics, wave-particle duality, atomic physics, nuclear physics, particle physics and the origins of the universe.
Instructor: J. Hutter
Hours: 3 lecture hours, 1 tutorial hour.
Weight: 0.5
2110A: Oscillations and Waves
Description: A unified treatment of oscillatory and wave motion, with examples from mechanics, electromagnetism, optics and materials science. Topics include simple harmonic motion, forced oscillations and resonance, coupled oscillations, transverse waves on strings and in crystals, longitudinal waves in gases and solids, electromagnetic waves, Fourier methods, nonlinear oscillations, and chaos.
Instructor: O. Trichtchenko
Hours: 3 lecture hours, 2 laboratory/tutorial hours
Weight: 0.5
2910G: Introduction to Physical Measurement
Description: Students will gain an introduction to experimental techniques through experiments on electricity and magnetism, and modern physics. Concurrent lectures will cover circuit theory and experimental design.
Instructor: L. Goncharova
Hours: 3 lecture hours, 3 laboratory hours.
Weight: 0.5
2950Y: Year Two Seminar
Description: A forum for students to meet the third and fourth-year students and faculty in an informal setting. We will discuss research areas, practice giving and critiquing talks, and provide information on careers.
Instructors: T. Poepping, P. Wiegert
Hours: 1 lecture hour, 0.5 courses.
Weight: 0.5
3000 Level Courses
3151B: Classical Mechanics
Description: This course provides students with the tools to tackle more complex problems than those covered in introductory mechanics. D'Alembert's principle, the principle of least action, Lagrange's equations, Hamilton's equations, Poisson brackets, canonical transformations, central forces, rigid bodies, oscillations. Optional topics including special relativity, Hamilton-Jacobi theory, constrained systems, field theory.
Instructor: G. Fanchini
Hours: 3 lecture hours.
Weight: 0.5
3200B: Quantum Mechanics I
Description: The Schrodinger equation in one dimension, wave packets, stationary states, the harmonic oscillator, the postulates of Quantum Mechanics, operators and eigenvalue equations, angular momentum, the hydrogen atom.
Instructor: A. Soddu
Hours: 3 lecture hours.
Weight: 0.5
3300A: Electromagnetic Theory I
Description: A study of static electric and magnetic fields using vector calculus; time-varying electric and magnetic fields, Maxwell's equations, electric and magnetic fields in matter.
Instructor: M. Campbell-Brown
Hours: 3 lecture hours.
Weight: 0.5
3400A: Introduction to Thermal Physics
Description: Thermodynamics applied to classical and quantum systems. Thermodynamic laws, interactions, engines, phase transformations of pure substances, Boltzmann statistics, simple quantum systems.
Instructor: C. Denniston
Hours: 3 lecture hours.
Weight: 0.5
3900G: Senior Physics Laboratory
Description: A senior physics laboratory designed to familiarize the student with the basic concepts of modern physics, with emphasis on the development of experimental skills and including an introduction to computer programming and its use in experimental analysis.
Instructor: T. Poepping
Hours: 6 laboratory hours.
Weight: 0.5
3926F: Computer Simulations in Physics
Description: A project-oriented computation course using applications of numerical methods to problems in medical physics, the science of materials, atmospheric physics and astrophysics. Projects will involve choosing a physical problem, posing scientific questions, and implementing a computer simulation. Techniques for programming, analysis, and presentation will be developed.
Instructor: G. Erdemci-Tandogan
Hours: 3 lecture hours, 2 laboratory hours.
Weight: 0.5
3950Y: Year Three Seminar
4000 Level Courses
4251A: Quantum Physics II
Description: Potential scattering, spin, the addition of angular momenta, stationary and time-dependent perturbation theory, systems of identical particles, applications to atomic, molecular, solid-state, nuclear, particle and atmospheric physics.
Instructor: M. Houde
Hours: 3 lecture hours.
Weight: 0.5
4351B: Electromagnetic Theory II
Description: Maxwell's equations; conservation laws; electromagnetic waves and waveguides; electromagnetic radiation; relativistic formulation of electrodynamics.
Instructor: A. Sigut
Hours: 3 lecture hours.
Weight: 0.5
4662A: Magnetic Resonance Imaging (Not offered 2023-2024)
Description: Concepts from electromagnetic theory, quantum mechanics and statistical mechanics will be applied to illuminate the principles and techniques of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). Applications of NMR to materials science, chemistry, and medicine will be discussed.
Instructor: A. Ouriadov
Hours: 3 lecture hours.
Weight: 0.5
4672B: Radiological Physics
Description: An introduction to the instrumentation and techniques of radiation therapy.
Instructor: E. Wong
Hours: 3 lecture hours.
Weight: 0.5
4700A: Atmospheres
Description: Physical principles are used to investigate the dynamics, thermodynamics and composition of atmospheres with primary focus on Earth. Planetary atmospheres will be discussed in relation to Earth's atmosphere.
Instructor: R. Sica
Hours: 3 lecture hours
Weight: 0.5
4910F/G: Special Topics in Physics: Advanced Physics Projects
4931A: Special Topics in Physics: Relativity (Not Offered 2023-24)
Instructor: W. Hocking
Pre-requisites: Permission of the Department
Description: The course aims to introduce students to the principles, philosophy and mechanics of both Special and General Relativity. Special Relativity will occupy about the first 24-26 lectures, and General Relativity will be taught in the last 10-12 lectures. Originally the course will concentrate on simple concepts, using basic calculus, but as it proceeds, the concepts of tensors (covariant, contravariant, mixed and pseudo tensors) will be introduced. These concepts will be crucial to applications of General Relativity.
More specifically, the course will start at a very basic level - about first-year standard for a stronger student. The main concepts of time and space dilation, and simultaneity, will be introduced at this time. By about lecture 6-8, we will start to ramp up the level of difficulty and will begin working with Minkowski diagrams. There will be some repetition of the earlier work, but Minkowski diagrams will allow us to see the issues more clearly, and also allow us to move on to elementary studies of accelerating reference frames and the associated time dilation effects. Complex-number representations of Minkowski will also be considered.
The course becomes somewhat harder from here on, as we do tensor theory (both covariant and contravariant), and apply these techniques to Electromagnetism. Finally we will look into generalization of the metric tensor, work up to Riemann Geometry and then push on to the beginnings of General Relativity. Some examples like derivation of the Schwarzschild radius will be illustrated.
Hours: 3 lecture hours.
Note that lecture times are still to be decided, and will be negotiated with students so as to optimize availability for all.
Weight: 0.5
4950Y: Year Four Seminar
Description: A forum for students to meet the second and third-year students and faculty in an informal setting. We will discuss research areas, practice giving and critiquing talks, and provide information on careers.
Instructor: T. Poepping, P. Wiegert
Hours: 1 lecture hour
Weight: 0.5
4999E: Honors Research
Astronomy
1000 Level Courses
1021: General Astronomy
Description: A general survey of astronomy including the solar system and its constituents; stars, their basic properties, and evolution; systems of stars including clusters, the milky way, and other galaxies; the universe, it's past, present and future structure; astronomical instruments; topics of current interest including pulsars, quasars, black holes.
Instructor: M. Zinke-Allmang (Fall), S. Gallagher (Fall), J. Cami (Winter)
Hours: 3 lecture hours.
Weight: 1.0
2000 Level Courses
2021A: Search for Life in the Universe
Description: This course is designed for non-science students as an introduction to current scientific thinking on the possibility of extraterrestrial life and intelligence. Ideas, observations, and experiments from the frontiers of many areas of science converge in this unique interdisciplinary field. Emphasis will be on topics of current interest, including searches for life in our Solar System, detection of extrasolar planets, and the origins of life on Earth.
Instructor: M. Houde
Hours: 3 lecture hours.
Weight: 0.5
2022B: The Origin of the Universe
Description: This course is designed for non-science students as an introduction to current ideas about the universe. Topics include the Big Bang, cosmic microwave background, the origin of elements, and origin of galaxies, stars, and planetary systems.
Instructor: F. Vidotto
Hours: 2 lecture hours.
Weight: 0.5
2201B: Planetary Systems
Description: An examination of planets and their environments, both in our own Solar System and in planetary systems around other stars. Celestial mechanics; dynamics of the Earth; the Earth-Moon System; planets, including atmospheres and interiors; satellites; comets; meteors; the interplanetary medium; detection, origin, and evolution of planetary systems.
Instructor: P. Brown
Hours: 3 lecture hours.
Weight: 0.5
2801A: Observing the Stars
Description: The properties of stars, the building blocks of the universe, and how we obtain their characteristics. The night sky, coordinates, detectors, telescopes, stellar magnitudes and fluxes, spectra, the interaction of light and matter, Hertzsprung-Russell diagram, stellar evolution, and the Sun. Introduction to astrophysics, the order of magnitude estimates, astronomical nomenclature, and observations.
Instructor: P. Wiegert
Hours: 3 lecture hours, 1 tutorial hour.
Weight: 0.5
3000 Level Courses
3302A: Astrophysics of Interstellar Space
Description: The physics of interstellar space - the gas, dust, electromagnetic radiation, cosmic rays, and magnetic fields - present between the stars in a galaxy and between galaxies. Star formation, the interaction of light and matter, and the physical processes that determine the properties, dynamics, and behaviour of the interstellar medium
Instructor: E. Peeters
Hours: 3 lecture/tutorial hours. Typically offered in alternate years only.
Weight: 0.5
3303A: Galaxies (Not offered 2023-24)
Description: Introduction to galaxies, including the Milky Way. Galaxy components and their variation with galaxy location, shape, and age; the distribution of galaxies in space and time; interpretation of observational data to derive physical properties of galaxies.
Instructor: S. Gallagher
Hours: 3 lecture/tutorial hours. Typically offered in alternate years only.
Weight: 0.5
4000 Level Courses
4101B: Stellar Astrophysics (Not offered 2023-24)
Description: Internal structure of stars; stellar evolution; stellar atmospheres; the formation of stars
Instructor:
Hours: 3 lecture/tutorial hours. Typically offered in alternate years only.
Weight: 0.5
4602B: Gravitational Astrophysics & Cosmology
Description: Introduction to gravity in astrophysics. Application of Newtonian gravitation to basic galactic dynamics and galactic structure. An introduction to general relativity with applications to black holes, cosmology, and the early universe .
Instructor: Next offered in 2023-24
Hours: 3 lecture hours. Typically offered in alternate years only.
Weight: 0.5
Numerical and Mathematical Methods
1000 Level Courses
1411A/B: Linear Algebra with Numerical Analysis for Engineering
Description: Matrix operations, systems of linear equations, linear spaces and transformations, determinants, eigenvalues and eigenvectors, applications of interest to Engineers including diagonalization of matrices, quadratic forms, orthogonal transformations; introduction to MATLAB with applications from linear algebra.
Instructors: B. Tudose
Hours: 3 lecture hours, 2 computer lab or tutorial hours
Weight: 0.5
1412A/B: Calculus for Engineers I
Description: Introduction to complex numbers, limits, continuity, differentiation of functions of one variable with applications, extreme values, l’Hospital’s rule, antiderivatives, definite integrals, the Fundamental Theorem of Calculus, the method of substitution.
Instructors: B. Tudose
Hours: 3 lecture hours, 1 tutorial hour
Weight: 0.5
1414B: Calculus for Engineers II
Description: Techniques of integration, areas and volumes, arclength and surfaces of revolution, applications to physics and engineering, first order differential equations, parametric curves, polar coordinates, sequences and series, vectors and geometry, vector functions, partial differentiation with applications.
Instructors: A. MacIsaac, M. Singh
Hours: 3 lecture hours, 1 tutorial hour
Weight: 0.5
2000 Level Courses
2270A/B: Applied Mathematics for Engineering II
Description: Topics include first order ODE's of various types, higher order ODE's and methods of solving them, initial and boundary value problems, applications to mass-spring systems and electrical RLC circuits, Laplace transforms and their use for solving differential equations, systems of linear ODE's, orthogonal functions and Fourier.
Instructors: A. MacIsaac
Hours: 3 lecture hours, 1 tutorial hour
Weight: 0.5
2276B: Applied Mathematics for Electrical and Mechanical Engineering III
Description: Topics covered include a review of orthogonal expansions of functions and Fourier series and transforms, multiple integration with methods of evaluation in different systems of coordinates, vector fields, line integrals, surface and flux integrals, the Green, Gauss and Stokes theorems with applications.
Instructors: B. Chronik
Hours: 3 lecture hours, 1 tutorial hour
Weight: 0.5
2277B: Applied Mathematics for Chemical and Civil Engineering III
Description: Topics covered include a review of orthogonal expansions of functions and Fourier series, partial differential equations and Fourier series solutions, boundary value problems, the wave, diffusion and Laplace equations, multiple integration with methods of evaluation in different systems of coordinates, vector fields, line integrals, surface and flux integrals, the Green, Gauss and Stokes theorems with applications.
Instructors: K. Nguyen
Hours: 3 lecture hours, 1 tutorial hour
Weight: 0.5
