FYSS5300 Condensed Matter Physics (8 cr)

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Study level:

Advanced studies

Grading scale:

0-5

Language:

English

Responsible organisation:

Department of Physics

Curriculum periods:

2017-2018, 2018-2019, 2019-2020

Description

Content

Bonding in solids; crystal structure, amorphous materials, alloys; reciprocal lattice, experimental determination of crystal structure, X-ray and neutron diffraction; defects, introduction to elasticity, classical acoustic waves; lattice dynamics and phonons; thermal properties of phonons; dielectric properties, phonons and polaritons in ionic crystals; electronic structure of materials, free-electron gas, electronic heat capacity; electrons in a periodic potential, energy bands, nearly-free electrons, tight-binding approximation; metals, insulators, semiconductors; electron dynamics in bands, physics of conductivity, electronic thermal conductivity; introduction to magnetism and superconductivity.

Completion methods

Assignments, examination.

Assessment details

Students are expected to have at least 50 % of the course points to pass the course. To assess the students’ learning, teacher can use a combination of different assessment methods and the course grade is divided into component parts, each part worth some percentage of the total grade (e.g. assignments 20 %, examination 70 % of the grade).

Learning outcomes

At the end of this course, students will be able to tell the main bonding mechanisms is solids, know the concept of a lattice and most important lattice types as well as know the difference between crystalline and amorphous materials. Students will be able to explain the concept of reciprocal lattice, and use it in solving diffraction problems, distinguish most defect types and define the wave equation for acoustic waves. Students will be able to solve the phonon dispersion relations of the simplest lattices, define the concept of phonon and tell, how it explains the thermal properties of insulators. They are able to describe how dielectrics influence the propagation of EM fields and explain the concept of the free-electron model and tell, how one can use it to calculate electron density and heat capacity, explain Bloch's theorem and tell, how it determines the band structure, and describe the main features of the nearly-free electron and tight-binding models and explain, why some materials are metals and some other insulators. They are able to know the concepts of a hole and effective mass, explain how electrical conductivity arises from the microscopic picture and describe the basic principles behind magnetism and superconductivity.

Additional information

Given on spring semester, every year.

Literature

S. Elliott: The physics and chemistry of solids, Wiley 1998, ISBN-13 978-0-471-98195-4.; ISBN: 978-0-471-98195-4
C. Kittel: Introduction to Solid State Physics 8th Edition, Wiley 2005, ISBN-13: 978-0471415268.; ISBN: 978-047141526
H. Ibach and H. Luth: Solid-State Physics: An Introduction to Principles of Materials Science, Springer 2009, ISBN 978-3-540-93804-0.; ISBN: 978-3-540-93804-0

Completion methods

Method 1

Select all marked parts

Parts of the completion methods

Unpublished assessment item