PHYS 006. Foundations of Contemporary Physics.

Special relativity and the statistical basis of thermodynamics were two of the key discoveries early in the 20th century that launched the development of contemporary physics. Half of this course covers the counterintuitive consequences of special relativity for our understanding of space and time. Half of the course introduces thermodynamics, both macroscopic thermodynamics and introductory statistical mechanics; topics include energy, heat, work, entropy, temperature (the First, Second and “Third” Laws of Thermodynamics), heat capacity, ideal gases, paramagnetism, phase transitions, and the chemical potential.
Prerequisite: PHYS 003, or placement out of PHYS 003. Recommended: PHYS 005.
Corequisite: MATH 025
1 credit.
Spring 2027. Hyde.
Spring 2028 Cohen.
Catalog chapter: Physics and Astronomy
Department website: http://www.swarthmore.edu/physics-astronomy

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