Atomic and Molecular Physics (U01404)

? Credit Points : 10 ? SCQF Level : 10 ? Acronym : PHY-4-AtMol

The first half of this course deals principally with atomic structure and the interaction between atoms and fields. It covers electronic transitions, atomic spectra, excited states, hydrogenic and multi-electron atoms. The second half of the course deals with the binding of atoms into molecules, molecular degrees of freedom (electronic, vibrational, and rotational), elementary group theory considerations and molecular spectroscopy.

Entry Requirements

? Pre-requisites : At least 40 credit points accrued in courses of SCQF Level 9 or 10 drawn from Schedule Q, including Quantum Mechanics (PHY-3-QuantMech).

Subject Areas

Home subject area

Undergraduate (School of Physics), (School of Physics, Schedule Q)

Delivery Information

? Normal year taken : 4th year

? Delivery Period : Semester 2 (Blocks 3-4)

? Contact Teaching Time : 2 hour(s) per week for 11 weeks

First Class Information

Date	Start	End	Room	Area	Additional Information
09/01/2007	16:00	17:00	Lecture Room 6206, JCMB	KB

All of the following classes

Type	Day	Start	End	Area
Lecture	Tuesday	16:10	17:00	KB
Lecture	Friday	16:10	17:00	KB

Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this course it is intended that a student will be able to:

1)discuss the relativistic corrections for the energy levels of the hydrogen atom and their effect on optical spectra
2)derive the energy shifts due to these corrections using first order perturbation theory.
3)state and explain the key properties of many electron atoms and the importance of the Pauli exclusion principle
4)explain the observed dependence of atomic spectral lines on externally applied electric and magnetic fields
5)discuss the importance of group theory in molecular physics
6)state the formal properties of groups, characters and irreducible representations
7)state and justify the selection rules for various optical spectroscopies in terms of the symmetries of molecular vibrations
8)demonstrate a grasp of bonding types in molecules