Welcome to the 20th century! At last you can dig into the weirdest reality physicists have ever thought about. Here's how Feynman put it in The Character of Physical Law: ...Now we know how electrons and light behave. But what can I call it? If I say they behave like particles I give the wrong impression; also if I say they behave like waves. They behave in their own inimitable way, which technically could be called a quantum mechanical way. They behave in a way that is like nothing that you have ever seen before. Your experience with things that you have seen before is incomplete. The behavior of things on a very tiny scale is simply different. An atom does not behave like a weight hanging on a spring and oscillating. Nor does it behave like a miniature representation of the solar system with little planets going around in orbits. Nor does it appear to be somewhat like a cloud or fog of some sort surrounding the nucleus. It behaves like nothing you have ever seen before.... I am going to tell you what nature behaves like. If you will simply admit that maybe she does behave like this, you will find her a delightful, entrancing thing. Do not keep saying to yourself, if you can possibly avoid it, "But how can it be like that?" because you will get "down the drain", into a blind alley from which nobody has yet escaped. Nobody knows how it can be like that.

"But how ...?"

Instructor
Dick Hilt
e-mail: dhilt@coloradocollege.edu
Office Phone: (719) 389-6581. Cell Phone: (719) 447-7966.

Textbook
The required textbook for this course is Introduction to Quantum Mechanics, 2 ed., by David J. Griffiths. He mostly shows you how to play the quantum mechanical game, but he also gives you a good start on ways to think about the world described by quantum mechanics. The standard warning applies: whenever anyone says they're telling you how things really are, hang onto your wallet!

Homework
Tentative reading and homework assignments are listed on the course schedule. We will spend most of each class discussing the text and problems assigned the previous day. Read the text with a pencil and paper handy to fill in steps in derivations and jot down questions to ask in class. Working problems is essential to understanding the material. I encourage you to work together on the homework. However, each of you should write up your own version of all the problems marked with one *, and think through the unstarred problems (which often pop up on exams). I will assign selected ** and *** problems to teams of several people.

The grading scheme for the homework is arranged to encourage you to make a serious attempt at the problems before coming to class, but not to penalize you significantly if you don’t get it the first time. You will be given full credit for each problem correctly finished before class starts and 80% credit for problems attempted before class and corrected by 4:00 PM the day the homework is due. I’ll give 50% credit if you have finished the problem correctly by by 4:00 PM the day the homework is due, but didn’t attempt it before class. The homework will be self graded and you are on your honor to report accurate grades.

Quizzes and Exams
We will have one quiz, a mid-block exam, and a final exam. You can bring an 8.5 by 11 inch sheet of paper to the quiz and exams with any constants, equations or notes you feel might be helpful to you during the exam. Hand in the sheet with the rest of the exam. A better score on the final will replace your mid-block exam score. See the course schedule for dates.

Latest revision: 10:38, November 19, 2007