Course Overview

This course will provide an introduction to techniques and applications in computational physics. Topics to be covered include: Unix fundamentals; symbolic & numeric computation and programming with Maple; scientific programming using Fortran 77; basic numerical analysis; simulation of lattice and particle systems; random numbers and Monte Carlo techniques. There will be a significant programming component in virtually all stages of the course: tutorials with the instructor will be provided for those of you requiring additional help with programming. See below for a concise syllabus and the Course Topics page for a more detailed description of course coverage.

Text: Due to the significant diversity in topics to be covered, there is no required text for the course. For testing purposes, you will be responsible only for material covered in lectures and homework assignments. I will distribute some class notes when appropriate, but you will usually be responsible for taking notes in class. The optional text, Numerical Recipes (2nd edition), by Press et al is particularly recommended for those of you who anticipate doing further numerical work. Note, however, that the full text of the book is available on-line. Also note that there are distinct Fortran 77 and C versions of the book: choose the one which you feel will suit you best. See the Suggested References web page for texts and other references pertinent to the course, and the Course Resources web page for a collection of on-line reference/instructional material.

Grades: Homework, Term Projects and Tests

Your mark in this course will be determined on the basis of your performance on six homework assignments, a term project, and two tests, a mid-term and a final, with the following weighting: Final marks may be subject to small adjustments based on overall class performance.

Tests

There will be a total of two tests: one in-class and one in the final exam period: Note that the Midterm and Final count equally towards your final grade. In particular, although the Final exam will be scheduled in a regular examination slot, it will not take much (in any) longer than the mid-term to complete. Except under extremely extenuating circumstances there will be NO makeup tests

Homework

See the syllabus below for scheduled homework due dates. Homework will be assigned at least a week before it is due and late homework is subject to 5% devaluation per each full day it is late. As the course progresses, the Homework Schedule web page will contain information concerning current and past assignments. Each homework will contribute roughly equal weight to your final mark but I will discount your worst mark.

Term Papers

Either individually or in consultation with the instructor, each student must choose a topic for a term paper in some area of computational physics. A final list of suggested topics will be posted by Thursday, September 21 and a one-page outline of your selected project is due Tuesday, October 17 at the latest. All topics must be approved by the instructor. Even if the bulk of the project involves programming, the term paper per se must be prepared in the style of a technical paper or a scientific essay. You are free to submit preliminary drafts of your paper to the instructor for critique; such pre-assessment will not affect your final grade on the paper. You are encouraged to use LaTeX (or TeX) mathematical typesetting software to prepare your papers. Suggested paper length is 15-20 pages double spaced, including figures, graphs and source code listings. Note that the project need not involve programming: for example, a critical essay on the impact of computation on a particular sub-field of physics is a viable option. Term projects are due on November 30 (the last class day): late projects will be devalued 5% per full day late.

Computer Access

All students will be provided with accounts on the Physics Dept. public Unix systems located in Hennings ???. to a machine to the instructor so that alternative arrangements can be made. You will be also be given remote access to the Physics Theory Group's SGI systems and you will be encouraged to use these machines for C and Fortran programming. To the extent possible, physical access to the Theory Group machines will also be provided. You will also be given access to the Beowulf Pentium III/Linux cluster, vn.physics.ubc.ca

Tutorials

As mentioned above, individual or small-group tutorial sessions may be arranged at mutually agreeable times for those of you who require additional help, particularly with the programming aspects of the course. Although I will try to detect when supplementary instruction is required, please contact me (e-mail preferred) if and when you think you could use a session or two.

Other Help

You should also feel free to contact me via e-mail (preferred) or phone if you have quick questions, or if you are having difficulty getting something to work. Perhaps most importantly, you should strive to develop the ability to make effective use of the available documentation for the software you are using (on-line help, man pages, Web resources, etc.). On-line help tends to be extensive these days (particularly for systems such as Maple) and a little time invested in learning how to extract the information you are looking for usually pays off.

Syllabus

Due Monday Wednesday Friday


August 26
Unix
August 28
Unix

August 31
Unix
September 2
Unix
September 4
Maple
H1
September 9
Maple
September 11
Maple
H2 September 14
Maple
September 16
Scientific Programming
September 18
Scientific Programming

September 21
Scientific Programming
September 23
Scientific Programming
September 25
Scientific Programming
H3
September 28
Scientific Programming
September 30
Scientific Programming
October 2
Test 1

October 5
Soln of Linear Systems
October 7
Soln of Linear Systems
October 9
Soln of Linear Systems

October 12
Finite Difference Methods
October 14
Finite Difference Methods
October 16
Finite Difference Methods
H4 October 19
Finite Difference Methods
October 21
Finite Difference Methods
October 23
Finite Difference Methods

October 26
Finite Difference Methods
October 28
Finite Difference Methods
October 30
Finite Difference Methods

November 2
Non-linear Equations
November 4
Non-linear Equations
November 6
Non-linear Equations
H5 November 9
Test 2
November 11
Non-linear Equations
November 13
Solution of ODEs

November 16
Solution of ODEs
November 18
Solution of ODEs
November 20
Solution of ODEs

November 23
Solution of ODEs
November 25
Solution of ODEs

H6 November 30
Monte Carlo Methods
December 2
Monte Carlo Methods
December 4
Course Evaluation

Syllabus Notes