PHY2024 : Principles of Materials and Solid-State Physics
- Offered for Year: 2025/26
- Module Leader(s): Dr Leo Tsui
- Owning School: Mathematics, Statistics and Physics
- Teaching Location: Newcastle City Campus
Semesters
Your programme is made up of credits, the total differs on programme to programme.
| Semester 2 Credit Value: | 10 |
| ECTS Credits: | 5.0 |
| European Credit Transfer System | |
Aims
This module aims to provide students with background necessary to understand solid state materials and their physical properties, with the main emphasis on crystalline materials.
Outline Of Syllabus
Atomic structure and Chemical bonding (atomic models, periodic table, ionic, covalent, metallic bonding, van der Waals and hydrogen bonding);
Crystal structure and diffraction (lattice vectors, unit cell, miller indices, Bravais lattices, reciprocal lattice, Brillouin zone, Bragg's Law, Laue equations, Ewald sphere, x-ray diffraction);
Lattice vibrations (1D monatomic chain, 1D diatomic chain, optical and acoustic phonon modes, periodic potentials, density of states, energy bands);
Thermal and mechanical properties (Einstein model, Debye model, Elastic deformation, plastic deformation, Point defects and dislocations).
Teaching Methods
Teaching Activities
| Category | Activity | Number | Length | Student Hours | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guided Independent Study | Assessment preparation and completion | 15 | 1:00 | 15:00 | Completion of in course assignments |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Lecture | 2 | 1:00 | 2:00 | Revision Lectures |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Lecture | 20 | 1:00 | 20:00 | Formal Lectures |
| Guided Independent Study | Independent study | 63 | 1:00 | 63:00 | Preparation time for lectures, background reading, coursework review |
| Total | 100:00 |
Teaching Rationale And Relationship
Lectures are used for the delivery of theory and explanation of methods, illustrated with examples, and for giving general feedback on marked work.
The teaching methods are appropriate to allow students to develop a wide range of skills, from understanding basic concepts and facts to higher-order thinking.
Assessment Methods
The format of resits will be determined by the Board of Examiners
Exams
| Description | Length | Semester | When Set | Percentage | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Written Examination | 120 | 2 | A | 85 | N/A |
Other Assessment
| Description | Semester | When Set | Percentage | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prob solv exercises | 2 | M | 5 | Problem-solving exercises assessment |
| Prob solv exercises | 2 | M | 5 | Problem-solving exercises assessment |
| Prob solv exercises | 2 | M | 5 | Problem-solving exercises assessment |
Assessment Rationale And Relationship
A substantial formal unseen examination is appropriate for the assessment of the material in this module. The format of the examination will enable students to reliably demonstrate their own knowledge, understanding and application of learning outcomes. The assurance of academic integrity forms a necessary part of programme accreditation.
Examination problems may require a synthesis of concepts and strategies from different sections, while they may have more than one ways for solution. The examination time allows the students to test different strategies, work out examples and gather evidence for deciding on an effective strategy, while carefully articulating their ideas and explicitly citing the theory they are using.
The coursework assignments allow the students to develop their problem solving techniques, to practise the methods learnt in the module, to assess their progress and to receive feedback; these assessments have a secondary formative purpose as well as their primary summative purpose.
Reading Lists
Timetable
- Timetable Website: www.ncl.ac.uk/timetable/
- PHY2024's Timetable