NYU Polytechnic School of Engineering

Department of Applied Physics

Course Outline PH 3234 Electricity and Magnetism, 4 credits
Spring 2014
Professor Vladimir Tsifrinovich
Tuesday and Thursday 9 a.m. - 10:50 a.m.

To contact professor: vtsifrin@poly.edu
RH 316B
Phone: 718-260-3473

Office hours: Tuesday and Thursday at 11 a.m., Friday at 5:30 p.m. p.m. or by appointment.: PH 2023
for physics majors or an introductory course on Electricity and Magnetism
Course Pre-requisites: PH 2023 or any other introductory course on electricity and magnetism.

Course Description: This course gives students advanced theoretical knowledge in electrostatics
and magnetostatics, and basic knowledge in electrodynamics. In particular, students learn the
methods of computation of electric and magnetic fields in vacuum, linear media, electrets and
ferromagnets.

Course Objectives: understanding of the physical foundation of the Maxwells equations,
developing skills for mathematical computation of electric and magnetic fields.

Course Structure:
Lectures, homework, homework presentation, and final exam.

Readings:
The text for the course: David J. Griffiths, Introduction to Electrodynamics, 4
th
Edition, Pearson.

An optional text: Melvin Schwartz, Principles of Electrodynamics. Dover Publications, 1987.

Course requirements:
Class participation and homework presentation.

Homework presentation: every class after the lecture. Percentage of final grade: 40%.
Final exam. Percentage of final grade: 60%.

Course Schedule:

1. 1/28 Vector Analysis. Vector Algebra. Ch. 1.1.

2. 1/30 Differential Calculus. Ch. 1.2.

3. 2/4 Integral Calculus. Ch. 1.3.

4. 2/6 Curvilinear Coordinates. Ch. 1.4.

5. 2/11 The Dirac Delta Function. Ch. 1.5.

6. 2/13 Electrostatics. The Electrostatic Field. Ch. 2.1.
7. 2/18 Divergence and Curl of Electrostatic Fields. Ch. 2.2.

8. 2/20 Electric Potential. Ch. 2.3.

9. 2/25 Work and Energy in Electrostatics. Conductors. Ch. 2.4, 2.5.

10. 2/27 Potentials. Ch. 3.

11. 3/4 Potentials. Ch. 3 (contd).

12. 3/6 Electric Fields in Matter. Polarization. Ch. 4.1.

13. 3/11 The Field of a Polarized Object. Ch.4.2.

14. 3/13 The Electric Displacement. Ch. 4.3.

15. 3/25 Linear Dielectrics. Ch. 4.4.

16. 3/27 Magnetostatics. The Lorentz Force Law. Ch. 5.1.

17. 4/1 The Biot-Savart Law. Ch. 5.2.

18. 4/3 The Divergence and Curl of Magnetic Field. Ch. 5.3.

19. 4/8 Magnetic Vector Potential. Ch. 5.4.

20. 4/10 Magnetic Fields in Matter. Magnetization. Ch. 6.1.

21. 4/15 The Field of a Magnetized Object. Ch. 6.2.

22. 4/17 The Auxiliary Magnetic Field. Ch. 6.3.

23. 4/22 Linear and Nonlinear Media. Ch. 6.4.

24. 4/24 Electrodynamics. Electromotive Force. Ch. 7.1.

25. 4/29 Electromagnetic Induction. Ch. 7.2.

26. 5/1 Maxwells Equations. Ch. 7.3.