PHYSICS LABORATORY I M - Z
Academic Year 2018/2019 - 1° YearCredit Value: 12
Scientific field: FIS/01 - Experimental physics
Exercise: 90 hours
Term / Semester: One-year
Learning Objectives
The course gives the background of Laboratory of Physics and Statistics.
The students teach the experimental method and the experimental data analysis techniques.
The number of hours the student attends the laboratory is 90 hours. During the experimental work the students are followed by the teacher and a tutor. There is, also, the presence of the lab technician.
At the end of the course the student should be able to take measurements of physical variables and to report the results in scientifically correct way
Course Structure
The teaching is divided into lectures that will be held in the first part of the course and experiments to be done in the laboratory in the second part. The front hours are dedicated to the measurement method, data analysis and statistical elements. There will be exercises during the front hours in order to prepare students to correctly perform the laboratory experiences they will do in the second part of the course.
During the course, guided tours will be scheduled to the National Laboratories of the South and to the Research Institutes working at the Department of Physics and Astronomy
Detailed Course Content
The course is 12 CFU. 132 hours including classroom lessons and laboratory exercises.
In particular, it is provided 42 hours of lectures and 90 hours of guided exercises in the laboratory.
Analysis of the experimental data (22 hours):
- The Scientific Method
- The measurement of physical quantities. Definition (operational) of physical quantities and its measurement. Fundamental and derived quantities. Units of measurement and units of measurement systems: The International System.
- Presentation of the measures and significant digits. Read a formula and verify its correctness (dimensional analysis)
- Features of a measuring instrument
- Errors and / or uncertainties. Systematic and random errors.
- The total error in measurements, relative error, degree of precision.
- Measures single and / or multiple. The best estimate of the error (mode, median and mean)
- Standard deviation, population standard deviation, and sample average.
- Error propagation.
- Representation of data: tables, diagrams and graphs.
- Histograms: discreetly to limit distribution.
- The distribution of Gaussian distribution as a limit for measures affected by random errors.
- The measure of a physical quantity influenced by random events and estimate of the expected value.
- Size in probabilistic terms.
- Elements of probability theory.
- The criterion of maximum likelihood.
- Probability distributions: Gaussian, Binomial, Poisson.
- Test of chi-square.
- Graphic and functional relationships
Description of laboratory experiences (12h)
Statistics (20h)
- Random events, aleatorie- variables classical definition, relative frequency and axiomatic probability - Total probability, conditional probability, likely composed- Bayes Theorem -Convergence statistics - statistics and covariance independence - Statistical population - sampling - law of large numbers - mathematical expectation for discrete and continuous random variables - probability density - moments - moment generating functions and characteristic function • Bernoulli distribution • Poisson distribution • Gaussian distribution • • χ2-distribution distribution • central limit theorem • statistical indices and their sample estimates
Laboratory experiments (90 hours ):
Measures of lengths: Caliper, palmer • Inclined plane • • Fletcher and Atwood Machine Device • Simple pendulum • Physic Pendulum• Kater reversible pendulum • Pendulum ball, spherometer • Pendulum on bow • Torsion Pendulum • Needle Maxwell • Springs • moment of inertia of a flywheel • rotational kinetic energy.
Pycnometer • Mohr-Westphal balance • viscometer Ostwald • Tension • Venturi tube • Sedimentation.
Calorimeter mixtures of Regnault • Heat propagation in a homogeneous beam • -Equazione perfect gas state of Desormes • Experience and Clement • Kundt Tube • Galton Quinconce
Textbook Information
- J.R. Taylor: Introduzione all'analisi degli errori. Lo studio delle incertezze nelle misure fisiche, Zanichelli
- M. Loreti: Teoria degli Errori e Fondamenti di Statistica, Decibel, Padova
- R. Ricamo: Guida alle Esperimentazioni di Fisica, Ed. Ambrosiana, Milano
- E. Perucca: Fisica Generale e Sperimentale, UTET, Torino
- F.Tyler: A Laboratory Manual of Physics E.Arnould, London
- lecture slides