Key facts
Details for course being taught in current academic year
Level 1 - 6 credits - autumn term
E-learning links
Resources
Course description
Course outline
Health and Safety issues in laboratories, including a primer on radiation safety
Sensor technology: principles of operation of a variety of instruments such as voltmeters, photodetectors, pressure sensors
Estimation of uncertainties; significant figures and decimal places (coupled with practice in reading Vernier scales)
Introduction to spreadsheets
Mean, standard deviation and standard error; weighted averages, and the uncertainty thereon
Error propagation: simple formulae covering addition, multiplication, and powers; and the general formula for small error propagation
Histograms, and manipulation of distributions
The Gaussian distribution
Chi squared, and (straight) line fitting
Identifying and dealing with systematics
Assessing data quality
Introduction to data simulation
Pre-requisite
A-level Physics or equivalent
This course is the pre-requisite for the following courses:
All laboratory courses in years 1 to 3; Theoretical Physics 1
Learning outcomes
At the end of the course, successful students should be able to:
* Demonstrate an understanding of scientific measurement procedures
* Demonstrate an understanding of data analysis techniques and error propagation
* Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of health and safety requirements relating to laboratory hazards
* Analyze experimental data and write a scientific report on the results
* Provide a critical assessment of data quality based on a few key indicators
Assessments
| Type | Timing | Weighting |
|---|---|---|
| Coursework | 100.00% | |
| Problem Sets | Autumn Week 1 | 7.00% |
| Problem Sets | Autumn Week 2 | 7.00% |
| Problem Sets | Autumn Week 4 | 14.00% |
| Problem Sets | Autumn Week 6 | 14.00% |
| Problem Sets | Autumn Week 8 | 14.00% |
| Problem Sets | Autumn Week 10 | 14.00% |
| Practical Report (2000 words) | Spring Week 2 | 30.00% |
Resit mode of assessment
| Type | Timing | Weighting |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Summer Vacation Week 10 Thu 16:00 | 50.00% |
| Unseen Examination | Summer Vacation (1 hour 30 minutes) | 50.00% |
Timing
Submission deadlines may vary for different types of assignment/groups of students.
Weighting
Coursework components (if listed) total 100% of the overall coursework weighting value.
Teaching methods
| Term | Method | Duration | Week pattern |
|---|---|---|---|
| Autumn Term | LECTURE | 1 hour | 1111111111 |
| Autumn Term | WORKSHOP | 2 hours | 1111111111 |
How to read the week pattern
The numbers indicate the weeks of the term and how many events take place each week.