Curriculum Requirements
Bachelor of Science in Physics
General Education
| Foundations | Credits: | |
| FCWR 101 | Writing I: College Composition | 3 |
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Prerequisite: Prerequisite: WRIT 100 or Writing Placement Exam A course introducing students to the fundamentals of college composition. Topics include writing process, rhetorical strategies, basics of critical reading and thinking, analytical writing, and argumentative writing. This course serves as a foundation to prepare students to succeed in other academic writing contexts. Coursework includes a computer lab component. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| FCWR 151 | Writing II: Research Writing | 3 |
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Prerequisite: Prerequisite: FCWR 101 or WRIT 101 Further development of the academic writing process, critical thinking, and analytical reading skills taught in FCWR 101. Focus on academic research planning, source evaluation skills, and audience awareness leading to a documented research paper. Specific attention to academic integrity in research writing. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| FCWR 3XX | Professional Communication choice | 3 |
| Please view all course descriptions: http://www.nyit.edu/courses | ||
| Total: 9 Credits | ||
| Data Literacy | Credits: | |
| DATA 101 | Making Sense of a Data-Oriented Society | 3 |
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This course introduces students to the power of data as applied to real-life problems in today's data-driven world. Students will learn basic statistical concepts, how to identify reliable data, and to think critically about how to extract meaning from data. The course will discuss various biases, including social biases, how they affect data gathering and analysis, and how to address these biases. The course will also address ethical and moral issues associated with statistics, data collection and visualization, and data analysis. Students will learn how to present a narrative supported by data. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| Seminars (select courses from at least three of the four areas) | Credits: | |
| ICBS 3XX | Behavioral Science choice | 3 |
| Please view all course descriptions: http://www.nyit.edu/courses | ||
| ICLT 3XX | Literature choice | 3 |
| Please view all course descriptions: http://www.nyit.edu/courses | ||
| ICPH 3XX | Philosophy choice | 3 |
| Please view all course descriptions: http://www.nyit.edu/courses | ||
| ICSS 3XX | Social Science/Economics choice* | 3 |
| Please view all course descriptions: http://www.nyit.edu/courses | ||
| Total: 12 Credits | ||
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Students must take four seminar courses from at least three different areas of study. * May be substituted for IENG 400 Technology and Global Issues |
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| Core Math and Science Requirement | Credits: | |
| MATH 170 | Calculus I | 4 |
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Prerequisite: Prerequisite: MATH 141 or Math Placement Exam. Study of lines and circles. Functions, limits, derivatives of algebraic functions, introduction to derivatives of trigonometric functions. Application of derivatives to physics problems, related rates, maximum-minimum word problems and curve sketching. Introduction to indefinite integrals. The conic sections. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 5-0-4 |
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| PHYS 170 | General Physics I | 4 |
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Prerequisite: Co-requisite: MATH 170 A basic course covering vectors, Newton's laws of motion, particle kinematics and dynamics, work, energy, momentum, and rotational motion. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 4-2-4 |
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| Total: 8 Credits | ||
Major Requirements
| Physics | Credits: | |
| PHYS 180 | General Physics II | 4 |
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Prerequisite: Prerequisite: PHYS 170. Co-requisite: MATH 180. Students in BS Electrical and Computer Engineering and BS Mechanical Engineering must earn a grade of C or better in PHYS 170. A continuation of PHYS 170. Topics include fluids, wave motion, electric fields and electric potential, DC circuits, magnetic fields, capacitance and inductance, AC circuits, and electromagnetic waves. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 4-2-4 |
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| PHYS 225 | Introduction to Modern Physics | 3 |
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Prerequisite: Prerequisite: PHYS 180 This course is designed to familiarize students with the following topics: thermodynamics, optics, relativity, atomic and nuclear physics, fundamental quantum theory of photons, and semiconductors. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| PHYS 226 | Introduction to Modern Physics Lab | 1 |
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Prerequisite: Corequisites: PHYS 225 This course introduces students to some of the most important experiments in physics, which signify the transition from classical to modern physics. The experiments include but are not limited to studies of the photoelectric effect, the Millikan oil drop, and wave-particle duality for light and electrons. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 0-2-1 |
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| PHYS 320 | Quantum Physics | 4 |
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Prerequisite: Prerequisites: PHYS 180, MATH 310 This course motivates from an historical perspective the development of quantum mechanics. We begin by examining early 20th-century experiments that the Newtonian framework could not explain, and then develop a language and a set of rules - or principles - with which one may understand all such experiments to date. Topics include the wavelike property of Nature, the quantization of Nature, the calculation of probabilities, the significance of measurement, wave-versus-particle models, and quantum uncertainty. Illustrative thought experiments will be examined, including Schroedinger's possibly-unfortunate cat. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 4-0-4 |
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| PHYS 331 | Advanced Physics Laboratory I | 3 |
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Prerequisite: Prerequisites: PHYS 180, MATH 260 Advanced Physics Laboratory I is the first semester of a two-semester sequence that requires students to conduct, analyze, document, and present four experiments per semester. Students will work in pairs and select their experiments from a myriad of choices ranging from Compton scattering and the Zeeman effect to Brownian motion. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 1-4-3 |
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| PHYS 341 | Analytical Physics | 4 |
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Prerequisite: Prerequisites: PHYS 180 In this intermediate course in classical mechanics, topics include Newton’s equations, conservation laws, central force motions, damped and forced oscillations, non-inertial coordinate systems, rigid body motions, Lagrangian and Hamiltonian methods. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 4-0-4 |
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| PHYS 371 | Electricity and Magnetism I | 4 |
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Prerequisite: Prerequisites: PHYS 180, MATH 260 Students will learn the fundamentals of electricity and magnetism making use of the tools of vector calculus and differential equations. Topics will include electrostatics, magnetostatics, elements of electrodynamics (Ohm’s Law and electromagnetic induction), and Maxwell’s equations. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 4-0-4 |
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| PHYS 390 | Statistical Mechanics | 4 |
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Prerequisite: Prerequisites: PHYS 320 Students will study systems containing many particles, using thermodynamics and statistical mechanics. Topics will include thermodynamics of ideal gases, thermal equilibrium, microscopic and macroscopic definitions of entropy, phase transitions, blackbody radiation, and Bose-Einstein and Fermi-Dirac distributions. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 4-0-4 |
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| PHYS 451 | Mathematical Methods in Physics | 4 |
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Prerequisite: Prerequisites: MATH 260, PHYS 225 The course introduces some aspects of mathematical methods for solving physics problems. Differential equations such as the wave equation, diffusion equation, heat equation, and Schrodinger equation will be discussed and applied in various settings. The course also extends to numerical solutions for real-world problems using computing languages such as Mathematica. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 4-0-4 |
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| PHYS 490 | Special Topics** | 2 |
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Prerequisite: Prerequisites: PHYS 320 This course will focus on analytical reading of classical review papers in various fields of physics, including quantum physics and quantum technology, plasma physics, mathematical physics, astrophysics, and biophysics. Students will learn how to synthesize the important information contained in research papers and to analyze and critique scientific methodology. Every student will work with individual faculty for a semester. The specific topic, either on original research or on reviewing classical papers, and the schedule of the meetings will be determined by the supervisor. The course will also develop presentation skills and the ability to generate innovative research methods. At the end of the semester, every student is required to present their work in a joint meeting, judged by all physics faculty members. [Note: Physics majors are required to enroll in this course twice] Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 2-0-2 |
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| Total: 35 Credits | ||
| ** PHYS 490 Special Topics must be taken twice, over two semesters. | ||
| Mathematics | Credits: | |
| MATH 180 | Calculus II | 4 |
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Prerequisite: Prerequisite: MATH 170. Students in BS Electrical and Computer Engineering and BS Mechanical Engineering must earn a grade of C or better in MATH 170. Riemann sums, the definite integral, the fundamental theorem of the calculus. Area, volumes of solids of revolution, arc length, work. Exponential and logarithmic functions. Inverse trigonometric functions. Formal integration techniques. L'Hopital's rule, improper integrals. Polar coordinates. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 5-0-4 |
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| MATH 260 | Calculus III | 4 |
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Prerequisite: Prerequisite: MATH 180 Sequences and series, Taylor series. Vector analysis and analytic geometry in three dimensions. Functions of several variables, partial derivatives, total differential, the chain rule, directional derivatives and gradients. Multiple integrals and applications. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 4-0-4 |
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| MATH 310 | Linear Algebra | 3 |
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Prerequisite: Prerequisite: MATH 180 Matrices and systems of linear equations, vector spaces, change of base matrices, linear transformations, determinants, eigen-values and eigen-vectors, canonical forms. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| MATH 320 | Differential Equations | 3 |
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Prerequisite: Prerequisite: MATH 260 Solving first order ordinary differential equations: exact, separable, and linear. Application to rates and mechanics. Theory of higher order linear differential equations. Method of undetermined coefficients and variation of parameters. Application to vibrating mass and electric circuits. Power series solutions: ordinary and singular points, the method of Frobenius. Partial differential equations: the method of separation of variables. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| MATH 350 | Advanced Calculus | 3 |
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Prerequisite: Prerequisite: MATH 260 Topics include: Vector functions of several variables, the Jacobian matrix, the generalized chain rule, inverse function theorem, curvilinear coordinates, the Laplacian in cylindrical and spherical co-ordinates, Lagrange multipliers, line integrals, vector differential and integral calculus including Green's, Stokes's and Gauss's theorem. The change of variable in multiple integrals, Leibnitz's rule, sequences and uniform convergence of series. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| Total: 17 Credits | ||
| Students may choose General Concentration or Quantum Informatics Concentration: | ||
| General Concentration | Credits: | |
| Physics Electives | Consult with advisor on all science electives | 15 |
| Please view all course descriptions: http://www.nyit.edu/courses | ||
| General Electives | Consult with advisor on all liberal arts electives | 21 |
| Please view all course descriptions: http://www.nyit.edu/courses | ||
| Total: 36 Credits | ||
| Quantum Informatics Concentration | Credits: | |
| PHYS 420 | Quantum Mechanics II | 3 |
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Prerequisite: Prerequisites: PHYS 320 This course builds upon the foundation laid in Quantum Mechanics I, continuing to develop the theoretical framework. In parallel, students examine applications of this framework, specifically to various phenomena that classical theory cannot explain, including superconductivity. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| PHYS 440 | Quantum Optics | 3 |
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Prerequisite: Prerequisite: PHYS 420 This course introduces students to the quantum theory of light-matter interactions. Topics include qubits (two-level systems), the interaction of classical electromagnetic fields with qubits, quantized electromagnetic fields, and the interaction of quantized fields with qubits. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| PHYS 470 | Introduction to Solid State Physics | 3 |
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Prerequisite: Prerequisites: PHYS 320 The course introduces basic physical properties of solid state materials. Quantum mechanics will be used in the discussion of electronic states in solids. The course also focuses on special physical properties of semiconductors and their applications in electronic devices. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| PHYS 480 | Quantum Computing and Information Theory | 3 |
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Prerequisite: Prerequisites: PHYS 320 A course on quantum computation and information theory. Topics will include quantum circuits, algorithms, Fourier transforms, error-correction, entropy, and information theory. Classroom Hours - Laboratory and/or Studio Hours – Course Credits: 3-0-3 |
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| Physics Electives | Consult with advisor on all science electives | 6 |
| Please view all course descriptions: http://www.nyit.edu/courses | ||
| General Electives | Consult with advisor on all liberal arts electives | 18 |
| Please view all course descriptions: http://www.nyit.edu/courses | ||
| Total: 36 Credits | ||
| Total Program Credits = 120 |