Modern and Thermal Physics
Physics · 3 hrs Lecture | 3 hrs Lab
Offered: Fall/Winter Only, Every Year
PHYS-2302 prerequisites
3 courses appear in this chain, up to 2 levels deep. 3 are needed whichever route you take: MATH-1104 → PHYS-1101 → PHYS-2302L
Part of this course's requisite text couldn't be parsed into structure, so the chain below may be incomplete. The full wording is under “Requisite courses”.
Show the chainHide the chain
all of
all of
all of
all of
Physics 40S
any one of
Pre-Calculus Mathematics 40S
Applied Mathematics 40S
all of
Both MATH-1103
any one of
Minimum grade of C in MATH-1103
the former MATH-1101
any one of
the former MATH-1101
both MATH-1103
Its prerequisites are shown above.
Add your completed courses to see which of these you've already done and what you could take next. They stay on this device.
Where PHYS-2302 counts
Required by 3 programs:
Counts toward 1 more as one option among several, not as a course you must take:
- PHYS MINOR IN PHYSICS
Read from the departments' own calendar pages, where 71 of 141 programs are only partly machine-readable, so treat these as a minimum rather than the full list. Confirm with an academic advisor.
Description
This course contains a series of topics which provide students with a broad understanding of the physics that appears in our daily lives and beyond. Topics covered are thermal physics (temperature, entropy, and the laws of thermodynamics, the ideal gas, work and Carnot cycles, kinetic theory, probability, statistical distribution functions), special relativity (including Lorentz transformations, velocity addition, the Doppler effect, relativistic energy and momentum), and quantum physics (early indications of quantum physics, the Bohr model of hydrogen, uncertainty principles, the Schrodinger equation and simple solutions, atomic, nuclear, and subatomic physics).
Requisite courses
PHYS-1101 and either the former MATH-1101 or both MATH-1103 and MATH-1104 [prerequisite(s)]; PHYS-2302L (lab) (must be taken previously or at the same time as this course); PHYS-2105 and PHYS-2106 (must be taken concurrently).
From the 2026-27 undergraduate calendar. Always verify details on WebAdvisor or with an academic advisor before registering.