Physics

Dr. Rongjia Tao, Chair

Dr. Zbigniew Dziembowski, Faculty Advisor
Barton Hall, Room A225
215-204-7639
zbig.dziembowski@temple.edu

The Bachelor of Science (B.S.) program serves two purposes. First, it gives strong preparation for those wishing to attend graduate school in physics or related disciplines. Second, the B.S. program is recommended for those who intend to enter the scientific workforce upon completion of a bachelor's degree.

The Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) program is designed for those who are planning for a non-research career in a field which nevertheless has an important science component.  Examples include patent law, environmental law enforcement, medicine or sales or management in a high-technology industry.

Bachelor of Arts

Summary of Requirements for the Degree

1. University Requirements (123 total s.h.)

• Math 0701 (4 s.h.) and/or English 0701 (4 s.h.), if required by placement testing.

• All Temple students must take a minimum of two writing-intensive courses as part of their major. Following is a list of courses that can be used to satisfy the writing-intensive requirement: Physics 2796* and Physics 4796.

• Students must complete a set of university requirements: General Education (GenEd) or Core.

• New freshmen students starting in the 2009-2010 catalog year are required to complete the General Education Curriculum (25-26 s.h.). See the General Education section of the Undergraduate Bulletin for the GenEd curriculum.

• New transfer students starting in the 2009-2010 catalog year are required to complete the University Core Curriculum requirements (34-35 s.h.) including completion of the library orientation, Temple Information Literacy Tutorial (TILT). See the Core Curriculum section of the Undergraduate Bulletin for the course requirements.

2. College Requirements

• 90 credits within the College of Science & Technology (CST) or the College of Liberal Arts (CLA).

• 45 Upper Level (2000+) credits within the College of Science & Technology (CST) or the College of Liberal Arts (CLA).

• Two (2) Upper Level (2000+) Liberal Art courses.

• Second (2nd) Level of a Foreign Language (1002).

3. Major Requirements for Bachelor of Arts (55 s.h.)

• Three (3) Mathematics courses are required (12 s.h.): Mathematics 1041, 1042 and 2043.

• Two (2) sequenced science courses outside the Department of Physics are required (8 s.h.): Biology 1011 and 1012, Biology 1111 and 2112, Chemistry 1031/1033 and 1032/1034 or Earth & Environmental Science 2001 and a 2000+ Elective.

• Ten (10) Physics courses are required (35 s.h.): Physics 1061 or 2021, 1062 or 2022, 2101, 2502, 2701 or 2796*, 3301, 4796 and three (3) Physics electives.  The three physics electives must be selected from the following list: Physics 0846, 2501, 3101, 3302, 3701, 4101, 4301, 4302, 4701 or 4702.

*Pending writing-intensive program approval.

Suggested Semester By Semester Plan

(F) - Fall only course.

(S) - Spring only course.

*Pending Writing Intensive Program Approval.

**Sequenced Science Options

Students are required to take a two-semester sequence of laboratory science electives not within physics.  The science courses can be chosen from Biology, Chemistry, or Earth & Environmental Science (EES) from the following list:

^Physics Electives

Bachelor of science

Summary of Requirements for the Degree

1. University Requirements (123 total s.h.)

• Math 0701 (4 s.h.) and/or English 0701 (4 s.h.), if required by placement testing.

• All Temple students must take a minimum of two writing-intensive courses as part of their major. Following is a list of courses that can be used to satisfy the writing-intensive requirement: Physics 2796* and Physics 4796.

• Students must complete a set of university requirements: General Education (GenEd) or Core.

• New freshmen students starting in the 2009-2010 catalog year are required to complete the General Education Curriculum (25-26 s.h.). See the General Education section of the Undergraduate Bulletin for the GenEd curriculum.

• New transfer students starting in the 2009-2010 catalog year are required to complete the University Core Curriculum requirements (34-35 s.h.) including completion of the library orientation, Temple Information Literacy Tutorial (TILT). See the Core Curriculum section of the Undergraduate Bulletin for the course requirements.

2. College Requirements

• 90 credits within the College of Science & Technology (CST) or the College of Liberal Arts (CLA).

• 45 Upper Level (2000+) credits within the College of Science & Technology (CST) or the College of Liberal Arts (CLA).

3. Major Requirements for Bachelor of Science (71-73 s.h.)

• Four (4) Mathematics courses are required (15 s.h.): Mathematics 1041, 1042, 2043 and 3041.

• Two (2) science or mathematics elective courses are required (6-8 s.h.): These two electives can be chosen from the departments of biology, chemistry, engineering, Earth & Environmental Science, mathematics, or advanced physics in consultation with the faculty advisor.

• Fifteen (15) Physics courses are required (50 s.h.): Physics 1061 or 2021, 1062 or 2022, 2101, 2501, 2502, 2701 or 2796*, 3101, 3301, 3302, 3701, 4101, 4302, 4796 and two (2) additional Physics courses from the following list: 4301, 4701 or 4702.  

*Pending writing-intensive program approval.

Suggested Semester By Semester Plan

(F) - Fall only course.

(S) - Spring only course.

*Pending writing-intensive program approval.

Interdisciplinary B.S. Degree in Mathematics and Physics

Dr. Tao Rongjia, Chair, Physics

Dr. Zbigniew Dziembowski, Faculty Advisor, Physics
215-204-7639
zbig.dziembowski@temple.edu

Dr. Edward Letzter, Chair, Mathematics

Dr. Boris Datskovsky, Director of Undergraduate Studies, Mathematics
215-204-7847
bdats@temple.edu

The interdisciplinary program is jointly administered by the departments of Mathematics and Physics. For further discussion of the Interdisciplinary major requirements, please see Mathematics and Physics in the Undergraduate Bulletin.

Minor Requirements

Students wishing to minor in Physics should take 8 semester hours of Calculus-based Physics I, II (Physics 1061-1062 or equivalent), Electricity and Magnetism (Physics 3301) or Introduction to Electromagnetic Fields and Waves (Electrical Engineering 3712), Introduction to Modern Physics (Physics 2701), and 6 additional semester hours of Physics courses at or above the 2000-level, chosen with the approval of the undergraduate Physics advisor.

Minors in Electrical and Mechanical Science

These minors are designed for Physics majors considering graduate work in Electrical or Mechanical Engineering or exploring career opportunities in branches of Engineering close to Physics. The student must maintain a GPA of 2.5 or better in these minors. Students who are interested in Engineering/Applied Physics but do not have time for a full minor should nevertheless review these minors and consult with the physics advisor about the possibility of taking courses in Engineering. Since Physics and Engineering core curricula overlap significantly, a Physics major can often learn an interesting Engineering specialty by taking a relatively modest number of courses.

Requirements for the Electrical Science Minor

Requirements for the Electrical Science Minor are: EE 2312, EE 2322, EE 3512, plus a minimum of 9 semester hours of 2000- and 3000-level electives, chosen in consultation with an advisor in the Electrical Engineering Department. (The EE 2322 lab largely duplicates the labs for Physics 3301 and Physics 4301 and is therefore not required.)  The following example elective sequence emphasizes solid state devices and might be of particular interest to a Physics major: EE 2612/2613 and EE 3312/3313.

Requirements for the Mechanical Science Minor

Requirements for the Mechanical Science Minor are: Engineering 2331, Engineering 2333 or 2332, ME 3301 and ME 3305 Lab, plus a minimum of 11 semester hours of 2000- and 3000-level electives, chosen in consultation with an advisor in the Mechanical Engineering Department.

Five-year Master's Program

The Combined Five-Year B.A. or B.S./M.A.

This program allows a talented student to obtain both a bachelor's and a master's degree in five years. A physics major may apply for the program during the junior or senior year. Please consult the advisor for details.

Five-Year Master’s/Secondary Education Certification Program

This is a combined program between the College of Science and Technology and the College of Education.  For more information, see the following web site:

www.temple.edu/bulletin/Academic_programs/schools_colleges/ed/intro/generalinfo/ed_generalinfo.shtm#teacher

Distinction in Major

A student who wishes to graduate with distinction in the major must complete all courses required for the physics major with a GPA of 3.5 or better, and carry out an independent study or undergraduate thesis project. Consult the undergraduate physics advisor for more details.