What is “Modern Physics”?
“Modern” physics means physics based on the two major breakthroughs of the early the twentieth century: relativity and quantum mechanics.Physics based on what was known before then (Newton’s laws, Maxwell’s equations, thermodynamics) is called “classical” physics.
This course traces in some detail just how the new ideas developed. We examine the experimental and theoretical paradoxes that forced thinking out of the traditional path. This is a valuable exercise—the classical ideas are in much better accord with common sense (defined by Einstein as the layer of prejudices in place by age eighteen), so seeing how the new physics came about is helpful in overcoming that “common sense” and getting a better understanding of nature.
But this is not just a course on concepts: the lectures and homework are sufficient to give the student a basic technical grasp of special relativity, and of Schrödinger’s quantum mechanics.
Modern physics is a branch of physics in which matter and energy are not separate (as in classical physics), but instead are alternate forms of one another. This branch is based primarily on Albert Einstein's theory of relativity and Max Planck's quantum theory. Modern physics is divided into a variety of different areas of study, including atomic physics, nuclear physics, high-energy physics, ultrasonics, solid-state physics and plasma physics. The laws of conservation are a vital part of modern physics, including those of mass, energy and momentum, which are also part of classical physics. However, the laws of conservation of subatomic particles are unique to modern physics.
BalasHapusThe term of modern physics, means up date physics. hehehehee. In this sense, a significant portion of so called classical physics is modern. the advent of quantum mechanics (QM), and of Einsteinian relativity (ER). Physics that incorporates elements of either QM or ER (or both) is said to be modern physics. It is in this latter sense that the term is generally used. Modern physics is often encountered when dealing with extreme conditions. Quantum mechanical effects tend to appear when dealing with "lows" (low temperatures, small distances), while relativistic effects tend to appear when dealing with "highs" (high velocities, large distances), the "middles" being classical behaviour.
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