Doctor of Philosophy in Physics

Qualifying (Comprehensive) Examination

Students accepted into the Physics Ph.D. program of the Department of Physics must take a written Qualifying Examination. The Qualifying Examination will be authored and administered by the Qualifying Exam Committee and will cover four areas: classical mechanics (including introductory special relativity), electricity and magnetism, quantum mechanics and general physics. Sample examinations are available on the web.

Problems in the areas of classical mechanics, electricity and magnetism, and quantum mechanics may be solved using techniques taught at the advanced undergraduate level. Representative materials for these subjects are listed below:

Classical Mechanics

Text: Classical Dynamics of Particles & Systems, J.B. Marion and S.T. Thornton, 3rd edition, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Inc., 1988. Chapters 1 to 14.
Text: Analytical Mechanics, G.R. Fowles and G.L. Cassiday, 7th edition, Harcourt Brace & Company, 2005. Chapters 1 to 11.

Electricity and Magnetism

Text: Introduction to Electrodynamics, 3rd ed. D. J. Griffiths, Prentice Hall. Chapters 1 to 11.
Text: Electromagnetism, G. L. Pollack and D. R. Stump. Addison Wesley, 2002. Chapters 1-11, 13-15.

Quantum Mechanics

Text: Quantum Physics of Atoms, Molecules, Solids, Nuclei and Particles, R. Eisberg and R. Resnick, 2nd edition, John Wiley & Sons, 1985. Chapters 1 to 10.
Text: Quantum Mechanics, An Accessible Approach, R. Scherrer, Pearson Addison Wesley, 2006. Chapters 1 to 10.

General Physics

The general physics section of the exam will consist of short questions covering all areas of physics normally taught at the undergraduate level including mechanics, special relativity, electromagnetism (including AC and DC circuits), quantum and atomic physics, thermal and statistical physics, optics and laboratory techniques including data analysis.

The Qualifying Examination will be given twice each year during the first two weeks of the fall and spring semesters. A typical schedule follows:

Exam books (blue books) will be provided. All work must be done in the exam books. When solving electricity and magnetism problems, a consistent set of units must be used; the system of units being used should be stated at the beginning of the problem. No handbooks or calculators are allowed. Any needed mathematical information will be provided.

Students are encouraged to take the Qualifying Exam the first time it is given following their arrival on campus. They may do so without penalty. This “free shot” does not count as one of the two attempts that students are allowed to pass the exam. The main purpose of the “free shot” is to acquaint new students with the exam. Students who pass the entire exam on the free shot fully satisfy the Qualifying Examination requirement. Any of the four areas passed on the “free shot” need not be retaken in future attempts. Students who elect to take the “free shot” but do not pass the exam in its entirety are required to take their first attempt as described in the following paragraph which applies to all students.

Students who enter the Ph.D. program during the summer or fall semester are required to take the Qualifying Examination no later than the fall semester of the following year; students who enter the Ph.D. program during the spring semester are required to take the Qualifying Examination no later than the spring semester of the following year. Students are allowed two attempts to pass the Qualifying Examination. Passing scores in each of the four areas are required to pass the exam.

Students typically will be informed of the outcome of the written exam within three weeks of the last of the scheduled examination dates. The outcomes of the exam are either a pass or a fail for each area of the exam. Any of the four areas not passed during the first attempt must be retaken the next time the Qualifying Examination is given. If after the second attempt students have not passed all four areas of the exam, the Qualifying Exam Committee will recommend that those students be dismissed from the Ph.D. program, except as noted below.

If after the second attempt a student has passed all areas except one, an ad hoc committee will be formed consisting of the Chair of the Qualifying Exam Committee, the Department Chair, the Chair of the Graduate Studies Committee, and the student’s research advisor. This committee will determine whether or not it is appropriate to continue the failed area of the exam to allow the student an opportunity to demonstrate his/her knowledge in the subject area using an alternate format. If a continuation is warranted, it may consist of an oral exam, the requirement that the student take a specified course and earn the grade of no less than a B or better, or some similar activity which may be evaluated. The continuation activity may not consist of a third attempt of the Qualifying Examination. The successful completion of the continuation activity will result in a pass for the area of the Qualifying Examination that had been failed initially.

Form D4 must be filed with the Graduate School, through the Chair of the Graduate Studies Committee, after passing the Qualifying Exam.

Doctor of Philosophy in Engineering Physics

Qualifying (Comprehensive) Examination

Students accepted into the Engineering Physics PhD program must pass the Qualifying Examination, which is composed of a physics component and an engineering component.

The physics component of the Qualifying Exam will cover three out of four of the following topics, to be chosen in advance by the student: classical mechanics (including special relativity), electricity and magnetism, quantum mechanics, and general physics. Each of these areas will be covered in a separate two-hour written examination. Classical mechanics, electricity and magnetism, and quantum mechanics qualifying problems may be solved using techniques taught at the advanced undergraduate level. The general physics exam will consist of short questions covering all areas of physics normally taught at the undergraduate level, including mechanics, relativity, electromagnetism (including AC and DC circuits), quantum and atomic physics, thermal and statistical physics, optics, and laboratory techniques including data analysis.

Students are encouraged to take the physics component of the Qualifying Exam the first time it is given following their arrival on campus. They may do so without penalty. This “free shot” does not count as one of the two attempts that students are allowed to pass the exam. The main purpose of the “free shot” is to acquaint new students with the exam. Students who pass all three areas of the exam on the free shot fully satisfy the physics component of the Qualifying Examination requirement. Any of the three areas passed on the “free shot” need not be retaken in future attempts. Students who elect to take the “free shot” but do not pass the exam in its entirety are required to take their first attempt as described in the following paragraph which applies to all students.

Students who enter the Ph.D. program during the summer or fall semester are required to take the physics component of the Qualifying Examination no later than the fall semester of the following year; students who enter the Ph.D. program during the spring semester are required to take the physics component of the Qualifying Examination no later than the spring semester of the following year. Students are allowed two attempts to pass the physics component of the Qualifying Examination. Passing scores in each of the three areas are required to pass the physics component of the exam.

Students typically will be informed of the outcome of the written exam within three weeks of the last of the scheduled examination dates. The outcomes of the exam are either a pass or a fail for each area of the exam. Any of the three areas not passed during the first attempt must be retaken the next time the Qualifying Examination is given. If after the second attempt students have not passed all three areas of the exam, the Qualifying Exam Committee will recommend that those students be dismissed from the Ph.D. program, except as noted below.

If after the second attempt a student has passed all areas except one, an ad hoc committee will be formed consisting of the Chair of the Qualifying Exam Committee, the Department Chair, the Chair of the Graduate Studies Committee, and the student’s research advisor. This committee will determine whether or not it is appropriate to continue the failed area of the exam to allow the student an opportunity to demonstrate his/her knowledge in the subject area using an alternate format. If a continuation is warranted, it may consist of an oral exam, the requirement that the student take a specified course and earn the grade of no less than a B or better, or some similar activity which may be evaluated. The continuation activity may not consist of a third attempt of the Qualifying Examination. The successful completion of the continuation activity will result in a pass for the area of the Qualifying Examination that had been failed initially.

The engineering member(s) of the Advisory Committee shall formulate the engineering component of the qualifying examination that is two to three hours in length and appropriate to the student’s chosen area of engineering physics interest- focusing on fundamentals and not on the student's current research. The format of the engineering component of the qualifying examination shall be determined by the student's Advisory Committee. The engineering component of the qualifying examination should be taken by the end of the fall semester of the second year. Students may have two attempts to pass this exam before the end of their second year in the program.