Master of Science in Computational Physics


Entrance requirements

Subject to the provision of the Academic General Regulations for Post-Graduate programmes and the Academic General Regulations for Master’s degrees programmes, the following Special Regulations shall apply: The minimum entry requirements for the Master of Science in Computational Physics shall be a B.Sc. or B.Ed. or B.Eng. (Electrical & Electronic Eng.) degree with majors in Physics or related discipline from UNISWA or any other recognized institution, with at least a second class (second division) pass or equivalent, and minimum average of a C grade (60 %) in Physics or Physics related courses.

Duration:
4 Semesters (2 years)

Semester I
Core Courses

Code Title L P Cr
PHY601 Advanced Computational Physics 2 3 4
PHY603 Computational Statistical Methods 2 3 4
PHY605 Research Methods in Physics 0 2 1.3
PHY607 Advanced Quantum Mechanics 3 0 3

Electives

Code Title L P Cr
PHY631 Advanced Condensed Matter Physics 3 0 3
PHY633 Topics in Atomic and Molecular Physics 3 0 3
PHY635 Energy and Environmental Physics 3 0 3

Semester II
Core Courses

Code Title L P Cr
PHY602 Tools of High Performance Computing 0 6 4
PHY604 Advanced Statistical Physics 3 0 3
PHY606 Quantum Computing 3 0 3
PHY690 Graduate Seminars in Physics 0 2 1.3
PHY608 Ethics and Law in Science 2 0 2

Electives

Code Title L P Cr
PHY632 Computational Nanoscience: Theory and simulations 2 2 3.3
PHY634 Special Topics in Theoretical Physics 3 0 3
PHY636 Numerical Weather Predictions 2 3 4

Semester III

Code Title L P Cr
PHY699 Master's Thesis 6

Semester IV

Code Title L P Cr
PHY699 Master's Thesis 6


COURSE DESCRIPTIONS

PHY601 Advanced Computational Physics (Core, 2L3P)
Theory (2 hours)
Introduction and comparison high level programming in Fortran/C++ or related languages. Numerical methods for solving differential equations. Dynamics system, chaos, and iterated maps. Computational methods for nonlinear systems: Monte Carlo methods, Dynamics simulations and emergence of thermodynamics. Ising model. Percolation and complex networks. Techniques in computational materials science.

Practical (3 hours)
The laboratory sessions are part of PHY601 teaching to provide students with hands-on computer work in C++/FORTRAN 95 programming. The students will also have access to the computer laboratory to work through a series of problems assigned to them based on the topics listed above with the assistance of the course instructor.

PHY603 Computational Statistical Methods (Core, 2L3P)
Theory (2 hours)
Introduction to R-programming. Experimental data and probabilities. Statistical models and probability distributions. Estimation, errors and uncertainty. Orthodox hypothesis testing. Linear models and regression. Binomial and Poisson distributions. Estimation of parameters. Likelihood-based (Bayesian) parametric modeling. Maximum likelihood and density estimation. Use and abuse of statistics.

Practical (3 hours)
The laboratory sessions are part of PHY603 teaching to provide students with hands-on computer work in R programming. Practical sessions will cover the following topics: working with real data in R. Solving Equations and Optimization in R. Simulations. Statistical analysis with R.

PHY605 Advanced Research Methods in Physics (Core, 2L0P)
Theory (2 hours)
Curiosity and scientific inquiry. Developing an appropriate research question. Graphical analysis of data. Scientific information: searching for scientific articles, giving scientific presentation. Writing a scientific manuscript for publication. Science and Society. Write and research proposal (grant)

PHY607 Advanced Quantum Mechanics (Core, 3L0P)
Theory (3 hours)
Fundamental concepts. Quantum dynamics: Schrodinger and Heisenberg picture. Harmonic oscillator and coherent states. Potential and gauge transformations. Angular momentum. Quantum Entanglement, Symmetries: parity and time reversal. Approximation methods: Time- independent and time-dependent perturbation theory. Introduction to Quantum Field Theory.

Advanced Condensed Matter Physics (Elective, 3L0P)
Theory (3 hours)
Crystal structure, crystal binding, lattice vibrations, Fermi surfaces, energy bands, classification of solids. Electron and phonons in solids, semiconductors, superconductivity, and magnetism. Survey topics in soft matter: polymers, colloids, and liquid crystals.

PHY633 Topics in Atomic and Molecular physics (Elective, 3L0P)
Theory (3 hours)
Free and bound atoms: observation and measurements. QM descriptions of many electron systems. Relativistic effects in atoms. Atomic and molecular term symbols. Orbital theory and potential energy surfaces. Quantum chemistry techniques. Polyatomic molecules and group applications. Molecular spectroscopy and other experimental techniques. Molecular dynamics and photochemistry.

PHY635 Energy and Environmental Physics (Elective, 3L0P)
Theory (3 hours)
Energy source, fossil fuels, nuclear energy, renewable energy and energy efficiency. Environmental consequence of energy use: climate change, nuclear radiation, air and water pollution, etc.

PHY602 Tools of High Performance Computing (Core,0L6P)
Practical (6 hours)
Programming for efficiency. High performance computers, Memory hierarchy, CPU Design: Multiple-core processors Parallel semantics. Parallelization strategy, Shared memory programming. Distributed memory programming, Example of a supercomputer: IBM Blue Gene/L. Programming for efficiency. Exercises on parallel computing. Parallel performance, Shared memory programming. Distributed memory programming. GPU programming. Good and bad virtual memory use. Python vs Fortran/C++, Practical tips for multicore, GPU programming.

PHY604 Advanced Statistical Physics (Core, 3L0P)
Theory (3 hours)
Interacting systems: Ising model, phases. Symmetry breaking. Mean field Theory. Fluctuations. Elementary excitations. Renormalization group and scaling.

PHY606 Quantum Computing (Core, 3L0P)
Theory (3 hours)
Quantum entanglement theory, quantum communication and cryptography, Quantum Shannon theory, quantum computation and algorithms, quantum error correction, implementation of quantum computation and communications.

PHY690 Graduate Seminar in Modeling and Physics (Core, 0L2P).
Practical (2 hours)
Graduate students are required to attend weekly seminar series that will involve guest speakers, lecturers and students presentations on cutting edge research in Physics-related fields. All M.Sc. students will be slated to make 30 minutes presentations on recent scientific publication (from a reputable journal) that is related to their research area. Each presentation will be followed by a 10 minute question period. The students are required to submit reports summarizing the information presented in a selected number of seminars.

PHY608 Ethics and Law in Science (Core, 2L0P).
Theory (2 hours)
Fundamental theories of contracts. Rights and responsibilities. Conflict of interest (real and apparent). Acquisition, management, sharing and ownership of data. Patent rights. Publication practices and authorship. Peer review. Research misconduct (fabrication, falsification and plagiarism). Questionable research

PHY632 Computational Nanoscience (Elective, 2L3P)
Theory (2 hours)
Computational application for molecules, clusters, quantum nanostructure. MD and interatomic potentials, Monte Carlo simulations of nanostructures, Multiscale methods : Phase field crystal models, Electronic structure methods: DFT and Hatree-Fock.

Theory (3 hours)
The laboratory sessions are part of PHY632 teaching to provide students with hands-on computer on developing algorithms and computer program for MD simulations, solving Phase field model, DFT calculation in their preferred programming environment.

PHY634 Special Topics in Theoretical Physics (Elective, 3L0P)
Theory (3 hours)
Discussions of recent topics relevant for condensed matter, nuclear, and particle physics research. Such topics will include classical mechanics, fluid mechanics, electromagnetic theory, statistical mechanics, and quantum field theory, particle physics.

PHY636 Numerical Weather Prediction (Elective, 2L3P)
Theory (2 hours)
Fundamentals of Numerical Weather Predictions. Basic wave oscillation in the atmosphere: gravity and sound waves, weather waves . Chaotic behavior: growth rate of errors and the limit of predictability. Atmosphere predictability. Role of Oceans and land in climate predictability. Data Assimilation.

Practical (3 hours)
The laboratory sessions are part of PHY636 teaching to provide students with hands-on computer on developing numerical algorithms for solving mathematical models for weather forecasting and simulations of weather patterns.

PHY699 M.Sc. Thesis Research
An M.Sc. candidate will undertake an independent original research on a topic that applies in Computational Physics techniques under the guidance of an advisor(s) in the specialized field of study. The title and planning of the study is to be determined jointly by the student and his/her advisor(s), and the research is designed to include thesis presentation and thesis defense to be presented as partial requirement for the M.Sc. degree in Computational Physics.