Schedule

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Wednesday
Jan 17
2024

Velocities!

The average velocity, most probable velocity, and average relative velocity

Reading

Ch. 10 of Free Energy, pgs. 246-251

Wednesday
Jan 24
2024

Light Waves in a Box!

How light in a blackbody radiator must conform to Maxwell’s equations for electromagnetism.

Reading

Ch. 11 of “Free Energy” pgs. 269-272

Friday
Jan 26
2024

The Planck Distribution

How the energy density of a blackbody radiator (i.e. lightbulb) is determined by the average energy per photon times the number of modes.

Reading

Ch. 11 of “Free Energy” pgs. 273-276

Friday
Feb 02
2024

Expectation (i.e. Average) Values

How to calculate expectation (i.e. average) values when the eigenvalue equation fails.

Reading

Ch. 12 of “Free Energy” pgs. 274-279

Monday
Feb 05
2024

Proof of the Expectation Value Equation

How the wavefunction of an operator can be expressed as a linear combination of another operator’s wavefunctions.

Reading

Ch. 12 of “Free Energy” pgs. 301-306

Monday
Feb 12
2024

Freewaves and Barrier Potentials

Bound vs. unbound states, the flux operator, and potential surfaces with barriers.

Reading

Ch. 12 of “Free Energy” pgs. 308-311 and Ch. 13 pgs. 314-317

Wednesday
Feb 14
2024

Reflection off a Barrier and Tunneling Phenomena

Reflection off a step potential barrier and tunneling through a finite barrier. Also examples of tunneling phenomena in organic and biochemistry.

Reading

Ch. 13 of “Free Energy” pgs. 318-320

Friday
Feb 23
2024

The Uncertainty Principle Part 1

Introduction to the uncertainty principle via decomposing wavefunctions into momentum waves (i.e. Fourier Transformation).

Reading

Ch. 13 of “Free Energy” pgs. 331-336

Monday
Feb 26
2024

The Uncertainty Principle Pt. 2

How commutators determine the existence of uncertainty in quantum mechanics.

Reading

Ch. 13 of “Free Energy” pgs. 336-338

Friday
Mar 01
2024

The 2D Rigid Rotor

More on 2D rigid rotor properties, the Hamiltonian, wavefunctions, and boundary conditions.

Reading

Ch. 14 of “Free Energy” pgs. 368-374

Friday
Mar 01
2024

Rotation in 3D

Rotation in 3D- Separability of the 3D kinetic energy operator.

Reading

Ch. 14 of “Free Energy” pgs. 374-378

Friday
Mar 15
2024

Hydrogen Radial Wavefunctions

The solution(s) to the radial Schrodinger Equation for the hydrogen atom.

Reading

Ch. 15 of “Free Energy” pgs. 404-408

Friday
Apr 12
2024

Introduction to Kinetics

First and second order kinetics- rate laws and rate expressions.

Reading

Ch. 16 of “Free Energy” pgs. 436-440

Monday
Apr 22
2024

Enzyme Kinetics

Enzyme kinetics, specifically the Michaelis-Menten paradigm.

Reading

Ch. 16 of “Free Energy” pgs. 450-454