31064 - Laboratory Of Physics 2

Learning outcomes

Module I. The student will perform experimental measurements on alternating current circuits and physical optics and be will be able to write laboratory reports. 
Module II. The student will have in depth knowledge on programming in C++ and on Monte Carlo methods for the simulation of physical processes.  
 Module III. The student will have understanding at an intermediate level of the use of LabView for data acquisition and instrument control.

Course contents

Module I. (Electrical circuits and optics). Kirchoff's laws, resistive circuits, inductors and condensers, first and second order circuits, RLC circuits, frequency response. Optics: experiments on diffraction and interference phenomena. Instruments in the electronics and optical laboratory. Experiments on electromagnetic induction and transient and sinusoidal RLC circuits.

Module II. (The C++ programming language). Revision of programming in C++: object – oriented programming – classes, methods and attributes, encapsulation and protection mechanism for class members. Aggregation and inheritance. Polymorphism. Application of Monte Carlo methods for the generation of physical distributions and parametrization of resolution and efficiency of detectors. Advanced applications of ROOT for data analysis: linear and non linear fits. Use of ROOT in the framework of object – oriented programming for data analysis and simulation using tree structures; applications to experiments performed in module I.

Module III. (LabView as a tool for data acquisition.) DAQ devices for acquisition and generation of electric signals: hardware architecture and computer buses. Signal connection to DAQ devices. Sampling of analog signals: aliasing and Nyquist theorem. LabVIEW DAQ library and Vis. Signal generation. Buffered daya acquisition and generation. Analog and digital trigger.

Readings/Bibliography

Module I - Circuiti elettrici, Renzo Perfetti, Zanichelli - Bologna.  Elio Bava, Gianluca Galzerano, Michele Norgia, Roberto Ottoboni e Cesare Svelto, Misure elettroniche di laboratorio, Pitagora Editrice, 2005  P. Mazzoldi, M. Nigro, C. Voci, Elementi di Fisica: Elettromagnetismo e onde, EdiSes

Module II. "Computer Architecture, A quantitative approach" di J.L. Hennessy e D.A. Patterson,"The C++ Standard Library" di Nicolai M. Josuttis, 

Module III - Teaching material available on campus.unibo.it server

Teaching methods

Module I. Lectures and numerical exercises on electrical circuits. Lectures on electronic and optical instrumentation and on laboratory experiments. Each student will write reports on the four lab experiments and discuss their preliminary version with teachers and assistants.

Module II. Lectures, including solutions of example problems. Each student must perform in 12 hours of programming exercises in the computing laboratory.

Module III. Lectures in the classroom, including theory and examples of software development. Each student will take part in three laboratory sessions, dedicated to software development and data acquisition, for a total of 12 hours.

Assessment methods

Module I. Written and oral exam. Only students who have attended the four compulsory laboratory experiments and have written the reports will be admitted to the written exam, which consists in problems on electrical circuits. The oral exam consists in the discussion of one of the experiments, chosen by the teacher. Only students who have passed the written exam of module I and the exams of modules II and III will be admitted to the oral exam of module I, which is the final exam of the Physics Laboratory 2 course. The final mark is the weighted average of the marks in modules I, II and III.

Module II. Written test with 5 short questions and oral exam on the C++ programming language and the topics covered in the course. Students are required to have performed the mandatory computing laboratory exercises. The oral exam is a discussion of the written test, of the code written during the laboratory sessions using the C++ language and the ROOT framework. The mark for module II is the sum of at most 20 points for the written test and at most 10 points for the code.

Module III. In the course of the last laboratory session, the student will write a report according to a standard template, summarizing the main results and the LabVIEW code developed. The reports in PDF format will be collected by the teacher at the end of the session. The final exam consists in a written examination with 10 questions on the module’s contents. The mark of module III will be determined by the evaluation of the report (max 10 points) and of the written examination (max 20 points).

Teaching tools

Module I.Fully equipped experimental laboratory for electrical and optical measurements. 
 Module II. PC computers. 
 Module III. LabView software and ELVISII boards.

Office hours

See the website of Federico Boscherini

See the website of Silvia Arcelli

See the website of Luca Pasquini