Atomic and Optical Physics I – Part 2: Atomic structure and atoms in external field - Massachusetts Institute of Technology

edX
3.8
2 reviews
  • I feel its great endeavour and start that will be exceptionally helpfull for understudies in future. This will surely bring our insight up in the imperative part of physics.
    ← | →
  • Magnificent instructional classes. Much obliged to edx and MIT for conveying a Nobel laureate to general understudies like us. PHYSICS ROCKS.
    ← | →

Course

Online

Free

The best Physics courses

See all

See all

Description

  • Type

    Course

  • Methodology

    Online

  • Start date

    Different dates available

Second part of a course in modern atomic and optical physics: the structure of atoms, and how they behave in static electromagnetic fields. With this course you earn while you learn, you gain recognized qualifications, job specific skills and knowledge and this helps you stand out in the job market.

Facilities

Location

Start date

Online

Start date

Different dates availableEnrolment now open

About this course

A two-semester sequence in Quantum Mechanics at the level of MIT 8.05 and 8.06.

Completion of 8.421.1x.

Questions & Answers

Add your question

Our advisors and other users will be able to reply to you

Who would you like to address this question to?

Fill in your details to get a reply

We will only publish your name and question

Reviews

3.8
  • I feel its great endeavour and start that will be exceptionally helpfull for understudies in future. This will surely bring our insight up in the imperative part of physics.
    ← | →
  • Magnificent instructional classes. Much obliged to edx and MIT for conveying a Nobel laureate to general understudies like us. PHYSICS ROCKS.
    ← | →
100%
4.3
fantastic

Course rating

Recommended

Centre rating

Saurabh Dubey

3.5
13/12/2016
What I would highlight: I feel its great endeavour and start that will be exceptionally helpfull for understudies in future. This will surely bring our insight up in the imperative part of physics.
What could be improved: Nothing.
Would you recommend this course?: Yes

Tushar Swain

4.0
12/12/2016
What I would highlight: Magnificent instructional classes. Much obliged to edx and MIT for conveying a Nobel laureate to general understudies like us. PHYSICS ROCKS.
What could be improved: N/A.
Would you recommend this course?: Yes
*All reviews collected by Emagister & iAgora have been verified

This centre's achievements

2017

All courses are up to date

The average rating is higher than 3.7

More than 50 reviews in the last 12 months

This centre has featured on Emagister for 8 years

Subjects

  • GCSE Physics
  • Physics
  • Optical Physics
  • Atomic stucture
  • Atoms

Course programme

EdX keeps courses open for enrollment after they end to allow learners to explore content and continue learning. All features and materials may not be all available. Check back often to see when new course start dates are announced.

This is the second of five modules to introduce concepts and current frontiers of atomic physics and to prepare you for cutting-edge research:

8.421.1x: Resonance

8.421.2x: Atomic structure and atoms in external field

8.421.3x: Atom-Light Interactions 1 -- Matrix elements and quantized field

8.421.4x: Atom-Light interactions 2 -- Line broadening and two-photon transitions

8.421.5x: Coherence

The second module, 8.421.2x, describes atomic structure, including electronic levels, fine structure, hyperfine structure and Lamb shift. You will then learn about how electric and magnetic fields shift atomic levels. The discussion of time-dependent electric fields prepares you for the interactions of atoms with light and for the dressed atom picture.

At MIT, the content of the five modules makes the first of a two-semester sequence (8.421 and 8.422) for graduate students interested in Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Physics. This sequence is required for Ph.D. students doing research in this field.

In these modules you will learn about the interaction of radiation with atoms: resonance; absorption, stimulated and spontaneous emission; methods of resonance, dressed atom formalism, masers and lasers, cavity quantum electrodynamics; structure of simple atoms, behavior in very strong fields; fundamental tests: time reversal, parity violations, Bell's inequalities; and experimental methods.

Completing the two-course sequence allows you to pursue advanced study and research in cold atoms, as well as specialized topics in condensed matter physics.


What you'll learn

  • The structure of atoms, and how atoms behave in static magnetic and electric fields
  • The fine structure and the Lamb shift
  • Effects of the nucleus on atomic structure

Additional information

Wolfgang Ketterle Wolfgang Ketterle has been the John D. MacArthur professor of physics at MIT since 1998. He received a diploma (equivalent to master’s degree) from the Technical University of Munich (1982), and the Ph.D. in physics from the University of Munich (1986). He did postdoctoral work at the Max-Planck Institute for Quantum Optics in Garching and at the University of Heidelberg in molecular spectroscopy and combustion diagnostics. In 1990, he came to MIT as a postdoc and joined the physics faculty in 1993. Since 2006, he is the director of the Center of Ultracold Atoms, an NSF funded research center, and Associate Director of the Research Laboratory of Electronics. His research group studies properties of ultracold atomic matter.

See related categories

Atomic and Optical Physics I – Part 2: Atomic structure and atoms in external field - Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Free

The best Physics courses

See all

See all