General Description
The main objective of the Undergraduate Program of the Department of Physics is to provide the students with the education required to pursue graduate studies in Physics, or in related disciplines, offering at the same time the opportunities to aqquire the knowledge and develop the skills that would enable them to work in positions in the industry.
The Faculty of the Department is comprised of nineteen members who, apart from their regular teaching duties, are active in research in various areas of Physics. Theoretical Physics is carried out by various members working in projects related to Particle Physics, General Relativity, Statistical Mechanics, Oceanography and Condensed Matter. The Experimental Physics facilities include aboratories with projects in Spectroscopy, Thin Films, Liquid Crystals and Material Science, with a strong expermimental program in Nanoscience and Nanotechnology. Various faculty members use the facilities of the Arecibo Observatory and other observatories of the world to carry their research in Astrophysics. Several of these projects are funded by federal agencies, as the U.S. National Science Foundation, U.S. Air Force, U.S. Navy, U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the U.S. Department of Energy.
The students of the Program have opportunities to register for the undergraduate research courses with faculty members during the academic year, and also to participate in Summer Research Programs in national laboratories such as the Arecibo Observatory (Puerto Rico), Los Alamos National (New Mexico), SLAC (California), and Fermilab (Illinois). The students are members of the Puerto Rico Chapter 5759 of the Society of Physics Students, which is an organization of the American Institute of Physics (Maryland) that strives to help students transform themselves into contributing members of the professional community;.
The Department is committed to contribute to the scientific knowledge of the students, and to develop their capabilities to help them become contributing competent professionals in their ultimate careers.
BA Curriculum
A Bachelor’s Degree in Physics consists of:
- 43 credits in General Education. The student can refer to the Decanato de Asuntos Académicos for the latest listings of courses that the student may consider for this component of the Bachelor Degree ( http://daarrp.uprrp.edu/daa/cursos_educacion_general.html )
- 12 credits from the Faculty of Natural Sciences
- 41 credits of Physics Major courses
- 15 credits of Elective courses in Physics
- 18 credits of Elective courses
All students of Natural Sciences must approve MATE3151 (Calculus I).
| General Education Courses | total=43credits |
|---|---|
| INGL I | 3cr |
| INGL II | 3cr |
| ESPA I | 3cr |
| ESPA II | 3cr |
| HUMA I | 3cr |
| HUMA II | 3cr |
| CISO3121 | 3cr |
| CISO3122 | 3cr |
| CIFI4XXX or CIBI4XXX | 3cr |
| CIFI4XXX or CIBI4XXX | 3cr |
| LITE I | 3cr |
| LITE II | 3cr |
| ARTE | 3cr |
| MATE3151 (Calculus I) | 4cr |
| Required courses from the Faculty of Natural Sciences | total=12credits |
|---|---|
| QUIM3001 | 4cr |
| QUIM3002 | 4cr |
| MATE3152 (Calculus II) | 4cr |
| 41 credits Physics Major | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Physics major Course | credits | Pre Requisites | Co Requisites |
| FISI3171 Phys I | 4cr | MATE3151(Calculus I), FISI3173 | |
| FISI3172 Phys II | 4cr | MATE3152(Calculus II), FISI3174 | |
| FISI3173 Lab Phys I | 1cr | MATE3151(Calculus I), FISI3171 | |
| FISI3174 Lab Phys II | 1cr | MATE3152(Calculus II), FISI3172 | |
| FISI4031 Phys Math I | 3cr | MATH3152 (Calculus II) | |
| FISI4032 Phys Math II | 3cr | FISI4031 Phys Math I | MATH3153 (Calculus III) |
| FISI3016 Modern Phys | 3cr | FISI3172-3174 (Phys II-Lab Phys II) | |
| FISI4051 Int Mech I | 3cr | FISI3172-3174 (Phys II, Lab Phys II) | FISI4031 (Phys Math I) |
| FISI4052 Int Mech II | 3cr | FISI4051 Int Mech I | FISI4032(Phys Math II) |
| FISI4068 Electro I | 3cr | FISI3172-3174 (Phys II, Lab Phys II) | FISI4031 (Phys Math I) |
| FISI4069 Electro II | 3cr | FISI4068 (Electro I) | FISI4032(Phys Math II) |
| FISI4046 Quantum Mech | 3cr | FISI3016,FISI4032,FISI4052,FISI4069 | |
| FISI4057 Thermodynamics | 3cr | FISI3016,FISI4032,FISI4052,FISI4069 | |
| FISI4076 Intermed Lab I | 2cr | FISI3016,FISI4032,FISI4052,FISI4069 | |
| FISI4077 Intermed Lab II | 2cr | FISI4076 |
| 15 credits of Physics Elective courses | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Physics Elective Courses | credits | Pre Requisites | Co Requisites |
| ASTR3005 (Descriptive Astronomy) | 3cr | ||
| FISI4047 (Solid State Physics*) | 3cr | FISI4046 (Quantum Mechanics) | |
| FISI4048 (Nuclear Physics*) | 3cr | FISI4046 (Quantum Mechanics) | |
| ASTRO4006 (Astrophysics*) | 3cr | FISI3172 (Phys II) | |
| FISI4058 (Undergraduate Research**) | 3cr | FISI4032 (Phys Mat II),FISI3016 (Mod Phys),FISI4052 (Mech II),FISI4069 (Electro II) | |
| FISI4056 (Modern Optics) | 3cr | FISI4069 (Electro II) | |
| FISI4055 (X Ray Crystallography) | 3cr | FISI3016 (Mod Phys) or FISI3025 (Elem Mod Phys) | |
| METE4006 (Meteorology) | 3cr | ||
| FISI5005 (Biophysics) | 3cr | FISI4032 (Phys Mat II), FISI3016 (Mod Phys), FISI4052 (Mech II), FISI4069 (Electro II) | |
| FISI4041 (Special Topics in Physics) | 3cr | ||
| FISI4042 (Special Topics in Physics) | 3cr | ||
| ASTR3055 (Evolución Cósmica) | 3cr | 24 approved credits | |
| METE3901 (Microsatélites I) | 3cr | Permission Professor | |
| METE3902 (Microsatélites II) | 3cr | Permission Professor |
* Must select at least one of the following: Solid State Physics, Nuclear Physics or Astrophysics.
** Undergraduate Research can be repeated to a maximum of 6cr.
| 18 credits of Elective courses | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Elective Courses offered by Physics Department | credits | Pre Requisites | Co Requisites |
| ASTR3005 (Descriptive Astronomy) | 3cr | ||
| CNEI3005 (Ciencia y Pseudociencia) | 3cr | ||
| FISI3025 (Elem Mod Physics) | 3cr | FISI3012 (Univ Phys II) | |
| FISI3125 (Hist Rev Científica) | 3cr | ||
| CINA5990 (Física Aplicada Arquelogía y el Arte) | 3cr | ||
| FISI3036 (Física para Biología y Medicina) | 3cr | FISI3012 (Univ Phys II) |
Undergraduate Courses Syllabi
You can find the undergraduate courses syllabi at http://fisi.mobi.
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Revision date: July 28, 2018