PHYS 3318

Analytical Mechanics

Course Description

Course information provided by the 2024-2025 Catalog. Courses of Study 2024-2025 is scheduled to publish mid-June.

Covers Newtonian mechanics of particles and systems of particles, including Lagrangian and Hamiltonian formulations, conservation laws from symmetries, with applications to two-body orbits in a central force, systems undergoing small amplitude oscillations, rigid body motion, motion in non-inertial reference frames, perturbation theory, and nonlinear behavior. Both analytical and numerical methods for solving problems in mechanics are covered. At the level of Classical Mechanics by Goldstein, Mechanics by Landau and Lifshitz, and Analytical Mechanics by Hand and Finch.

Prerequisites/Corequisites Prerequisite: intro sequence in Physics (1116, 2217, 2218, or 1112, 2213, 2214).

Permission Note Primarily for: students with exceptional background in physics/math.

Last 4 Terms Offered 2025SP, 2024SP, 2023SP, 2022SP

Distribution Category (PHS-AS, SMR-AS) (CHPH-AG, OPHLS-AG)

When Offered Spring.

Comments Makes use of Fourier analysis, linear differential equations, linear algebra, and vector analysis.

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