Ph77 - Caltech Senior Physics Laboratory

Course Description

Ph77 is a two-term, Senior-level course in experimental physics. Ph77a is offered every term, and Ph77b is offered second and third terms. Ph77a is a prerequisite to Ph77b.

There are two sections in the class, and there are six tracks in each section. Class times and locations are

Thursday Section: 210 East Bridge 10:00am-5:00pm
Friday Section: 210 East Bridge 10:00am-5:00pm

Lab work is done during class time. There are no lectures.

Grades, writeups, and lab notebooks

You must do all the labs in your track and hand in a notebook for each to complete the course. Grades are based on lab notebooks and, where applicable, prelab exercises. For labs with prelab exersises, grades are weighted as follows.

Prelabs 33%
Notebooks 67%

For labs without prelab exersises, 100% of the grade is determined by the notebook.

For most of the labs, there is no post-lab analysis. Your writeup is your lab notebook, and you should analyze your data as you do the lab. It is helpful to divide your notebooks up into the following sections ahead of time, and fill them in as you do the experiment.

  1. Prelab exercises and recitation notes (if applicable)
  2. Purpose
  3. Apparatus and settings
  4. Procedures and raw data
  5. Analysis and conclusions
All entries should be in ink, with any mistakes crossed out by a single line. Neatness counts! Use graphics, printouts, and screenshots liberally. For more details, see

Schedule for First Term, 2008/9 Academic Year:

The following schedule is for both Thursday and Friday sections.

Due Date Condensed Matter Atomic-A Atomic-B Optics-A Optics-B
Oct. 2, 3 Exp. 2-Prelab Exp. 5-Prelab I Exp. 8-Prelab I Exp. 61-Prelab Exp. 71-Prelab
Oct. 9, 10 Exp. 5-Notebook I, Prelab II Exp. 8-Notebook I, Prelab II Exp. 61-Notebook Exp. 71-Notebook
Oct. 16, 17 Exp. 2-Notebook Exp. 5-Notebook II Exp. 62-Prelab Exp. 72-Prelab
Oct. 23, 24 Exp. 3-Prelab Exp. 7-Prelab and Notebook Exp. 8-Notebook II Exp. 62-Notebook Exp. 72-Notebook
Oct. 30, 31
Nov. 6, 7 Exp. 3-Notebook, Exp. 20-Prelab I Exp. 8-Prelab I Exp. 7-Prelab and Notebook Exp. 71-Prelab Exp. 61-Prelab
Nov. 13, 14 Exp. 20-Prelab II (Opt.), Prelab III Exp. 8-Notebook I, Prelab II Exp. 5-Prelab I Exp. 71-Notebook Exp. 61-Notebook
Nov. 20, 21 Exp. 20-Prelab IV Exp. 5-Notebook I, Prelab II Exp. 72-Prelab Exp. 62-Prelab
Nov. 27, 28 Holiday Holiday Holiday Holiday Holiday
Dec. 4, 5 Exp. 20-Notebook Exp. 8-Notebook II Exp. 5-Notebook II Exp. 72-Notebook Exp. 62-Notebook

Due Dates:

Notebooks are due by 5:00pm on Thursdays or Fridays, depending on your section, as listed in the table.

Late Penalties:

Late penalties are one full letter grade per week late.

Lab handouts (Ph77a and Ph77b)

Condensed Matter Track

Atomic Tracks

Optics and Spectroscopy Tracks

Contact Information

PMA - Caltech Department of Physics, Math, and Astronomy.

Other physics courses at Caltech.

http://www.pma.caltech.edu/~ph77

Last updated October 1, 2008.