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 exercises, grades are weighted as follows.

Prelabs 33%
Notebooks 67%

For labs without prelab exercises, 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 Third Term, 2011/12 Academic Year:

The following schedule is for both Thursday and Friday sections.

Due Date Design/Build Condensed Matter Atomic-A Atomic-B Optics-A Optics-B
Apr. 5, 6 Exp. 2-Prelab Exp. 5-Prelab I Exp. 8-Prelab I Exp. 61-Prelab Exp. 71-Prelab
Apr. 12, 13 Exp. 5-Notebook I, Prelab II Exp. 8-Notebook I, Prelab II Exp. 61-Notebook Exp. 71-Notebook
Apr. 19, 20 Exp. 2-Notebook Exp. 5-Notebook II Exp. 62-Prelab Exp. 72-Prelab
Apr. 26, 27 Report 1 Exp. 3-Prelab Exp. 7-Prelab and Notebook Exp. 8-Notebook II Exp. 62-Notebook Exp. 72-Notebook
May 3, 4
May 10, 11 Exp. 3-Notebook, Exp. 20-Prelab I Exp. 8-Prelab I Exp. 7-Prelab and Notebook Exp. 71-Prelab Exp. 61-Prelab
May 17, 18 Report 2 Exp. 20-Prelab II (Opt.), Prelab III Exp. 8-Notebook I, Prelab II Exp. 5-Prelab I Exp. 71-Notebook Exp. 61-Notebook
May 24, 25 Exp. 20-Prelab IV Exp. 5-Notebook I, Prelab II Exp. 72-Prelab Exp. 62-Prelab
May 31, Jun. 1 Exp. 20-Notebook (SENIORS) Exp. 8-Notebook II (SENIORS) Exp. 5-Notebook II (SENIORS) Exp. 72-Notebook (SENIORS) Exp. 62-Notebook (SENIORS)
Jun. 7, 8 Final Report (SENIORS) Exp. 20-Notebook Exp. 8-Notebook II Exp. 5-Notebook II Exp. 72-Notebook Exp. 62-Notebook
Jun. 15 Final Report

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 March 30, 2012.