In preparation; any information here may be changed later.
Important Remark
This course assumes students have taken my course of General Physics 1 (and passed the exams, preferably). If you are a student who wishes to enroll but has not taken my General Physics 1, please contact me before selecting the course. (Otherwise it will be difficult to pass the exams.)
Outline
An introductory course on electromagnetism. The goal is to understand Maxwell’s equations in vacuum (in integral form), which encapsulate the fundamental laws of electromagnetism.
You are required to have a working knowledge of basic calculus and vector arithmetic, as well as a foundational understanding of mechanics, oscillatory motion, and waves. You first learn the concept of fields, which is the most crucial in electromagnetism (and even in modern physics). You then learn various laws of electromagnetism and reach Maxwell’s equations, the monumental achievement in 19th-century physics. You notice that the equations contain not only the electromagnetic laws you have learned but also the electromagnetic waves, known as lights.
This course does not cover electromagnetic fields in matter, vector calculus in cylindrical and spherical coordinates, or the differential form of Maxwell’s equations. Circuit analysis is not treated in detail, as it is addressed in [a dedicated course] (https://selcrs.nsysu.edu.tw/menu5/showoutline.asp?SYEAR=114&SEM=2&CrsDat=EE2400B).
Guidance document
- gp2_supplemental_2025.pdf for Academic Year 2025 (in preparation)
- Hints for Writing and Submitting Assignments
Textbook
Serway, Jewett, and Peroomian, Physics for Scientists and Engineers (with Modern Physics), 11th edition. Cengage Learning.
- Attendants are assumed to have learned Chapters 1‒9 and 15‒17 in Volume 1.
- This course corresponds to Chapters 22‒33 (Volume 2).
- Sho strongly recommends you to bring the book (printed version) to the lecture every week.
Students’ Goals
- I am familiar with line integrals and surface integrals of vectors.
- I can describe/calculate electromagnetic forces between charged objects or electric currents.
- I am used to dealing with fields (electric field and magnetic flux density ).
- I can use various laws of electromagnetism to calculate them in simple situations.
- I can analyze electric potential and relate it to work and potential energy.
- I can explain Maxwell’s equations and their relations to electromagnetic laws.
- I can calculate currents or voltages in basic circuits.
Schedule (2024‒2)
- 1 (Feb. 27)
- National Holiday (no class)
- 2 (Mar. 6)
- 3 (Mar. 13)
- 4 (Mar. 20)
- 5 (Mar. 27)
- 6 (Apr. 3)
- National Holiday (no class)
- 7 (Apr. 10)
- 8 (Apr. 17)
- 9 (Apr. 24)
- 10 (May 1)
- National Holiday (no class)
- 11 (May 8)
- 12 (May 15)
- 13 (May 22)
- 14 (May 29)
- 15 (Jun. 5)
- 16 (Jun. 12)
Past Exam Problems
Other Information
- See another page for previous years’ lectures.