The approach used in this Course  is experimental and  applied. Learning objectives specific to this Course  are:

• Understanding electromagnetic and  optical  phenomena from an experimental, practical perspective.
• Becoming skilled in assembling electric circuits, in building  electric, magnetic and  optical  devices, and  in performing measurements of physical quantities and  technical specifications.
• Gaining  basic  knowledge about the  working  principles of instruments, mastering general methods and  developing skills useful  in investigating electromagnetic and  optical  phenomena not necessarily already presented in the  Course.
• Gaining  basic  knowledge and  developing skills useful  in designing new devices in the  concerned scientific field.
• Develop the  ability to correctly analyze scientific data and  to present an experiment in a good- quality  scientific paper where the  data are  analyzed and  results are  presented and  interpreted. Develop the  ability to communicate the  results of a scientific measurement or experiment in an exhaustive, clear, efficient and  correct fashion.

In addition, in the  frame of the  so-called Dublin Descriptors, this Course  helps  attain the  following cross-disciplinary competences:

Knowledge and  understanding:

• Inductive and  deductive reasoning.
• Ability to formalize the  description of a natural phenomenon in terms of scalar and  vector physical quantities.
• Ability to formulate a problem using  suitable mathematical relationships (such  as algebraic,
• integral or differential) among physical quantities, and  then solve  it by means of analytical or numerical methods.
• Ability to arrange and  set  up a simple  experimental apparatus, and  to use  scientific instruments for thermal, mechanical and  electromagnetic measurements.
• Ability to perform statistical analysis of data.

Applying knowledge and  understanding:

• Ability to apply  the  gained knowledge in order  to describe physical phenomena using  rigorously the scientific method.
• Ability to design simple  experiments and  perform analysis of their  experimental data in all domains of Physics  including those with technological spinoff.

Making judgements:

• Developing critical  thinking.
• Ability to find the  best methods to critically analyze, elaborate and  interpret experimental data. Ability to understand the  predictions of a theory or model.
• Ability to evaluate accuracy of measurements, linearity of instrumental response, sensitivity and selectivity of employed techniques.

Communication skills:

• Ability to orally present, using  fluent scientific language and  appropriate scientific vocabulary, a scientific topic,  including any underlying motivations and  illustrating any results.
• Ability to report in writing,  using  fluent scientific language and  appropriate scientific vocabulary, on a scientific topic,  including any underlying motivations and  illustrating any results.

This course alternates 3 cycles  of lectures in the  Classroom with 3 corresponding cycles  of practical sessions in the  Lab. The course begins with a first cycle of lectures in the  Classroom, which is followed by a corresponding first cycle of practical sessions in the  Lab. Then we continue with the  second cycle of lectures in the  Classroom, and  so on.

The classroom lectures introduce the  working  principles of scientific instruments and  present the experimental setups of some experiments aimed at illustrating electromagnetic and  optical  phenomena, at verifying  natural laws, and  at measuring physical properties in the  same fields.  Procedures to analyze and  ways  to present the  data that will be collected in the  Lab are  specifically highlighted.

During the  cycles  of practical sessions in the  Lab the  students actually perform the  experiments and make the  measurements  previously introduced by the  Classroom lectures.

During the periods devoted to  lectures in the Classroom there are  NO sessions in the Lab. During the periods devoted to  practical sessions in the Lab there are  NO lectures in the classroom.

Should circumstances require the lectures to be given online on in a mixed manner, some variations to the mechanisms illustrated above may become necessary, aiming however at fulfilling the planned course programme.

6 CFUs (corresponding to 7 hours each) are dedicated to lectures in the Classroom for a total of 42 hours, while 6 CFUs (corresponding to 15 hours each) are devoted to the practical sessions in the Lab with a total of 90 hours. Altogether, thus, this 12-CFU Course comprises 132 hours of teaching.

It is essential to have acquired basic knowledge of error theory and data analysis methods.

Basic knowledge of mathematical analysis, electromagnetism and optics is important.

It is useful, and therefore strongly recommended, to have passed the exams of all General Physics courses.

Attendance at classroom lessons is normally compulsory. Presence at laboratory sessions is mandatory. Signatures of attendance are collected during both.

Classroom lessons are usually held twice a week, 2 hours each lesson.

Laboratory sessions are usually held 3 times a week, 2 hours each session.

Description and  subsequent execution of 26 experiments aimed to measure physics quantities and/or to verify physical laws in the  fields  of electromagnetism and  optics. Analysis of the  collected experimental data.

The detailed program is listed  in the  Section "Programmazione".

The teacher does not follow any textbook specifically, but utilizes  material from different sources. Studying the  slides  shown  during  the  lectures is normally adequate  to pass the  exam.

For the  laboratory experiments, Instruction Manuals  are  provided. They can also be downloaded from the Course  web site  (in Italian  only).

For students who wish to dwell deeper into the  subjects of the  Course, the  following list is a selection of textbooks and  other material concerning data analysis methods, electrical and  optical  instrumentation used in this Course, and  related experimental procedures.

A. FOTI, C. GIANINO: Elementi di analisi dei  dati sperimentali, Liguori Ed., Napoli

J. R. TAYLOR: Introduzione all'analisi degli errori, Zanichelli  Ed., Bologna

ISO (Int.Standard Org.): Guide to  the Expression of Uncertainty in Measurement, Ginevra

L. KIRKUP, B. FRENKEL: An Introduction to  Uncertainty in Measurement,  Cambridge University

Press

L. G. PARRAT: Probability and  Experimental Errors  in Science, Wiley & Sons  Inc.,N.Y. F. TYLER: A Laboratory Manual of Physics, Edward  Arnold Ed., London

M. SEVERI: Introduzione alla  sperimentazione fisica, Ed. Zanichelli, BolognaE.  ACERBI: Metodi e strumenti di misura, Città Studi Ed., Milano

G. CORTINI, S. SCIUTI: Misure ed  apparecchi di Fisica (Elettricità), Veschi Ed., Roma

R. RICAMO: Guida  alle esperimentazioni di Fisica,Vol. 2°, Casa  Editrice  Ambrosiana, Milano

F. W. SEARS: Ottica, Casa  Editrice  Ambrosiana, Milano

G. E. FRIGERIO: I laser, Casa  Editrice  Ambrosiana, Milano

The exam includes the evaluation of a report on one of the experiments carried out in the laboratory and an oral test.

Report: At the end of the last of the 3 cycles of laboratory exercises, the teacher assigns an experience to each student, chosen from all those carried out in the 3 cycles. The student will have to draft and send to the teacher a report on the assigned experience within a time established by the teacher. The accepted formats are: .doc, .docx, .pdf. Please assign only your name, surname and student number to the file as file name. last of the 3 cycles of laboratory exercises, the teacher assigns an experience to each student, chosen from all those carried out in the 3 cycles. The student
will have to draft and send to the teacher a report on the assigned experience within a time established by the teacher. The accepted formats are: .doc, .docx, .pdf. Please assign only your name, surname and student number to the
file as file name.

Oral exam: covers all the topics of the course and may also include a specific discussion of the report.

To pass the oral test, the student must demonstrate knowledge of all the topics discussed and must explain them in a clear and comprehensible manner to anyone who has the necessary preliminary knowledge but does not already know the specific topic. The vote is proportional to the degree to which these two requirements appear to be satisfied.

The typical duration of the oral exam ranges from 30 to 60 minutes, with an average of 40 minutes.

The final grade takes into account both the evaluation of the Report and the evaluation of the oral exam, but is not necessarily a rigorous arithmetic average of the two.

EXAM DATES

Normally, 8 exam sessions are scheduled in each academic year; consult the Exam Calendar of the Three-year Degree Course in Physics: http://www.dfa.unict.it/corsi/L-30/esami.

The experience on which to carry out the report will be any of the 26 carried out in the Laboratory. The choice is made exclusively by the teacher with random criteria at the time of assignment.

Some topics typically asked about during the oral exam are the following:

• Ammeters

• Amplifier

• Helmholtz coils

• Electrical circuits

• LC circuit

• RC circuit

• Power factor correction circuit

• Capacitors in series and/or parallel

• Charge deflection and e/m measurement

• Junction diode

• Vacuum diode

• Hall effect

• Millikan's experience

• Experiments with polarized light

• High-pass and low-pass filters

• Ballistic galvanometer

• Voltage and current generators

• LEDs

• Converging lens

• Diverging lens

• EMF measurement stack

• Measures galvanometer sensitivity

• Measure the speed of light

• Wavelength measurements

• Magnetic field measurements

• Capacity measures

• Resistance measurements with volt-amperometric method

• Ohmeter

• Sawtooth oscillator

• Oscilloscope

• Voltage dividers

• Wheatstone Bridge

• Potentiometer

• AC voltage rectifier

• Vector representation of alternating electrical quantities

• Rheostats

• Cassette rheostats

• Resistors in series and/or parallel

• Resonance in RLC circuit

• Discharge of a capacitor through a resistor

• Semiconductors

• Shunt for ammeters

• Shunt for voltmeters

• Prism spectroscope

• Grating spectroscope

• Analog instruments for alternating currents

• Digital tools

• Transistors

• Triode

• Resistance variation with temperature

• Electrostatic voltmeter

• Voltmeter and its ranges