COURSE NUMBER AND TITLE: MATH 4530 Mathematical Methods of Physics

CREDIT HOURS: 3

CATALOG DESCRIPTION: An introduction to mathematical techniques used in advanced physics. Topics include Fourier series, special functions, integral transforms, boundary value problems, and partial differential equations

PREREQUISITE(S): PHYS 2212 (grade of C or better) and MATH 3020, or permission of instructor.

SUGGESTED TEXT(S): Mathematical Methods for Physicists and Engineers, Second Corrected Edition, by Royal Eugene Collins, Dover Publications, 1999.

COURSE OUTLINE:

  • Review of Ordinary Differential Equations and Linear Algebra
  • Introduction to Partial Differential Equations, Sturm-Liouville Theory, Orthogonal Functions
  • Special Functions of Mathematical Physics
  • Solution of Partial Differential Equations, Separation of Variables, Eigenfunction Expansions
  • Laplace, Fourier, and Integral Transforms
  • Introduction to the Calculus of Variations
  • Numerical Methods, Discretization, Approximation of Functions, Discrete Fourier Transform