Lectures	Monday, Wednesday, Friday period 4 (10:40-11:30 a.m.) in 1101 NPB
Instructor	Prof. Kevin Ingersent, 2162 NPB (392-8748, ingersent@phys.ufl.edu)
Office Hours	Mon-Fri 2:00-3:00 p.m.; or by appointment
Web Page	www.phys.ufl.edu/~kevin/teaching/6646/
Required Text	Principles of Quantum Mechanics, R. Shankar (2nd Edition, Plenum, 1994)
Optional Texts	Quantum Mechanics, E. Merzbacher (3rd Edition, Wiley, 1998);
	Quantum Mechanics: A Modern Development, L. E. Ballentine (World Scientific, 1998)

Objective: PHY 6646 is the second of two courses constituting the graduate core sequence in quantum mechanics. Its aim is to provide a solid grounding in important applications of nonrelativistic quantum mechanics, including approximation methods, scattering theory, and many-particle systems.

Approach: Like PHY 6645, this course will tend to follow the general order of topics in Shankar's book, which will be the only required text. However, extensive supplementary information will be presented about several subjects (particularly scattering and identical particles). At these points you may find it particularly useful to consult the optional texts listed above. All three texts will be on reserve at the Marston Science Library.

Prerequisites: It will be assumed that you have successfully completed (1) at least one year of quantum mechanics at the undergraduate level, and (2) PHY 6645 or equivalent. (The web page www.phys.ufl.edu/~kevin/teaching/6645/01fall/topics.html summarizes the content of PHY 6645 as taught in Fall 2001.) If you have any doubt about your preparation, you should consult the instructor as early as possible in the semester.

Homework: Most weeks you will be assigned a problem set to be turned in the following week (usually on Friday). You should make a good-faith attempt to tackle the problems on your own. Some of the problems will be significantly longer and more challenging than those typically encountered in undergraduate courses. It is important that you develop the skills to work successfully through such problems. If you get stuck, however, do not spend an inordinate amount of time (more than an hour or two) struggling at any one point. Feel free to discuss your conceptual or technical difficulties with other students or with the instructor.

Collaboration plays an essential role in science. You are encouraged to work with other members of the class to understand how to solve the homework problems, and you are likely to learn more by studying cooperatively. However, you must write up the final version of each problem yourself, presenting the solution in your own words. (Blind copying of another student's solution is a form of academic dishonesty.)

Homework solutions should explain your reasoning clearly but concisely, cite the source of any results given without proof, and be legible and reasonably neat. Deficiencies in any of these areas may result in point deductions.

The homework will account for 40% of your overall score on PHY 6646. Since it is very important that you not fall behind in the course, assignments turned in late will be subject to a 25% penalty. (Each student will receive a waiver of the 25% penalty for one assignment during the semester.) Each homework set will be assigned a cut-off point, beyond which no solutions will be accepted for grading.

Exams: There will be three exams: two in-class mid-terms and a two-hour final. Approximately half of each exam will be closely related to homework. However, the questions will not merely require memorization and regurgitation of material covered in lectures and homework. Instead, the emphasis will be on application of concepts and methods to fairly straightforward problems, some of which may deal with unfamiliar situations. You may be allowed limited access to written materials during some of the exams (details will be announced before each exam), but no collaboration will be permitted.

In the event of a documented conflict with another event, it may be possible to take an exam shortly before or after its scheduled time. Make-up exams will be offered only for serious medical conditions or University-approved absences supported in writing by the appropriate professional. Any request for a special exam sitting or a make-up must be made a week ahead for any scheduled absence, and as soon as reasonably possible after an unforeseen absence.

Academic Honesty: All University of Florida students are required to abide by the University's Academic Honesty Guidelines and by the Honor Code, which reads as follows:

Accommodations: Students requesting classroom accommodations must first register with the Office for Students with Disabilities, located in the Dean of Students Office, P205 Peabody Hall. The Dean of Students Office will provide documentation to the student, who must then deliver this documentation to the instructor when requesting accommodations.

Grade: Your grade will be assigned on the basis of an overall score, derived as follows:

Topics Covered: It is anticipated that the course will address the topics listed below (along with the relevant chapters or sections from the three texts). However, deviations from this plan are quite likely. A list of topics actually covered, along with relevant background reading, will be maintained on the course web pages.

Topic	Shankar	Merzbacher	Ballentine
Particle in an EM field	2.6, 14.4, 14.5, 18.4	7.2	11
Variational and WKB methods	16	7, 8	10.6, 14.4
Time-independent perturbations	17	8, 18	10.5
Time-dependent perturbations	18	19	12.5
Scattering	19	13, 20	16
Identical particles	10.3	21, 22	17, 18
Quantization of the EM field	18.5	23	19
The Dirac equation	20	24
Feynman path integrals (if time permits)	8, 21	15

Class Attendance: It is your responsibility to be aware of all announcements made in class concerning course assignments (reading, homework, and exams); these may include changes to previously announced arrangements. Significant announcements will also be posted on the course Web pages.

The following is a provisional list of important dates throughout the semester.

Jan 9	First class
Jan 21	Martin Luther King Day (no class)
Feb 11	K. Ingersent away (no class)
Feb 22	Mid-term 1 (details to be announced later)
Mar 4-9	Spring Break (no classes)
Mar 20	K. Ingersent away (no class)
Apr 5	Second mid-term exam (details to be announced later)
Apr 24	Last class
April 29	Final exam (5:30-7:30 p.m. in NPB 1101)