School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics

Physics (BA, BS)

The science of physics seeks understanding of the behavior of matter and energy at the most general and fundamental level. The physicist is trained to explore the physical universe in which people live and seeks interpretations of the natural phenomena found there. While much is known about the physical universe, many phenomena still remain to be investigated, understood, and exploited to the ultimate benefit of humankind. This is the challenge that a modern physicist faces.

The Degrees

The student majoring in Physics must meet the general University requirements for admission and for the specific degree the student is seeking. The Physics Program offers both the Bachelor of Arts and the Bachelor of Science degrees. A total of 120 semester credit hours is required for either degree. With the proper sequencing of courses, these degrees can be achieved in a four year period.

Bachelor of Arts

The Bachelor of Arts program provides an opportunity for a strong base in physics for students wishing to pursue graduate studies (non-physics) in, for example, business administration, economics, finance, oceanography, and patent or high technology law. Additionally, students seeking certification as high school teachers with physics as a major specialization and those seeking employment in industry, government service, and computer technology have the opportunity to obtain the necessary physics background through the BA program. The lower-division course requirements for the BA degree are the same as those for the BS degree. At the upper-division level, the physics core course are identical with the BS core courses, but the physics elective is replaced with PHYS 4398, Senior Research Project for BA degree and 15 semester credit hours of advanced physics courses are replaced with 15 semester credit hours of upper-division science electives.

Bachelor of Science

The Bachelor of Science is intended for students interested in a professional career in physics or closely related fields. It provides an excellent background for graduate programs in physics, biophysics, geophysics, engineering, medicine and other health related degree programs.

Graduate Studies Track

The recommended course of study toward a Bachelor of Science degree for those students who intend to pursue graduate studies in Physics begins with a two-semester Honors sequence of fundamentals of physics that gives the student a more extensive foundation in basic physics. The remainder of the program is the same as the regular BS program.

Algebra Based Physics

An algebra based general physics course (PHYS 1301, PHYS 1302) with lab (PHYS 2125, PHYS 2126) is offered for students interested in the health sciences and those curious about the physical world in which we live. It stresses understanding the workings of nature and the physical processes and phenomena occurring therein.

Bachelor of Arts in Physics

Degree Requirements (120 semester credit hours)¹

View an Example of Degree Requirements by Semester

Faculty

FACG> nsm-physics-ba

Professors: Phillip C. Anderson @pca015000, Shengwang Du @sxd200057, Robert Glosser @glosser, Matthew J. Goeckner @goeckner, Roderick A. Heelis @heelis, Mustapha Ishak-Boushaki @mxi054000, Joseph M. Izen @joe, David J. Lary @djl101000, Mark Lee @mxl101000, Xinchou Lou @xinchou, Roger Malina @rxm116130, Anton V. Malko @avm074000, Robert M. Wallace @rmw031000, Anvar A. Zakhidov @zakhidov, Chuanwei Zhang @cxz124830

Associate Professors: Lunjin Chen @lxc134330, Fabiano Da Silveira Rodrigues @fxd121030, Yuri Gartstein @yxg037000, Michael Kesden @mhk130030, Lindsay J. King @lxk111430, Lloyd Lumata @lxl143230, Bing Lv @bxl152230, Jason D. Slinker @jds107020, Fan Zhang @fxz140930

Assistant Professors: Michael Kolodrubetz @mxk177330, Kaloyan Penev @kxp174430, Xiaoyan Shi @xxs151730

Professors Emeriti: Austin J. Cunningham @cunning, Walter Heikkila @heikkila, Myron B. Salamon @mxs068100, Brian A. Tinsley @tinsley

Professor of Instruction: Paul Mac Alevey @paulmac

Assistant Professors of Instruction: Amena Khan @axk140130, Lamya Saleh @lxs190019, Kuei Sun @kxs147030

UT Dallas Affiliated Faculty: Kyeongjae (KJ) Cho @kxc067000, John P. Ferraris @ferraris, Massimo V. Fischetti @mvf100020, Heather Hayenga @hnh130330, Julia W. P. Hsu @jxh101000, Stephen D. Levene @sdlevene, Lawrence J. Overzet @overzet, A. Dean Sherry @sherry, Mary L. Urquhart @mlk023000

I. Core Curriculum Requirements: 42 semester credit hours²

Communication: 6 semester credit hours

COMM 1311 Survey of Oral and Technology-based Communication

RHET 1302 Rhetoric

Or select any 6 semester credit hours from Communication Core courses (see advisor)

Mathematics: 3 semester credit hours

MATH 2413 Differential Calculus^{3, 4}

or MATH 2417 Calculus I^{3, 4}

Or select any 3 semester credit hours from Mathematics Core courses (see advisor)

Life and Physical Sciences: 6 semester credit hours

PHYS 2325 Mechanics⁵

or PHYS 2421 Honors Physics I - Mechanics and Heat^{5, 6}

PHYS 2326 Electromagnetism and Waves⁵

or PHYS 2422 Honors Physics II - Electromagnetism and Waves^{5, 6}

Or select any 6 semester credit hours from Life and Physical Sciences Core courses (see advisor)

Language, Philosophy and Culture: 3 semester credit hours

HUMA 1301 Exploration of the Humanities

Or select any 3 semester credit hours from Language, Philosophy and Culture Core courses (see advisor)

Creative Arts: 3 semester credit hours

ARTS 1301 Exploration of the Arts

Or select any 3 semester credit hours from Creative Arts Core courses (see advisor)

American History: 6 semester credit hours

Select any 6 semester credit hours from American History Core courses (see advisor)

Government/Political Science: 6 semester credit hours

GOVT 2305 American National Government

GOVT 2306 State and Local Government

Or select any 6 semester credit hours from Government/Political Science Core courses (see advisor)

Social and Behavioral Sciences: 3 semester credit hours

Select any 3 semester credit hours from Social and Behavioral Sciences Core courses (see advisor)

Component Area Option: 6 semester credit hours

CHEM 1311 General Chemistry I⁵

or CHEM 1315 Honors Freshman Chemistry I⁵

CHEM 1312 General Chemistry II⁵

or CHEM 1316 Honors Freshman Chemistry II⁵

Or select any 6 semester credit hours from Component Area Option Core courses (see advisor)

II. Major Requirements: 66-68 semester credit hours

Major Preparatory Courses: 24-26 semester credit hours beyond core curriculum

CHEM 1111 General Chemistry Laboratory I

or CHEM 1115 Honors Freshman Chemistry Laboratory I

CHEM 1112 General Chemistry Laboratory II

or CHEM 1116 Honors Freshman Chemistry Laboratory II

CHEM 1311 General Chemistry I⁵

or CHEM 1315 Honors Freshman Chemistry I⁵

CHEM 1312 General Chemistry II⁵

or CHEM 1316 Honors Freshman Chemistry II⁵

MATH 2413 Differential Calculus^{3, 4}

or MATH 2417 Calculus I^{3, 4}

MATH 2414 Integral Calculus⁴

or MATH 2419 Calculus II⁴

MATH 2415 Calculus of Several Variables⁴

or MATH 3351 Advanced Calculus⁴

MATH 2418 Linear Algebra

MATH 2420 Differential Equations with Applications

PHYS 1100 The Fun of Physics

PHYS 2303 Contemporary Physics

PHYS 2325 Mechanics⁵ and PHYS 2125 Physics Laboratory I⁷

or PHYS 2421 Honors Physics I - Mechanics and Heat^{5, 6, 8}

PHYS 2326 Electromagnetism and Waves⁵ and PHYS 2126 Physics Laboratory II⁷

or PHYS 2422 Honors Physics II - Electromagnetism and Waves^{5, 6} and PHYS 2126 Physics Laboratory II⁷

Major Core Courses: 30 semester credit hours

PHYS 3312 Classical Mechanics

PHYS 3427 Electronics with Laboratory

PHYS 3330 Numerical Methods in Physics and Computational Techniques

PHYS 3411 Theoretical Physics

PHYS 3416 Electricity and Magnetism

PHYS 4311 Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics

PHYS 4373 Physical Measurements Laboratory

PHYS 4398 Senior Research Project for BA Degree

Choose one Physics Elective course from the following:

PHYS 3380 Astronomy

PHYS 4301 Quantum Mechanics I

PHYS 4302 Quantum Mechanics II

PHYS 4352 Concepts of Modern Physics

PHYS 4371 Solid State Physics

PHYS 4386 Elementary Particle Physics

PHYS 4392 Extragalactic Astrophysics

PHYS 4V07 Senior Research Projects

PHYS 4V10 Research Topics in Physics

PHYS 4V11 Topics in Physics

Major Related Courses: 12 semester credit hours

12 semester credit hours of upper-division Science Electives

III. Elective Requirements: 10-12 semester credit hours

Both lower- and upper-division courses may count as electives, but the student must complete at least 51 semester credit hours of upper-division courses to qualify for graduation.

Bachelor of Science in Physics

Degree Requirements (120 semester credit hours)¹

View an Example of Degree Requirements by Semester

Faculty

FACG> nsm-physics-bs

Professors: Phillip C. Anderson @pca015000, Shengwang Du @sxd200057, Robert Glosser @glosser, Matthew J. Goeckner @goeckner, Roderick A. Heelis @heelis, Mustapha Ishak-Boushaki @mxi054000, Joseph M. Izen @joe, David J. Lary @djl101000, Mark Lee @mxl101000, Xinchou Lou @xinchou, Roger Malina @rxm116130, Anton V. Malko @avm074000, Robert M. Wallace @rmw031000, Anvar A. Zakhidov @zakhidov, Chuanwei Zhang @cxz124830

Associate Professors: Lunjin Chen @lxc134330, Fabiano Da Silveira Rodrigues @fxd121030, Yuri Gartstein @yxg037000, Michael Kesden @mhk130030, Lindsay J. King @lxk111430, Lloyd Lumata @lxl143230, Bing Lv @bxl152230, Jason D. Slinker @jds107020, Fan Zhang @fxz140930

Assistant Professors: Michael Kolodrubetz @mxk177330, Kaloyan Penev @kxp174430, Xiaoyan Shi @xxs151730

Professors Emeriti: Austin J. Cunningham @cunning, Walter Heikkila @heikkila, Myron B. Salamon @mxs068100, Brian A. Tinsley @tinsley

Professor of Instruction: Paul Mac Alevey @paulmac

Assistant Professors of Instruction: Amena Khan @axk140130, Lamya Saleh @lxs190019, Kuei Sun @kxs147030

UT Dallas Affiliated Faculty: Kyeongjae (KJ) Cho @kxc067000, John P. Ferraris @ferraris, Heather Hayenga @hnh130330, Julia W. P. Hsu @jxh101000, Stephen D. Levene @sdlevene, Lawrence J. Overzet @overzet, A. Dean Sherry @sherry, Mary L. Urquhart @mlk023000

I. Core Curriculum Requirements: 42 semester credit hours²

Communication: 6 semester credit hours

COMM 1311 Survey of Oral and Technology-based Communication

RHET 1302 Rhetoric

Or select any 6 semester credit hours from Communication Core courses (see advisor)

Mathematics: 3 semester credit hours

MATH 2413 Differential Calculus^{3, 4}

or MATH 2417 Calculus I^{3, 4}

Or select any 3 semester credit hours from Mathematics Core courses (see advisor)

Life and Physical Sciences: 6 semester credit hours

PHYS 2325 Mechanics⁵

or PHYS 2421 Honors Physics I - Mechanics and Heat^{5, 6}

PHYS 2326 Electromagnetism and Waves⁵

or PHYS 2422 Honors Physics II - Electromagnetism and Waves^{5, 6}

Or select any 6 semester credit hours from Life and Physical Sciences Core courses (see advisor)

Language, Philosophy and Culture: 3 semester credit hours

HUMA 1301 Exploration of the Humanities

Or select any 3 semester credit hours from Language, Philosophy and Culture Core courses (see advisor)

Creative Arts: 3 semester credit hours

ARTS 1301 Exploration of the Arts

Or select any 3 semester credit hours from Creative Arts Core courses (see advisor)

American History: 6 semester credit hours

Select any 6 semester credit hours from American History Core courses (see advisor)

Government/Political Science: 6 semester credit hours

GOVT 2305 American National Government

GOVT 2306 State and Local Government

Or select any 6 semester credit hours from Government/Political Science Core courses (see advisor)

Social and Behavioral Sciences: 3 semester credit hours

Select any 3 semester credit hours from Social and Behavioral Sciences Core courses (see advisor)

Component Area Option: 6 semester credit hours

CHEM 1311 General Chemistry I⁵

or CHEM 1315 Honors Freshman Chemistry I⁵

CHEM 1312 General Chemistry II⁵

or CHEM 1316 Honors Freshman Chemistry II⁵

Or select any 6 semester credit hours from Component Area Option Core courses (see advisor)

II. Major Requirements: 66-68 semester credit hours

Major Preparatory Courses: 24-26 semester credit hours beyond core curriculum

CHEM 1111 General Chemistry Laboratory I

or CHEM 1115 Honors Freshman Chemistry Laboratory I

CHEM 1112 General Chemistry Laboratory II

or CHEM 1116 Honors Freshman Chemistry Laboratory II

CHEM 1311 General Chemistry I⁵

or CHEM 1315 Honors Freshman Chemistry I⁵

CHEM 1312 General Chemistry II⁵

or CHEM 1316 Honors Freshman Chemistry II⁵

MATH 2413 Differential Calculus^{3, 4}

or MATH 2417 Calculus I^{3, 4}

MATH 2414 Integral Calculus⁴

or MATH 2419 Calculus II⁴

MATH 2415 Calculus of Several Variables⁴

or MATH 3351 Advanced Calculus⁴

MATH 2418 Linear Algebra⁷

MATH 2420 Differential Equations with Applications⁷

PHYS 1100 The Fun of Physics

PHYS 2303 Contemporary Physics⁷

PHYS 2325 Mechanics⁵ and PHYS 2125 Physics Laboratory I⁷

or PHYS 2421 Honors Physics I - Mechanics and Heat^{5, 6, 8}

PHYS 2326 Electromagnetism and Waves⁵ and PHYS 2126 Physics Laboratory II⁷

or PHYS 2422 Honors Physics II - Electromagnetism and Waves^{5, 6} and PHYS 2126 Physics Laboratory II⁷

Major Core Courses: 24 semester credit hours

PHYS 3312 Classical Mechanics

PHYS 3427 Electronics with Laboratory

PHYS 3330 Numerical Methods in Physics and Computational Techniques

PHYS 3411 Theoretical Physics

PHYS 3416 Electricity and Magnetism

PHYS 4311 Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics

PHYS 4373 Physical Measurements Laboratory

Major Related Courses: 18 semester credit hours

PHYS 4301 Quantum Mechanics I

PHYS 4302 Quantum Mechanics II

PHYS 4328 Optics

PHYS 4352 Concepts of Modern Physics

Choose two Physics Elective courses from the following:

PHYS 3380 Astronomy

PHYS 4371 Solid State Physics

PHYS 4386 Elementary Particle Physics

PHYS 4392 Extragalactic Astrophysics

PHYS 4V07 Senior Research Projects

PHYS 4V10 Research Topics in Physics

PHYS 4V11 Topics in Physics

III. Elective Requirements: 10-12 semester credit hours

Both lower- and upper-division courses may count as electives, but the student must complete at least 51 semester credit hours of upper-division courses to qualify for graduation.

NOTE> Please be advised, the UTeach section below feeds in from a separate page updated by the UTeach team. Any changes made to the UTeach section below will not be retained.

UTeach Option

The UTeach option may be added to either the BA or BS degree. UTeach Dallas Option degree plans are streamlined to allow students to complete both a rigorous Bachelor of Science or Bachelor of Arts degree and all coursework for middle or high school teacher certification in four years. Teaching Option degrees require deep content knowledge combined with courses grounded in the latest research on math and science education. While most graduates go on to classroom teaching, UTeach alums are also prepared to enter graduate school and to work in a discipline related industry.

Fast Track Baccalaureate/Master's Degrees

For students interested in pursuing graduate studies in physics, the Physics Department offers an accelerated BS / MS Fast Track that involves taking graduate courses in lieu of several advanced undergraduate courses. Acceptance into the Fast Track is based on the student's attaining a GPA (grade point average) of at least 3.200 on a minimum of 30 semester credit hours of upper-division courses that include PHYS 3411, PHYS 3312, PHYS 3330, PHYS 3416, PHYS 4301 and PHYS 4311. Eligible students may take up to 15 semester credit hours of selected graduate courses that may be used to complete the baccalaureate degree and also satisfy requirements for the master's degree. These credits will partially satisfy the UT Dallas MS degree requirements when the student completes the BS degree. Interested students should contact their advisor during their junior year to apply to the Fast Track program.

Minor in Physics: 20 semester credit hours

Require: 12 semester credit hours

PHYS 2325 Mechanics

PHYS 2125 Physics Laboratory I

PHYS 2326 Electromagnetism and Waves

PHYS 2126 Physics Laboratory II

PHYS 3411 Theoretical Physics

Also:

Three other upper-division physics courses

1. Incoming freshmen must enroll and complete requirements of UNIV 1010 and the corresponding school-related freshman seminar course. Students, including transfer students, who complete their core curriculum at UT Dallas must take UNIV 2020.

2. Curriculum Requirements can be fulfilled by other approved courses from institutions of higher education. The courses listed are recommended as the most efficient way to satisfy both Core Curriculum and Major Requirements at UT Dallas.

3. One semester credit hour of Calculus is counted as Major Preparatory credit; three semester credit hours are counted in Core Curriculum.

4. Students may choose either calculus sequence MATH 2413, MATH 2414, and MATH 2415 or MATH 2417, MATH 2419 and MATH 3351.

5. A required Major preparatory course that also fulfills a Core Curriculum requirement. Semester credit hours are counted in Core Curriculum.

6. If Honors Physics is taken, three hours are counted under the sciences core and one hour is counted under Physics Major Preparatory Courses.

7. Indicates a prerequisite class to be completed before enrolling for upper-division classes.

8. Students who complete PHYS 2421 do not need to complete PHYS 2125.