Module Specification (Curriculum Review)

Basic details
Earliest cohort Latest cohort
UID Cohorts covered 2021-22

Long title Advanced Practical Physics

New code PHYS50001 New short title Advanced Practical Physics

Brief description This module advances on the knowledge, skills and understanding developed in year 1 laboratory
of module and computing. In lab, students carry out experiments exploring complex physical phenomena
(approx. 600 chars.) over several weeks, often with open-ended aims. The same kind of instrumentation used in
research labs is employed and the students utilise their Python skills to help analyse data,
culminating in the reporting of their results. In computing, the students utilise advanced coding
techniques to carry out a programming project aimed at simulating physical phenomena.

552 characters

Available as a standalone module/ short course? N

Statutory details
ECTS CATS Non-credit
Credit value 10 20 N HECOS codes

FHEQ level 5

Allocation of study hours

Hours
Lectures 3
Group teaching 0 Incl. seminars, tutorials, problem classes.

Lab/ practical 128

Other scheduled 4 Incl. project supervision, fieldwork, external visits.

Independent study 115 Incl. wider reading/ practice, follow-up work, completion of assessments, revisions.

Placement Incl. work-based learning and study that occurs overseas.

Total hours 250

ECTS ratio 25.00

Project/placement activity

Is placement activity allowed? No

Module delivery

Delivery mode Taught/ Campus Other

Delivery term Year-long Other (term 1 and 2)

Ownership

Primary department Physics

 Additional teaching None
departments

Delivery campus South Kensington

Collaborative delivery

Collaborative delivery? N

External institution N/A

External department N/A
External campus N/A

Associated staff

Role CID Given name Surname

Module Leader David Colling
Alex Richards
Julia Sedgbeer
Robert Kingham

Learning and teaching

Module description

Learning outcomes On completion of this module you will be able to:

1) Test and construct theories by collecting, analysing and interpreting real, measured data.
2) Use a range of technical and practical specialist laboratory skills and describe the limitations of the
equipment used.
3) Based on initial research, design and perform extensions to address open-ended questions
4) Present the results of such investigations, analysing them critically as a technical report, a 15 minute
presentation (10mins presentation and 5mins of questions) and finally in a journal format, and discuss and
defend them in conversations with your peers.
5) Use advanced coding techniques to maximise the efficiency of a program in Python
6) Plan, write and test a computer simulation of a physical event - presenting their results in a short report.

Module content In the laboratory students perform 3 experiments – interferometry, radioactivity and waves & wave
propagation. The experiments are generally scripted in such a way as to introduce the students to the topic
and equipment, using this to perform important tests of the relevant theories, before encouraging more
open-ended investigations that the students plan and perform themselves. The students are expected to
maintain an accurate lab book, analyse their data and discuss their results with their peers and
demonstrators, and present their results.
In computing students learn more advanced coding techniques in Python. They then use these in a longer
coding project, such as developing their own ray-tracing program. The students then present their results in
a short report.
 Learning and The module runs in Terms 1 and 2. The students will carry out computing and one of the three experiments
Teaching Approach in the first term and the remaining two experiments in term 2. Each of the laboratory experiments is carried
out over a 4 week cycle, with two three hour sessions per week being spent in the laboratory. There are up
to 32 students in each experiment session. Each experiment has an experienced staff member who acts
as a head of experiment, coordinating a team of several demonstrators, who could be staff or PhD students.
Teaching usually consists of 15-30 minutes of direct lecturing by way of introduction, and then the practical
work begins with demonstrators available to help as required (but instructed not to directly tell/show an
answer, instead to encourage the students to think for themselves and interact with their peers to solve
problems). At the end of the fourth week, the students finalise their analysis and present their results. The
fifth week of the cycle is assessment week. Computing will be run over 8 weeks in the first term with the
students receiving demonstrator support for three hours a week. As with the experiments the demonstrators
encourage the students to find the solutions themselves.

Assessment Half of the grade for each cycle is assessed through day-to-day work in the lab - a combination of practical
Strategy laboratory skills, lab book usage, quality of data recording  and general professional skills in a laboratory
context.  The other half of the grade is assessed through either a short technical report, an oral presentation
or a formal publication style report (one for each of the three cycles) with assessment criteria being content,
quality of results and analysis, depth of understanding and clarity of communication.
Feedback Formative feedback on real-time progress is continual for laboratory and computing as demonstrators are
proactive in providing advice and assistance. Reports and code are marked by the demonstrators using a
set of well-defined assessment criteria, that are clearly laid out to the students at the start of the year. The
assessment of the students ability to present their work includes detailed written feedback aimed at
improving their scientific writing and presentational abilities.
Reading list There are no text books for this module. Lab scripts are provided.

Quality assurance Office use only

Date of first approval QA Lead

Date of last revision Department staff
Date of this approval Date of collection

Date exported
Module leader David Colling Date imported

Notes/ comments

Template version 16/06/2017

Assessment details
Pass mark
Grading method Numeric 40%

Assessments
Pass Must
Assessment type Assessment description Weighting mark pass?
Practical Laboratory: assessment of day-to-day 37.5% 40% N
work in the laboratory
Coursework Laboratory: two reports in different forms. 25.0% 40% N

Practical Oral Presentation 12.5% 40% N

Practical Computing: online tests 4.0% 40% N
Coursework Computing: submitted code and outputs 15.0% 40% N
Coursework Computing: two-page summary report 6.0% 40% N

100%