Syllabus -- PtyS
505B (Hubbard)
Spring semester, 2008
A. T=0 equations
of state
1. astrophysical
limit -- ideal Fermi gas
2. corrections
to the ideal Fermi gas
3. metallic
hydrogen
4. experimental
methods
B. T > 0
equations of state
1. Mie-Grüneisen theory
2. Debye
theory
3. theories
of melting
4. liquid-state theories
(MC,
MD, HSP, etc.)
5. experimental
methods -- single and multiple shocks
A. spherical planets in
hydrostatic
equilibrium
1. polytropes
2. relation
between pressure-density and mass-radius
3. Adams-Williamson
equation
B. static distorted
planets
1. spherical
harmonic representations
2. moments
of inertia
3. gravity
anomalies
C. classical theories of
rotating planets
1. Maclaurin
and Jacobi theory (density = const.)
2. Clairaut
and other perturbation theories (density
not = const.)
D. tidal distortion
1. hydrostatic
response
2. love
numbers
E. energy sources in
planets
1. gravitational
binding energy
2. thermal
energy
3. radioactivity
4. tidal
dissipation (continued in III-C)
A. 2-body problem
1. reduction
to 1-body problem
2. Kepler's
laws
3. orbital
elements
4. effect
of oblateness on an orbiting body
B. rigid-body motion
1. moment
of inertia tensor
2. angular
momentum of a rigid body
3. Euler's equations
4. effect
of dissipation
C. tidal torques
1. angular
momentum transfer and heating
2. spin-orbit coupling
There
will be two midterm examinations. The first midterm is now
scheduled on 26 February
and the second midterm is scheduled for 3 April.The format for
the
midterms will be open notes, calculators/laptops permitted.
Approximately ten
homework assignments will be made. Some of
these will require numerical calculations, so some proficiency in a
programming
language will be needed.
I program in IDL and fortran,
and can be of the most assistance to you in these languages. Some of
the
calculations may be amenable to spreadsheets such as Excel.
Collaboration on homework
assignments is permitted, but if this
occurs, please indicate on your assignment who
did
what.
Algorithm
for computing your final composite score: