UnitLevel 4Postgraduate

PHS4002 Physics research project B

Faculty of Science

PHS4002 Physics research project B is a level 4, 12-credit-point, postgraduate unit from the Faculty of Science, offered in 2024 in Semester 2 at Clayton. It has no prerequisites.

Credit points
12
Offered in 2024
Semester 2
Clayton

This is the 2024 handbook entry. See the 2027 entry.

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Requisites

Before PHS4002

No prerequisites or corequisites besides the enrolment rules below.

After PHS4002

No unit lists PHS4002 as a prerequisite in the 2024 handbook.

Enrolment rules

PROHIBITION: PHS4000

COREQUISITE: Enrolment in the Master of Science.

Overview

You will undertake a project, involving original research in one of the School's research themes, which encompass a diverse range of "cutting-edge" topics, including: optical physics (involving atoms, electrons, x-rays and light), condensed matter physics, materials physics and nanotechnology, quantum computing and information theory, electron microscopy and electron diffraction, digital image processing, x-ray and synchrotron science, gravitational wave physics, biophotonics, particle physics, astro-particle physics and cosmology, biomedical imaging and ultracold atomic gases. A full list of projects will be made available to you prior to commencing their MSc program.

The research project may be experimental, computational or theoretical in nature, or it may involve a combination of these research paradigms. You will be assigned an academic supervisor (or supervisors), who will oversee the research project and provide mentoring. You will be required to undertake a comprehensive literature review and report their preliminary results via a seminar. The major outcomes of the project will be communicated in the form of a thesis. You will also be required to defend their research outcomes via an oral examination. Your project will most likely be continued into the second part of the MSc program; hence PHS4001 and PHS4002 will lay the foundations for a substantial ongoing research project in the second part of the degree.

As part of their research training, you will be affiliated with one of the School's research groups (aligned with their research project) and will be required to attend fortnightly group meetings, seminars and colloquia. Opportunities will also be provided to you to receive training in specialist areas associated with their research project, e.g., technical computing, visualisation of data, specific experimental techniques, etc.

Offerings in 2024

Teaching periodCampusMode
Second semesterClaytonOn campus

Learning outcomes

When you finish this unit, you should be able to:

  1. 1

    Understand, use and explain the basic concepts and principles of the research literature which underpin the chosen area of research in theoretical, computational or experimental physics.

  2. 2

    Synthesise and interpret the knowledge gained in the study of the underpinning research literature. This leads to the ability to identify a niche topic or topics within this existing body of literature, which represents a gap in current knowledge. This problem should be suitable for original research.

  3. 3

    Advance our understanding of an existing problem or problems in the chosen area for original research.

  4. 4

    Present the results of the original research in written form as a thesis, and also present key thesis results in oral form as a seminar.

  5. 5

    Defend the results of the original research in an oral exam.

Workload and teaching

24 hours per week which includes 18 hours of independent research; 4 hours of literature review, seminar and thesis preparation (averaged over the semester); attendance at group meetings, seminars colloquia equivalent to 1 hour per week; specialist training and consultation with a supervisor, 1 hour each per fortnight.

Contacts

Chief Examiners
Professor Michael J Morgan
Unit Coordinators
Professor Michael J Morgan

Common questions

What are the prerequisites for PHS4002?

PHS4002 has no prerequisites, but enrolment rules apply.

When is PHS4002 offered?

In 2024, PHS4002 runs in Semester 2 at Clayton.

More details

Credit points
12
Level
4
Study level
Postgraduate
Faculty
Faculty of Science
Organisational unit
School of Physics and Astronomy
Type
Coursework
EFTSL
0.250
Student contribution
SCA Band 2
Study abroad
Not available