Physics 3020/3021 (6055/6056)
Fall 2026/Spring 2027
Electricity and Magnetism I & II
Instructor: Philip Argyres (email: philip.argyres@gmail.com).
Class times: TuTh 8:00-9:20 a.m. Braunstein 324.
Class structure: Pre-recorded lectures for each week are available via links below. The live classes will consist of questions, discussions, and problem solving.
Office hours: 9:20 - 10:20am, Tu & Th and by email appointment.
Text: Introduction to electrodynamics by D. Griffiths, 3rd ed. (Prentice Hall, 1999). If you have a problem locating a copy of this text, please email me.
Content: This course aims to introduce you to classical electrodynamics which is a classical relativistic field theory and the conceptual and mathematical framework and foundation for most of modern physics. This course should be your second course in electrodynamics (after a semester introduction in, e.g., a first year physics course). We will emphasize both developing a conceptual understanding of, as well as a practical calculational facility for dealing with electrodynamics problems.
Readings: About a dozen reading assignments per semester (detailed in the schedule below). Reading the text and watching the pre-recorded lectures in advance is essential. I will assume that you have already read the assigned material for each class meeting, and will focus in class on discussion, questions, and problem solving. Come to class prepared with questions from the reading and pre-recorded lectures!
Problem sets: About 8 problem sets per semester (linked in the schedule below). Completed problem sets are to be emailed to me by midnight of the due date. Solutions will be made available online the next day, so no late homeworks will be accepted. Problem sets should be written up individually; see the paragraph below about the course (and university) policies on academic misconduct (ie, cheating or enabling cheating).
Note on how to submit problem set solutions: Type/scan/photograph your problem set solution and save and it as a single clearly legible pdf file of reasonable size (less than 1MB/page), then email it to me. That way I will be able to write comments on it and return it to you.
Note on collaborating: I strongly encourage collaboration, an essential skill in science and engineering. Find partners and work together: you will learn a lot, and it will save you time. But limit yourself to verbal help: do not take written information from others and try not to take written notes when you talk to others. Think things through independently after you get help. If you do well on homework and poorly on exams, you are probably getting "too much" help. Similar comments apply to using AI agents; see below.
Exams: three in person oral exams per semester (details in the schedule below). The only materials you can use during exams will be one page (2 sides) of notes of your own devising.
Grades: Problem sets will count for about half of your grade. Each problem in a problem set is worth one point unless otherwise indicated. In general, no credit will be given for a correct answer, unless accompanied by a derivation or explanation. Exams will count for the remaining half of the course grade. All exams are of equal weight. In the unusual case of an (at most, single) excused absence from an exam, I'll use an average of your other exams. I will assign course grades according to the percentage of the course material mastered as follows: A+ = 95% - 100% (stellar), A = 90% - 95% (excellent), A- = 85% - 90% (very good), B's = 70% - 85% (good), C's = 60% - 70% (fair), D's = 50% - 60% (poor), F = 0% - 50% (fail).
(This schedule is a work in progress, so will be subject to frequent changes. After the problem set due date I will post the solutions in place of the problem set. You may have to refresh the page to see the solutions. Also, if a link doesn't work, it probably means I'm still working on it...)
Fall semester assignments:
Week 1 (8/25,27): Read "Advertisement" and sections 1.1-1.2. Pre-recorded lecture 1. (notes)
Week 2 (9/1,3): Read sections 1.3-1.4 and appendix A. Pre-recorded lecture 2. (notes)
Due Monday 9/7: Problem set 1
Week 3 (9/8,10): Read sections 1.5-1.6 and appendix B. Pre-recorded lecture 3. (notes)
Due Monday 9/14: Problem set 2
Week 4 (9/15,17): Read sections 2.1-2.3. Pre-recorded lecture 4, and 4a, (notes)
Due Monday 9/21: Problem set 3
Week 5 (9/22,24): Exam 1 (by appointment W-F 9/23-25)
Week 6 (9/29, 10/1): Read sections 2.4-2.5. Pre-recorded lecture 5. (notes)
Due Monday 10/5: Problem set 4
Week 7 (10/6,8): Read sections 3.1-3.2. Pre-recorded lecture 6. (notes)
Due Thursday 10/15: Problem set 5
Week 8 (10/13,15): Read section 3.3. Pre-recorded lecture 7. (notes, and more notes)
Weeks 9, 10 & 11 (10/20,22,27,29, 11/5): Read section 3.4. Pre-recorded lecture 8. (notes, and more notes)
Due Thursday 11/5: Problem set 6
Week 12 (11/10,12): Exam 2 (by appoinment Tu-Th 11/11-13).
Weeks 13 (11/17,19): Read chapters 4 Pre-recorded lecture 9. (notes) & 5. Pre-recorded lecture 10. (notes)
Due Monday 11/23: Problem set 7
Week 14 (11/24): Read chapter 6. Pre-recorded lecture 11. (notes)
Due Thursday 12/3: Problem set 8
Week 15 (12/1,3): Review
Week 16: Exam 3, by appointment M-Th 12/7-10
Computational resources and advice
Mathematica is available through a UC site license. Go to https://www.wolfram.com/siteinfo/ and enter your school email address. Select the product you wish to use. Sign in using your school login through single sign-on (SSO).
Python. If you're new to coding and want to learn Python, UC Libraries offers a 3-part online tutorial course. You can find it at https://guides.libraries.uc.edu/python.
AI. Various AI tools are available at https://ai.uc.edu/ai-tools. AI tools can be helpful for learning physics, but they should support your thinking, not replace it. Try homework problems yourself first, then ask your classmates for help before turning to AI. Developing your own problem-solving skills is essential for succeeding on exams, doing well in future courses, and applying physics in the real world.
AI can be used to:
Explain physics concepts or provide alternative explanations.
Help you identify where you went wrong in a problem solution.
Suggest a first step when you are stuck in solving a homework problem.
Generate extra practice problems when studying.
A list of suggested prompts for using AI effectively in this course is here.
AI should NOT be used to:
Generate answers to problem sets.
Submit AI-generated hand-written solutions as your own.
The above are violations of the Student Code of Conduct.
Students with disabilities have the right to full and equal access at the University of Cincinnati. The Accessibility Resources office will work with you and your instructors to identify accommodations to ensure an equitable opportunity to meet all requirements for your course.
Ohio law and University policy permits a student, upon request, to be absent for reasons of faith or religious or spiritual belief system or participate in organized activities conducted under the auspices of a religious denomination, church, or other religious or spiritual organization and/or to receive alternative accommodations with regard to examinations and other course requirements due to an absence permitted for the above-described reasons. Not later than fourteen days after the first day of instruction in the course, a student should provide the instructor with written notice (an email) of the specific dates for which the student requests alternative accommodations.
If it is determined that some or all of the work on a problem set or exam is the result of academic misconduct, the problem set or exam will be given a grade of 0 points. You should be clear on what constitutes academic misconduct. Note, for example, that if you allow a fellow student to borrow your problem set solutions and he or she then copies a problem solution from it, then you have engaged in academic misconduct.
Whether or not academic misconduct has occurred will be determined following the university procedures. In particular, this means that I will officially report all instances of academic misconduct. While the investigation into whether or not a student has engaged in academic misconduct is underway, the student's course grade will be recorded as "incomplete". The college hearing panel may decide to impose further disciplinary sanctions, up to and including dismissal from the university, as detailed in the university procedures linked above.