Learning outcomes

At the end of the course, the student will be able to :

  • understand the basic concepts of waves, sound and optics
  • apply this knowledge to the understanding of various physical phenomena related to the life sciences

The student will be required to understand the material in depth. They will be required to apply it in simple situations (exercises).

Goals

The objectives of the course are

  • to provide a solid knowledge base in physics, more specifically in the fields of waves and optics
  • to highlight the close links between these areas of physics and the life sciences.

The student will be led to understand matter in depth, beyond the simple knowledge of laws and concepts.

Content

This physics course is mostly based on observations, from which lessons are drawn, rigorous reasoning is used and physical laws are deduced. These laws are then applied to the explanation of phenomena related to the life sciences, everyday life or nature.

Table of contents

  • Chapter 1: Waves.
  • Chapter 2: Sound and hearing.
  • Chapter 3: Wave properties of light - Geometrical optics.
  • Chapter 4: Optical instruments.
  • Chapter 5: Wave Properties of Light - Physical Optics.
  • Chapter 6: Corpuscular Properties of Light - Duality.

Teaching methods

Theoretical course

  • The course will be given as a lecture (slide show and board). The slides presented will be available on webcampus before the course.
  • The student is invited to ask any questions to the teacher, either during the inter-course or via the course Teams.

Student support

  • Formative assessment tools will be made available to students.
  • The supervision of the students will be completed by question and answer sessions (possibly on Teams).

TD sessions

  • The exercise sessions (TD, Travaux Dirigés), supervised by assistants, are organised in small groups, which allows the student to apply the different theoretical concepts. The practical organisation will be explained in the course in due course.

Assessment method

  • An examination on the theoretical material and on the TDs (exercises) is organised in sessions (June and August).
  • Details will be explained in due course and will be available on webcampus.
  • Composition of the final mark :
    • 3/4 for theory
    • 1/4 for the practical exercises (TD)

Sources, references and any support material

  • All course materials and information are posted on webcampus.
  • Slides.
  • The student is required to regularly check the distribution channels related to the course:
    • Teams is used for interactive activities (information, questions/answers, important messages, etc.)
    • Webcampus is used to deposit documents (slides, videos, tutorials, etc)

Language of instruction

French
Training Study programme Block Credits Mandatory
Bachelor in Biomedical Sciences Standard 0 3
Bachelor in Pharmacy Standard 0 3
Bachelor in Biomedical Sciences Standard 1 3
Bachelor in Pharmacy Standard 1 3