OWT

Electrodynamics

Course 191210410(1), academic year 2013/2014, block 1A. The course is part of the Bachelor and Master curricula for Electrical Engineering of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science at the University of Twente. Besides students that follow the Electrical Engineering tracks, also students from all other areas, where phenomena related to electrodynamics play a role, are most welcome. The course language will be English. Lecturers: Manfred Hammer (lectures, first part), Hugo Hoekstra (lectures, second part), Lantian Chang, Mustafa Sefünç, Yean-Sheng Yong (tutorials).

While electrodynamic phenomena are abundant everywhere, they are certainly omnipresent in all areas of electrical engineering. The Maxwell equations form the universal basis of any theoretical description. Building upon the course "Theory of Electromagnetic Fields" (191211290), which concentrates mainly on problems in electro- and magnetostatics, we will continue the introduction of concepts of electrodynamics, now with explicit emphasis on configurations and phenomena where the time-dependence is essential. The general overview of the theory, including a series of instructive and relatively simple problems, will be followed by a look at somewhat more involved (technical) applications.

Contents: Brush up on vector calculus and electro- and magnetostatics; Maxwell equations, time- and frequency-domain, differential and integral form, Poynting theorem; scalar- and vector potentials; wave equation, electromagnetic waves in media, plane wave reflection and transmission at interfaces; guided waves, dielectric waveguides; dipole radiation, antennas; transmission lines; introduction special relativity.

The course follows (loosely, part of) the Introduction to Electrodynamics by D.J. Griffiths, 3rd international edition, Prentice Hall, 2003, ISBN-10: 0-13-919960-8. Several of the problems considered will be taken from this textbook. A chapter from Electromagnetics for Engineers by F.T. Ulaby, Prentice Hall, 2004, ISBN-10: 0131497243 (text available via BB) will be adapted for the discussion of transmission lines. Our weekly procedure consists of lectures (9 x), tutorials (8 x), and intermediate tests (2 x) from week 36, September 04, until week 43, October 23, on Mondays during hours 6+7, and on Wednesdays (weekly) and Thursdays (bi-weekly), hours 3+4, with a quite irregular assignment of lecture halls. The course closes with a written examination in week 45.

Depending on the progress of the course, the distribution of topics over lectures may be subject to change. The prospective schedule is as follows:

Week Date Time Room
36 We, 04.09. 10:45 - 12:30 RA-2504 Lecture A (sheets) Homework I
Th, 05.09. 10:45 - 12:30 SP-3 Lecture B (sheets)
37 Mo, 09.09. 13:45 - 15:30 RA-2336 (L) / RA-3336 (M) Tutorial (I)
Deadline for homework delivery! We, 11.09. 10:45 - 12:30 RA-2504 Lecture C (sheets) Homework II
38 Mo, 16.09. 13:45 - 15:30 RA-2336 (L) / RA-3336 (M) Tutorial I (II)
Deadline for homework delivery! We, 18.09. 10:45 - 12:30 RA-2504 Test (1) Homework III
Th, 19.09. 10:45 - 12:30 SP-6 Lecture C, contd.
39 Mo, 23.09. 13:45 - 15:30 RA-2336 (L) / RA-3336 (M) Tutorial II (III)
Deadline for homework delivery! We, 25.09. 10:45 - 12:30 RA-2504 Lecture D (sheets) Homework IV
40 Mo, 30.09. 13:45 - 15:30 RA-2336 (L) / RA-3336 (M) Tutorial III (IV)
Deadline for homework delivery! We, 02.10. 10:45 - 12:30 SP-5 Lecture E (sheets) Homework V
Th, 03.10. 10:45 - 12:30 RA-2504 Lecture F (sheets)
41 Mo, 07.10. 13:45 - 15:30 RA-4334 (L) / RA-3336 (M) Tutorial IV (V)
Deadline for homework delivery! We, 09.10. 10:45 - 12:30 RA-2504 Lecture G Homework VI
42 Mo, 14.10. 13:45 - 15:30 RA-4334 (L) / RA-3336 (M) Tutorial V (VI)
Deadline for homework delivery! We, 16.10. 10:45 - 12:30 SP-5 Test (2) Homework VII
Th, 17.10. 10:45 - 12:30 SP-6 Lecture H
43 Mo, 21.10. 13:45 - 15:30 RA-4334 (L) / RA-3336 (M) Tutorial VI (VII)
Deadline for homework delivery! We, 23.10. 10:45 - 12:30 RA-2504 Tutorial VII
45 We, 06.11. 13:45 - 17:15 CR-2K Exam
2014 We, 29.01. 13:45 - 17:15 SP-3 Retake Exam

Note that the sheets are tentative at the moment; there is a chance that the contents will be adapted before the lecture, very briefly before the lecture, or, if mistakes are discovered, even after the lecture.

The lectures will be accompanied by weekly homework assignments. These intend to deepen the topics of the lecture, to fill in omitted details, and to apply and extend the theory. While a discussion on the topics of the homework is encouraged, the problems are to be solved and the solutions to be written down individually. Solutions are to be handed in (on paper, electronic submissions will not be accepted) at the beginning of the lecture indicated by the dots Deadline for homework delivery! in the table above, at the latest. Earlier submissions are always welcome, then to be handed in to any one of the lecturers. The solutions will be corrected and will be graded, at least partially. Note that the grade earned in this homework scheme will enter the final grade for this course.

The weekly tutorials (two groups L/M, held in parallel) serve a twofold purpose. On the one hand, the classes will be an occasion to raise questions and ask for specific hints on upcoming homework problems. This obviously requires the students to have studied the new problems in advance. On the other hand, solutions to the previous set of exercises will be discussed in detail. Each student is supposed to be able to explain her or his solutions, and each student should regularly present an answer to (part of) a problem.

Two intermediate tests are scheduled after about 1/3 and 2/3 of the course, to provide feedback to both the candidates and the lecturers. Positive results in these tests will slightly lessen the burden of passing the final exam: Assuming that rj, mj, and gj=1+9rj/mj are the actual points achieved, the maximum number of achievable points, and the (real valued) grade received for the intermediate tests (j= 1,2), for the homework (j=h), and in the exam (j=e), then the final grade g (an integer number) will be determined by the expression

g = floor([0.8 max{ge, 0.8ge+0.2g1, 0.8ge+0.2g2, 0.6ge+0.2g1+0.2g2} + 0.2ghH(np-1.9)]+0.49).

Here H is the Heaviside step function, and np is the number of successful contributions (presentations of a problem) during the tutorials. Exception: [...]=5.5 will lead to the grade 6. Note that this recipe applies to the first exam in November as well as to all subsequent re-exams(!).

(02.10.2013)