100 level courses

Classroom locations have changed recently. Please consult your MINERVA course schedule for up-to-date information.

Not all courses are offered every year. Please see the current academic schedule on Minerva.

PHYS 101 Introductory Physics - Mechanics

• Fall term
• 4 credits
• 3 hours lectures; 2 hours laboratory; tutorial sessions
• Restriction: Not open to students taking or having taken PHYS 131, CEGEP objective 00UR or equivalent
• Laboratory sections have limited enrolment

An introductory course in physics without calculus, covering mechanics (kinematics, dynamics, energy, and rotational motion), oscillations and waves, sound, light, and wave optics.

Instructor for 2024/25: S. Caron-Huot (Fall)

PHYS 102 Introductory Physics - Electromagnetism

• Winter term
• 4 credits
• 3 hours lectures; 2 hours laboratory; tutorial sessions
• Prerequisite: PHYS 101.
• Corequisite: MATH 139 or higher level calculus course.
• Restriction: Not open to students taking or having taken PHYS 142, CEGEP objective 00UR or equivalent
• Laboratory sections have limited enrolment

Electric field and potential. D.C. circuits and measurements. Capacitance. Magnetic field and induction. Electromagnetic waves and geometrical optics.

Instructor for 2024/25: N. Provatas (Winter)

PHYS 107 Mechanics Laboratory (Life Sciences)

• Fall term
• 1 credit
• Prerequisite: Lecture component of PHYS 101 or equivalent
• Restriction: Not open to students who have taken or are taking PHYS 101

The laboratory component of PHYS 101.

Instructor for 2024/25: S. Caron-Huot (Fall)

PHYS 108 E&M Laboratory (Life Sciences)

• Winter term
• 1 credit
• Prerequisite: Lecture component of PHYS 102 or equivalent
• Restriction: Not open to students who have taken or are taking PHYS 102

The laboratory component of PHYS 102.

Instructor for 2024/25: N. Provatas (Winter)

PHYS 117 Mechanics Laboratory

• Fall term
• 1 credit
• Prerequisite: Lecture component of PHYS 131 or equivalent
• Restriction: Not open to students who have taken or are taking PHYS 131

The laboratory component of PHYS 131.

Instructor for 2024/25: K. Ragan (Fall)

PHYS 118 E & M Laboratory

• Not offered in 2024/25
• 1 credit
• Prerequisite: Lecture component of PHYS 142 or equivalent
• Restriction: Not open to students who have taken or are taking PHYS 142

The laboratory component of PHYS 142.

PHYS 131 Mechanics and Waves

• Fall term
• 4 credits
• 3 hours lectures; 1 hour tutorial, 3 hours laboratory in alternate weeks; tutorial sessions
• Corequisite: MATH 139 or higher level calculus course.
• Restriction(s): Not open to students who have taken or are taking PHYS 101, or who have taken CEGEP objective 00UR or equivalent.
• Laboratory sections have limited enrolment

The basic laws and principles of Newtonian mechanics; oscillations, waves, and wave optics.

Instructor for 2024/25: K. Ragan (Fall)

PHYS 142 Electromagnetism and Optics

• Winter term
• 4 credits
• 3 hours lectures, 3 hours laboratory in alternate weeks; tutorial sessions
• Prerequisite: PHYS 131.
• Corequisite: MATH 141 or higher level calculus course.
• Restriction: Not open to students who have taken or are taking PHYS 102, or who have taken CEGEP objective 00US or equivalent.
• Laboratory sections have limited enrolment

The basic laws of electricity and magnetism; geometrical optics.

Instructor for 2024/25: H. Guo (Winter)

PHYS 180 Space, Time and Matter

• This course replaces PHYS 200
• Fall term
• 3 credits
• 3 hours lectures
• Restrictions: Not open to students in a Physics program. Not open to students who have taken PHYS 200.

A nonmathematical, conceptual look at physics, beginning with the idea of space and time, continuing with the historical development of Newtonian mechanics of celestial motion, electricity and magnetism, ether and light, Einstein's special and general theories of relativity, quantum mechanics, matter and antimatter, cosmology and the big bang.

Instructor for 2024/25: R. Brandenberger (Fall)

PHYS 181 Everyday Physics

• This course replaces PHYS 202
• Winter term
• 3 credits

The day-to-day physics behind the materials and phenomena around us. Demonstrations of the intriguing properties of materials and the simple physical theories explaining them.

Instructor for 2024/25: V. Kaspi (Winter)

PHYS 182 Our Evolving Universe

• This course replaces PHYS 205
• Fall term
• 3 credits
• Restriction: Not open to students in a Physics program. Not open to students who have taken PHYS 204 or PHYS 205.

An elementary course on astronomy and astrophysics. Positional astronomy and finding your way about the sky. Our evolving picture of the universe. Properties and origins of the solar system. The Big Bang and modern cosmology.

Instructor for 2024/25: M. Dobbs (Fall)

PHYS 183 The Milky Way Inside and Out

• This course replaces PHYS 206
• Winter term
• 3 credits
• Restriction: Not open to students in a Physics program. Not open to students who have taken PHYS 204 or PHYS 206.

An elementary course on astronomy. Star origins and star formation, supernovae, white dwarfs, neutron stars, and black holes. Galaxies, their structure and their interactions. Stellar clusters, the interstellar medium. Galactic classification and galaxy evolution.

Instructor for 2024/25: T. Webb (Winter)

PHYS 184 Energy and the Environment

• This course has been replaced by PHYS 228
• 3 credits
• Restriction: Not open to students who have taken PHYS 228.

Energy fundamentals, generation of electricity, heat engines, fossil fuel production and consumption, local and global effects, economic impact, transportation, and pollution and environmental impact of energy use. Non-renewable energy sources (fossil fuels, nuclear) and renewable sources (solar, wind, hydro, geothermal).

PHYS 186 Astrobiology

• Not offered in 2024/25
• 3 credits
• Restriction(s): Not open to students who have taken or are taking EPSC 182, ANAT 182, or EPSC 186.
• This is a double-prefix course and is identical in content with EPSC 186.

Astrobiology is the study of life throughout the universe. The course will cover the search for, and characterization of, habitable worlds. We will explore the formation and evolution of stars and planets, the astronomical and geological factors that impact a planet's habitability, the evolution of life on Earth, and the potential for biological evolution beyond an organism's planet of origin.