Syllabus for |
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RRY145 - Stellar physics
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| Stjärnornas fysik |
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| Syllabus adopted 2019-02-14 by Head of Programme (or corresponding) |
| Owner: MPPAS |
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7,5 Credits
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| Grading: TH - Five, Four, Three, Fail |
| Education cycle: Second-cycle |
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Major subject: Electrical Engineering, Engineering Physics
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Department: 70 - SPACE, EARTH AND ENVIRONMENT
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Teaching language: English
Application code: 19117
Open for exchange students: Yes
Block schedule:
D
Maximum participants: 25
| Module |
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Credit distribution |
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Examination dates |
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Sp1 |
Sp2 |
Sp3 |
Sp4 |
Summer course |
No Sp |
| 0114 |
Written and oral assignments |
1,5 c |
Grading: UG |
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1,5 c
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| 0214 |
Examination |
6,0 c |
Grading: TH |
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6,0 c
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19 Mar 2020 am SB
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08 Jun 2020 pm J, |
27 Aug 2020 am J |
In programs
MPPAS PHYSICS AND ASTRONOMY, MSC PROGR, Year 2 (elective)
MPPHS PHYSICS, MSC PROGR, Year 1 (compulsory elective)
Examiner:
Wouter Vlemmings
Go to Course Homepage
Eligibility:
In order to be eligible for a second cycle course the applicant needs to fulfil the general and specific entry requirements of the programme that owns the course. (If the second cycle course is owned by a first cycle programme, second cycle entry requirements apply.)
Exemption from the eligibility requirement:
Applicants enrolled in a programme at Chalmers where the course is included in the study programme are exempted from fulfilling these requirements.
Course specific prerequisites
Mathematics 30 c (including multivariable calculus), basic physics (including mechanics, electromagnetism, quantum physics).
Aim
Stars are central objects within astronomy: they are interesting objects in their own right, and they are important components of galaxies whose dynamics and history can be studied through observations of stars. In addition, essentially all of the elements in our universe have their origin inside stars. Stars are complex systems. The theory of stellar structure and evolution rests on many parts of physics: mechanics, hydrodynamics, thermodynamics, statistical physics, the most extreme examples of condensed matter physics, nuclear physics, atomic physics, and radiative transfer and spectroscopy. The course will provide a deep understanding of the workings of stars, and it will provide an excellent example of how applied physics is used to describe a complex phenomenon.
Learning outcomes (after completion of the course the student should be able to)
- describe what can be learned about stars and their evolution from observations
- write the equations of stellar structure and explain them
- derive the characteristic timescales of stellar evolution, and the characteristic temperatures, densities, and pressures in stellar interiors
- describe radiative transport in stellar interiors
- describe convection in a star and list the consequences of it for stellar evolution; derive under which conditions a star is convective
- describe stellar atmospheres and how radiative transfer models are used to explain their properties
- explain the base for the spectral- and luminosity classification of stars
- describe the nuclear processes taking place in stellar interiors
- derive temperature dependences of different nuclear burning processes, and the energy released
- use a stellar evolutionary model to derive stellar characteristics
- describe the evolutionary tracks for stars of different masses
- analyze observational characteristics in terms of stellar physics
- explain the role of stars in the chemical evolution of the universe
- describe the end stages of stellar evolution: white dwarfs, neutron stars and black holes
Content
Observable properties of stars. Stellar atmospheres and radiative transfer. Equations of state. Degenerate matter. Radiative and convective energy transport. Nuclear reactions. Differential equations of stellar structure and their boundary conditions. Numerical models. Protostars and star formation. Stellar evolution. The Main Sequence. Stability and pulsations. Chemical evolution on the Main Sequence. Post-Main-Sequence evolution. Mass loss, winds, and explosions. Binary stars. Stellar rotation. Endpoints of stellar evolution: white dwarfs, neutron stars, pulsars, and black holes.
A computer code for constructing stellar models will be available.
Organisation
The course consists of lectures and exercises.
Literature
Lecture Notes
Examination including compulsory elements
Written and/or oral examination, and a written and/or oral assignment.