Course Requirements A total of 30 semester hours of credit are required to complete the program. Six to ten will be related to the instrumentation project and an additional twenty real time hours in the department’s Machine Shop. Required Core Courses:
Suggested Time Line Start of 1st Year: Meet with the Department of Physics & Astronomy’s Graduate Adviser.
End of 1st Year: Inquire about and propose possible research topics with Physics Instrumentation professors or arrange with a company to do a reseasrch project within the company.
Start of 2nd Year: Complete departmental “Request for Supervisory Committee”, file an “Application for Admission to Candidacy for the Master’s Degree” with the Oral Proposal.
End of 2nd Year: Present Instrumentation Project to Supervisory Committee.
Credit Hrs
PHYS 6610 Electronics I
4
PHYS 6620 Electronics II
4
PHYS 6750 Applied Modern Optics I & II
4
PHYS 6770 Optical Measurement Tech
4
PHYS 6730 Computational Physics
4
PHYS 6859 Instrumentation Project
6-10
Machine Shop (real-time hours)
20
Optional Preparatory Courses:
Credit Hrs
PHYS 5010
Theoretical & Quantum Mech.
3
PHYS 6720
Theoretical E&M & Statistical Mech.
3
PHYS 5739
Intro to Computation in Physics
4
Elective Courses:
Credit Hrs
PHYS 6771
Ionizing Radiation
2
PHYS 5719
Lab Techniques
3
PHYS 5739
Microscopy
2
Select 5000+ level courses in physics, chemistry, mathematics, computer science, and engineering may be substituted for the instrumentation courses above with prior approval from the student’s Supervisory Committee. These courses should be in fields relevant to the Instrumentation Project.
201 James Fletcher Bldg. 115 South 1400 East Salt Lake City, UT 84112-0830 (801) 581-6901
Masters of Scientific Instrumentation Program Dept of Physics & Astronomy University of Utah www.physics.utah.edu www.astro.utah.edu
The Master’s of Scientific Instrumentation (MSI) is offered by the University of Utah’s Physics & Astronomy Department to students with bachelor’s degrees in the sciences and engineering. Areas of study include computational numeric analysis, electronics, physical principles of measurement, instrumentation, and computer data acquisition/control. Students develop instrumentation for one of a variety of research projects as their thesis requirement.
Background A well-qualified applicant should have a B.S. or B.A. degree with an undergraduate GPA of 3.0 or higher and should have completed a calculus-based physics sequence. Remedial work as well as advanced standing will be considered in individual cases by the Scientific Instrumentation Adviser.
Non-Thesis Degree Students looking for a non-thesis option can present a fully documented and detailed written report of the instrumentation project in lieu of a thesis to the student’s Master’s Supervisory Committee.
Instrumentation Project The Instrumentation Project may be work related to a professor’s research, or of personal interest. Work related projects including proprietary and/or confidential research have been accommodated in the past. For further information, Instrumentation Projects by past students are available for review in the Department of Physics & Astronomy Library.
Purpose This program is designed to qualify students to understand, work with and develop modern numerical methods, electronics, measurement systems, computer data acquisition/control, and understand the physical principles of the operation of various measurement sensors. Students are involved in an instrumentation project which can be in a wide variety of research and industrial test areas. In many cases, projects take place outside of the department, in an industrial setting with appropriate departmental supervision.
Work & Finances Generally, students can pursue this degree while working full-time in industry. Some companies provide support for tuition to MSI students. MSI students can also be supported as research associates working on faculty-funded research projects.
Process In planning the initial program of study, a student should confer with a Departmental Graduate Student Counselor. Normally, by the beginning of the second year, the Instrumentation Master’s student should have selected a project and a project advisor
and completed the departmental “Request for Supervisory Committee”. Shortly after forming the Supervisory Committee, the student will make a formal presentation of the proposed instrumentation project to the Committee, detailing the rationale for the project, methods and/ or resources to be employed, a discussion of project feasibility, and a timeline for completion. This detailed project presentation will be presented as a short oral report to the Supervisory Committee for approval prior to the initiation of the project, and will serve as the Student’s Qualifying Exam for the Master’s Degree. The student will also file an “Application for Admission to Candidacy for the Master’s Degree” during the Qualifying Exam meeting, to be approved by the Supervisory Committee. This application includes a list of courses to be completed. A final formal oral presentation to the Supervisory committee of the project, and a detailed project write-up are required for completion of the degree. A copy of the project write-up is then placed in the department Library.
To learn more about the MSI program, visit: www.physics.utah.edu