Trends in physics

Course annotation

Trends in physics (4 European Credits)

Taught by: Prof. Vladimir Demkin

The purpose of the module is to help students acquire deep and systematic knowledge in the field of modern physics, extending their knowledge base in natural science and enhancing their professional identity.

This module discusses the main directions of development of modern physics knowledge of macro, micro and astrophysics, its influence on the development of medicine and the acquisition of professional skills by medical school students. Particular attention is paid to the application of physics ideas, development of physics methods, devices, technologies and methodologies for the study of the human body, improvement of diagnosis of health conditions, disease prevention and treatment of a patient.

Modern medicine, in the field of treatment and disease diagnosis widely applies physics methods using lasers, X-ray machines and a large class of accelerators. Sophisticated electronic equipment is being more and more widely used in medicine, for example, various types of scanners, imagers, encephalography machines, modern information technology are being introduced. In this regard, practical medicine and medical research institutions need specialists with fundamental training in physics and mathematics, electronics and computer science with deep understanding of medical issues and challenges.

The course concerns the main achievements at the turn of the XX-XXI centuries in the field of solid state physics, plasma physics, lasers, nuclear physics, elementary particles physics and their influence on the development of fundamental and applied medicine. Much attention is paid to the development of knowledge about the universe.

Students who wish to take this course are required to have a basic knowledge of physics, mathematics, biology, and information technology.

The module covers the following topics:

·   High and low-temperature plasma.

·   Lasers and their applications in medicine.

·   Controlled thermonuclear fusion. Fusion reactor. Tokamaki.

·   Accelerators and nuclear medicine.

·   High-temperature and low-temperature superconductivity.

·   New sources of energy. Modern concepts of energy development.

·   Nanomaterials and nanotechnology in medicine.

·   Radiation physics and radiation therapy.

·   Nonlinear Physics.

·   Substance in superstrong magnetic fields.

·   Elementary particle physics. Standard model.

·   Cosmology. Connection between cosmology and high-energy physics.

·   Evolution of the Universe. Dark matter and dark energy.

Learning objectives

As the result of the module, a student must:

·   know: most important areas of modern physics and their impact on the development of fundamental and applied medicine; physics principles that underlie the medical diagnosis and treatment.

·   be able to: form a system of concepts and terms that make up the conceptual framework and the working vocabulary of modern physics;

·   master: skills of meaningful descriptions of observations, logical modeling, interpreting the meaning of new phenomena in physics systems.

Content of the module

Wide use of ionizing and non-ionizing radiation, radionuclides and gamma devices, electron and proton accelerators, radiodiagnostic gamma cameras and X-ray emission computed tomography, positron and magnetic resonance imaging, laser, ultrasonic and other devices in medicine has changed the nature of medicine itself, it became a physics-based medicine. Accordingly, the discovery of new physics principles becomes the basis for the development of medicine.

This module provides an overview of the latest achievements in various fields of physics, including: plasma physics and lasers, nuclear physics and energy, elementary particle physics, solid state physics, radiation and nonlinear physics, and astrophysics, that have a direct impact on the development of methods, tools and technologies in medicine.

Overview of tasks and lectures

The module is scheduled for the third semester. The length of the module is 9 weeks (9 two-hour lectures and 9 two-hour seminars). Students are given 108 hours for individual studying of material.

Topics of lectures:

1. Introduction. The history of discoveries at the turn of the XX-XXI centuries.

2. Low-temperature plasma. Technical application of plasma.

3. High-temperature plasma. Producing of high-temperature plasma methods.

4. Superconductivity. Physics of superconductivity. Superdiamagnetism. 10.Physics fundamentals of nanotechnology. Fullerenes. Nanotubes. Nanotechnology development in the world.

5. New sources of energy. Modern concepts of energy development.

6. Radiation Physics. Interaction of radiation with matter.

7. Lasers. The types of lasers. Designing promising laser media.

8. Substance in superstrong magnetic fields.

9. Elementary particle physics. Standard model. Grand unification.

Topics of seminar:

1.   The use of lasers in medicine.

2.   Nuclear medicine.

3.   Non-renewable and renewable energy sources.

4.   High-temperature superconductivity.

5.   Physics of magnetic resonance imaging.

6.   Nanomaterials and nanotechnology in medicine.

7.   Radiotherapy: methods and technologies.

8.   Environmental problems.

9.   Modern Physics and Medicine.

Position within the programme

This is a unique module that discusses the main directions in the development of modern physics, forming the professional level of a student. The acquired knowledge is necessary for the designing of research methodology.

Teaching format

Structure

The module is scheduled for the third semester. The total complexity of the course is 4 credits /144 hours, including 36 hours in the classroom. The sections of the course are given 9 weeks (9 lectures of 2 hours each and 9 two-hour seminars). Lectures and seminars are given in a videoconference auditorium and e-learning technology is used for individual work.

Grading

The form of final assessment is an exam. The exam is taken in the form of a written test on the theoretical material and students are required to correctly answer at least 80% of the questions.