Certificates Offered
Admission Requirements
The minimum requirements for admission to the Graduate Certificates are:
Bachelors’ (without Honours classification) in one of the following degrees, or their equivalent:
- Bachelor of Science in Physics
- Bachelor of Science in Applied Physics
- Bachelor of Engineering (Material Science & Engineering)
- Bachelor of Engineering
Preferably with relevant work experience in related areas.
Candidates with other qualifications and experience may be considered on a case-by-case basis, subject to approval by the department.
Modes of Assessment
Students taking modules for the Graduate Certificate will be taught together with other undergraduate and postgraduate students taking these modules as part of their respective undergraduate or postgraduate degree programmes. All students in the same module will be graded on the same curve (if any).
Candidature Period
The maximum period of candidature for the Graduate Certificates is 48 months.
Requirements for award of Graduate Certificates
Students who have taken and completed modules required for the proposed Graduate Certificate in a ‘stand-alone’ mode with a CAP of at least 2.50, within a period of not more than 36 months (equivalent to the maximum GC candidature period) will be awarded the Graduate Certificate.
Students may repeat modules (with full modular fees) to improve their CAP provided the maximum candidature is not yet exceeded and as per conditions imposed by the Department/Faculty.
Requirements for credit transfer/grade transfers (Stackable Components)
The average CAP of all modules allowed for grade and credit transfer to MSc (Physics for Technology) must be minimum 3.00 (B- grade). The MSc (with Graduate Certificates) will be awarded to students who have completed all the prescribed coursework requirements, and have earned 40MCs with a minimum overall CAP of 3.0 and above
PC5203: Advanced Solid State Physics
This module aims to give graduate students additional training in the foundations of solid state physics and is intended to prepare them for research work and other graduate coursework modules. Topics to be covered include: translational symmetry and Bloch’s theorem, rotational symmetry and group representation, electron-electron interaction and Hartree-Fock equations, APW, OPW, pseudopotential and LCAO schemes of energy band calculations, Boltzmann equation and thermoelectric phenomena, optical properties of semiconductors, insulators and metals, origin of ferromagnetism, models of Heisenberg, Stoner and Hubbard, Kondo effect. Students are expected to read from a range of recommended and reference texts, and will be given an opportunity to present their reading as part of the regular lessons.
PC5205: Topics in Surface Physics
Selected topics from the following will be covered: introduction to surfaces in ultrahigh vacuum; thermodynamic and statistical properties of clean surfaces; interactions between light/ion/electron beams with surface and the surface analysis techniques derived from (including XPS, UPS, IR/Raman, RBS, SIMS, Auger, STM/AFM etc.); electronic, magnetic and optical properties at the surface; surface science in thin films, nanostructures and biomaterials; adsorption phenomena at surfaces; surface processes on nucleation and epitaxial growth; catalysis etc. There are laboratory sessions in this module which contains practice on XPS, SIMS, STM/AFM and IR. This module is targeted at physics, chemistry, materials science and engineering students who already have a basic knowledge of solid-state physics.
PC5212: Physics of Nanostructures
The module provides an introduction to the scientific foundations of the function, fabrication and characterization of nano-structured materials and nano-devices. The topics covered are: reviews of quantum mechanics in reduced dimensions and solid state physics, common techniques for nano-structure fabrication and characterization, transport in low-D systems, optoelectronics of nanostructures, nanotubes and nanowires, clusters and nano-crystallites, molecular electronics, magnetic nano-structures. This module is designed for postgraduate students who are interested in nanoscience and nanotechnology research and applications.
PC4228: Device Physics for Quantum Technologies
Quantum phenomena is being applied to solve practical problems in communications, sensing and information processing. These solutions take the form of new devices, collectively called quantum technology. The intention of this module is to equip the student with a working knowledge of these new devices. We will learn how quantum technology is implemented. We place an emphasis on device physics, because without a proper understanding of the underlying science, new quantum devices cannot be developed. We will discuss the various types of devices used over a broad range of applications covering quantum key distribution, quantum computing and quantum-limited sensing.
PC5228: Quantum Information and Computation
The module will provide an introduction to the physics and mathematics of quantum information in general and quantum computation in particular. In addition to physics majors, the course addresses students with a good background in discrete mathematics or computer science.The following topics will be covered: (1) Introduction: a brief review of basic notions of information science (Shannon entropy, channel capacity) and of basic quantum kinematics with emphasis on the description of multi-qubit systems and their discrete dynamics. (2) Quantum information: Entanglement and its numerical measures, separability of multi-partite states, quantum channels, standard protocols for quantum cryptography and entanglement purification, physical implementations. And (3) Quantum computation: single-qubit gates, two-qubit gates and their physical realization in optical networks, ion traps, quantum dots, Universality theorem, quantum networks and their design, simple quantum algorithms (Jozsa-Deutsch decision algorithm, Grover search algorithm, Shor factorization algorithm).
QT5201S: Quantum Electronics
In this module, basic electronic techniques related to quantum technologies are introduced at a level that allows students to analyze, design, build and modify electronics encountered in experimental work on quantum technologies. It covers basic circuit design, with a focus on techniques related to typical signal conditioning and processing tasks encountered in experiments and application engineering involving quantum systems like single photon detection and generation, atom and ion traps, laser spectroscopy, optical modulators and some radio-frequency techniques to drive atomic transitions, and electronic techniques at cryogenic temperatures.
PC5214: Principles of Experimental Physics
This module provides experimental knowledge on techniques used in modern optical and atomic physics. The focus is on practical implementation of optical measurement methods, and the corresponding technology. Areas covered are practical photodetection, lock-in signal recovery, simple feedback systems, FPI cavities, optical thin films, basic vacuum systems, manipulation of cold atoms, and aspects of working at low temperatures (below 77K). The module will have a strong focus in practical techniques, targeting students who intend to work in the area of atomic, molecular, ion and optical or cryogenic physics.
PC4253: Thin Film Technology
The scope of the course embraces the basic principles of thin-film deposition techniques such as chemical vapor deposition and physical vapor deposition as well as their applications in the microelectronics industry. The basic principles include vacuum technology, gas kinetics, adsorption, surface diffusion and nucleation. These are the fundamental features which determine the film growth and the ultimate film properties. Common thin-film characterization methods which measure film composition and structure as well as mechanical and electrical properties are also covered. This course is for senior physics students with an interest in pursuing a career in industry.
PC5209: Accelerator Based Materials Characterization
The course gives an introduction to the physics of ion beam analysis. After a general introduction, inter-atomic potentials, cross sections and stopping powers are discussed, and the theory of the stopping process is developed based on the Thomas-Fermi statistical atom. Accelerators and other instrumentation are introduced, and a range of analytical techniques is discussed in detail: Rutherford Backscattering (RBS), Proton Induced X-ray Emission (PIXE), Elastic Recoil Detection Analysis (ERDA), Nuclear Reaction Analysis NRA, and Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS). Finally, the more specialised fields of Nuclear Microscopy and Synchrotron radiation are discussed.
PC4236: Computational Condensed Matter Physics
Computation is playing an increasingly important role in materials discovery. This module introduces the basic concepts and provides an overview of methods in modern computational condensed matter physics. Major topics to be covered include a brief review on empirical and semi-empirical approaches in electronic structure calculation, density functional theory, methods for solving the Kohn-Sham equation, applications to different types of materials, modelling effects of external fields and transport property. The module is suitable for upper level undergraduate and graduate students who are interested in computer modelling and simulation in condensed matter physics and materials science.
PC4240: Solid State Physics II
This module introduces students to elements of the physics of crystalline solids. Topics covered include: energy bands of the nearly free electron model, tight binding method, Fermi surfaces and their experimental determination, plasmons, polaritons and polarons, optical processes and excitons. We will also cover superconductivity, dielectrics and ferroelectrics, diamagnetism, paramagnetism, ferromagnetism and antiferromagnetism, and magnetic resonance. This module is targeted at physics majors, and is useful for science and engineering students who already have background knowledge of solid state physics on par with PC3235 Solid State Physics I.
PC4246: Quantum Optics
This module is an introduction to the quantum description of the electromagnetic field, with a special focus on phenomena at optical frequencies; in short, “quantum optics”. It starts with two introductory chapters: a concise reminder of important facts and devices of classical optics; and a presentation of typical quantum phenomena that have been observed with light (entanglement, violation of Bell’s inequalities, teleportation…). The core of the module is the canonical quantization of the electromagnetic field and the introduction of the corresponding vector space (“Fock space”) and field operators. Then, we present the main families of states (number, thermal, coherent, squeezed) and the most typical measurement techniques (photo-detection, homodyne measurement, first- and second-order coherence, Hong-Ou-\Mandel bunching). The statistical nature of light fields is highlighted. Finally, we present the basic case studies of photon-atom interactions in the full quantum approach: cavity quantum electrodynamics (Janyes-Cummings model), spontaneous decay (Wigner-Weisskopf approach).
PC5247: Photonics II
The module is intended to provide detailed treatment of the principles of lasers and working knowledge of major optical techniques used in manipulating laser spatial mode properties and their temporal and spectral characteristics. The topics being covered include laser beams, laser theory, laser survey, modulation techniques, non-linear optics, and fiber optics.