Welcome to Introduction to Methods of Theoretical Physics. In this course we will use math to gain new insights into physical systems. Prerequisites are Physics I/II and Calculus I/II, or equivalent.
Class meets twice a week, Tuesday and Thursdays 10:00-11:50 in DCC 236, unless I let you know otherwise ahead of time. This will typically happen if the class is a "studio". Usually, we will divide the two hours up into two one-hour "traditional" classes, with a 10-minute break inbetween.
The required textbooks are
These are both paperbacks and shouldn't set you back too much. The bookstore also has copies of Introduction to Mathematical Methods in Physics by G.Fletcher, and Essential Quantum Physics, by P.Landshoff, A.Metherell, and G. Rees. I list these as "optional" because I won't rely on them as much as the others, but it would be helpful if you had them. Landshoff is a paperback, but Fletcher is expensive. However, Fletcher was used in previous versions of this this course, so you might be able to get a used copy. Other good books are detailed below.