Recent changes to this page:
Welcome to the Physics 780.20 Computational Physics home page!
URL: http://www.physics.ohio-state.edu/~ntg/780/compphys.php
The course information is available here plus lots of supplementary
info. Please check this page regularly.
Recent changes to this page:Copies of any handouts are available from Prof. Furnstahl or online below. After the first class, please read the session notes before that session meets.
| Date of Session | Guide | Notes | Packed Files | Handouts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01/04/12 | Session 1 | notes [pdf] | session01.zip | Printouts of "area" code [pdf] [ps]; Unix commands [pdf]; C++ options [pdf] [ps]; GSL intro [pdf]; Other Session 1 code printouts [pdf] [ps] |
| 01/09/12 | Session 2 | notes [pdf] | session02.zip | Gnuplot basics [pdf]; Gnuplot tutorial; first Mercurial tutorial [pdf] |
| 01/13/12 | Session 3 | notes [pdf] | session03.zip | Fitting with Gnuplot [pdf] [ps]; Formatting with C++ Manipulators (UIC notes) [pdf]; integ_test.cpp and integ_routines.cpp [pdf] [ps] printouts; derivative_test_simple.cpp [pdf] [ps] printout; |
| 01/23/12 | Session 4 | notes [pdf] | session04.zip | Gnuplot plot files [pdf] [ps]; Integrals with Singularities [pdf] [ps]; |
| 01/25/12 | Session 5 | notes [pdf] | session05.zip | Random round-off? [pdf]; nan_test.cpp [pdf] [ps], eigen_tridiagonal.cpp [pdf] [ps], eigen_basis.cpp [pdf] [ps], and harmonic_oscillator.cpp [pdf] [ps] printouts |
| 01/30/12 | Session 6 | notes [pdf] | session06.zip | simpson_cosint_openmp.cpp printout [pdf] [ps], diffeq_routines.cpp [pdf] [ps], diffeq_test.cpp [pdf] [ps], and new eigen_tridiagonal_class.cpp (with class definition) [pdf] [ps] printouts |
| 02/05/12 | Session 7 | notes [pdf] | session07.zip | diffeq_oscillations.cpp [pdf] [ps]; eigen_basis_class.cpp (first pass) [pdf] [ps] |
| 02/13/12 | Session 8 | notes [pdf] |
session08.zip
session08_linux.zip |
Plots of damped oscillations [pdf] [ps]; filename_test.cpp printout [ps]; GnuplotPipe class printout [ps]; diffeq_pendulum.cpp printout [ps]; nonlinear Mathematica notebook; |
| 02/15/12 | Session 9 | notes [pdf] | session09.zip | Circle class and test printout [pdf]; [ps]; private_vs_public printout [pdf] [ps]; GDB debugger quick reference [pdf] [ps]; "Using the GDB debugger" [pdf] [ps] |
| 02/20/12 | Session 10 | notes [pdf] | session10.zip | GslSpline printout [pdf] [ps]; ode_test.cpp printout [pdf] [ps]; GSL interpolation [pdf] [ps]; Pendulum Power Spectra [pdf] [ps]; |
| 02/22/12 | Session 11 | notes [pdf] | session11.zip | ode_test_class.cpp and classes printout [pdf] [ps]; multifit_test.cpp printout [pdf] [ps]; multimin_test.cpp printout [pdf] [ps]; |
| 02/27/12 | Session 12 | notes [pdf] | session12.zip | man pages for random, urandom [pdf] [ps]; gaussian_random.cpp printout [pdf] [ps]; random_walk.cpp printout [pdf] [ps]; RandomWalk_test.cpp printout [pdf] [ps]; input_check.cpp printout [pdf] [ps]; factorial_debug.cpp printout [pdf]; [ps]; |
| 02/29/12 | Session 13 | notes [pdf] | session13.zip | sampling_test.cpp printout [pdf] [ps]; ising_model.cpp printout [pdf] [ps]; ising_opt.cpp printout [pdf] [ps]; |
| 03/07/12 | Session 14 | notes [pdf] | session14.zip | autocorrelation_test.cpp printout [pdf] [ps]; variational_SHO.cpp printout [pdf] [ps]; |
Return to Contents
A complete copy of M. Hjorth-Jensen's 2011 notes on "Computational Physics" is available as a PDF file.
| Class Period | Reading | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| 01/04/12 | M. Hjorth-Jensen, Preface (pdf) and Table of Contents (pdf) | Preface and Table of Contents |
| 01/04/12 | M. Hjorth-Jensen, Ch. 1 (pdf) | Overview of Computational Physics and what is covered. |
| 01/04/12 | M. Hjorth-Jensen, Ch. 2 (pdf) | C++ and Representation of Numbers. |
| 01/12/12 | M. Hjorth-Jensen, Ch. 3 (pdf) | Numerical Differentiation (read sections 3.1 and 3.2). |
| 01/12/12 | M. Hjorth-Jensen, Ch. 5 (pdf) | Numerical Integration. |
| 01/23/12 | M. Hjorth-Jensen, Ch. 6 (pdf) and Ch. 7 (pdf) | Linear Algebra and Eigensystems. |
| 01/26/12 | M. Hjorth-Jensen, Ch. 8 (pdf) | Differential Equations. |
| 02/10/12 | M. Hjorth-Jensen, Ch. 3.2 (pdf) | Numerical Interpolation, Extrapolation and Fitting of Data. |
| 02/27/12 | M. Hjorth-Jensen, Ch. 11 (pdf) | Outline of the Monte-Carlo Strategy |
| 02/27/12 | M. Hjorth-Jensen, Ch. 12 (pdf) | Random walks and the Metropolis Algorithm |
| 02/29/12 | M. Hjorth-Jensen, Ch. 13 (pdf) | Monte Carlo Methods in Statistical Physics |
| 03/05/12 | M. Hjorth-Jensen, Ch. 14 (pdf) | Quantum Monte-Carlo Methods |
Return to Contents
Click on the problem set number to get a copy of the assignment. Follow the instructions on submitting assignments with Mercurial (see also the introduction to Mercurial tutorial from Session 2).
| Due Date | Assignment | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| 01/20/12 | #1 [pdf] | hints, suggestions, etc. |
| 02/03/12 | #2 [pdf] | hints, suggestions, etc. |
| 02/17/12 | #3 [pdf] | hints, suggestions, etc. |
Return to Contents
You (mostly) have your choice of postscript (ps) or PDF format.
| Last Updated | Handout | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| 30-Dec-2011 | C++ Options (ps) (pdf) | "Recommended C++ Options" -- options for g++ (GNU compiler) and icpc (Intel compiler) based on the recommendations in the GSL Reference manual. |
| 27-Dec-2010 | GSL Introduction (pdf) | GNU Scientific Library description from the online reference manual. |
| 30-Dec-2011 | Unix Commands (pdf) | "Some Useful Unix Commands" based on various web summaries |
| 11-Jan-2012 | Instructions on submitting assignments with Mercuial (pdf) | Basic instructions on how to set up a Bitbucket account and how to push your local repository to it. |
| 09-Jan-2012 | Introduction to Mercurial tutorial (pdf) | Using Mercurial to start, add to, and manipulate a local repository. |
| 01-Jan-2009 | Gnuplot basics (pdf) | "Plotting Data from a File with Gnuplot" |
| 28-Mar-2008 | Gnuplot fitting (ps) (pdf) | "Finding the Slope of XY Data from a File with Gnuplot" |
| 12-Jan-2010 | Gnuplot plot files (ps) (pdf) | "Using a Plot File with Gnuplot" |
| 12-Jan-2012 | Using X-Win32 (pdf) | Instructions for using X-Win32 on the Physics Department computers. |
| 01-Apr-2008 | Tricky Integrals (ps) (pdf) | "Integrals with Singularities or Discontinuous Derivatives" |
| 16-Nov-2003 | Bash Prompt HOWTO (pdf) | Creating and controlling terminal and xterm Bash prompts, compiled by Giles Orr. |
| 01-Jan-2004 | C++ Manipulators (pdf) | "Formatting with Manipulators" -- brief guide found on the web. |
| 12-Nov-2002 | Input in C (ps) (pdf) | "Interactive Input in C" |
| 09-Jan-2011 | Round-off Errors (pdf) | A simple empirical investigation of the distribution of round-off errors. |
| 07-Mar-2008 | GDB Debugger (ps) (pdf) | "Using the GDB Debugger" -- A tutorial by example. |
| 10-Mar-2011 | Gnuplot 3d plots (pdf) | "Three-Dimensional Plots with Gnuplot" |
| 06-Feb-2006 | GSL Interpolation (ps) (pdf) | "Using GSL Interpolation Functions" |
Return to Contents
Return to Contents
A wide range of Mathematica example notebooks used in the graduate Math Methods course are available. Take a look!
If the notebook doesn't open automatically in Mathematica when you click on the link, "right click" to save it first (to the Desktop or a session folder) and start it from within Mathematica.
| Last Revised | Notebook | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| 23-Sep-2011 | Calculate area | A simple Mathematica notebook defining a function to calculate the area of a circle, including forcing numerical output and multiple definitions of a function with different numbers of arguments. Also, making it into a program. |
| 23-Sep-2011 | Defining n! | Mathematica notebook with many ways to define n!. |
| 23-Sep-2011 | Rolling dice | Mathematica notebook that simulates the rolling of dice, where the outcome is a random integer from 1 to 6. Histograms are generated for different numbers of "trials" (i.e., throws of the dice), providing visualization of how the fluctuations scale with the number of trials. |
| 25-Sep-2011 | 3D Square Well | Mathematica notebook to find the eigenvalues of a spherical three-dimensional square well by matching solutions. |
| 12-Feb-2009 | Nonlinear Differential Equations | Mathematica notebook analyzing the Duffing equation. |
| 12-Feb-2009 | Nonlinear Differential Equations: Pendulum | Mathematica notebook analyzing the physical pendulum. |
| 04/18/02 | Fourier Transform Pictures | Mathematica notebook showing in pictures how to project Fourier coefficients. |
| 04/18/02 | Square Wave | Mathematica notebook showing a square wave being built from sine waves. |
Return to Contents