COVID-19-Related Degree Requirement Changes
The Engineering Physics program counts all courses taken in academic year 2020-21 with a grade of 'CR' (credit) or 'S' (satisfactory) towards satisfaction of undergraduate degree requirements that otherwise require a letter grade.
Engineering Physics (EPHYS)
Completion of the undergraduate program in Engineering Physics leads to the conferral of the Bachelor of Science in Engineering. The subplan "Engineering Physics" appears on the transcript and on the diploma.
Mission of the Undergraduate Program in Engineering Physics
The mission of the undergraduate program in Engineering Physics is to provide students with a strong foundation in physics and mathematics, together with engineering and problem-solving skills. All majors take high-level math and physics courses as well as engineering courses. This background prepares them to tackle complex problems in multidisciplinary areas that are at the forefront of 21st-century technology such as aerospace physics, biophysics, computational science, quantum science & engineering, materials science, nanotechnology, electromechanical systems, renewable energy, and any other engineering field that requires a solid background in physics. Because the program emphasizes science, mathematics, and engineering, students are well prepared to pursue graduate work in engineering, physics, or applied physics.
Requirements
| Units | ||
|---|---|---|
| Mathematics | ||
| Select one of the following sequences: | 10 | |
| Linear Algebra, Multivariable Calculus, and Modern Applications and Integral Calculus of Several Variables | ||
| Vector Calculus for Engineers and Linear Algebra and Partial Differential Equations for Engineers | ||
| MATH 53 | Ordinary Differential Equations with Linear Algebra | 5 |
| or CME 102 | Ordinary Differential Equations for Engineers | |
| MATH 131P | Partial Differential Equations (or CME 204 or MATH 173 or MATH 220 or PHYSICS 111) | 3 |
| Science | ||
| PHYSICS 41 | Mechanics (or PHYSICS 61) | 4 |
| PHYSICS 42 | Classical Mechanics Laboratory (or PHYSICS 62) | 1 |
| PHYSICS 43 | Electricity and Magnetism (or PHYSICS 63) | 4 |
| PHYSICS 67 | Introduction to Laboratory Physics 1 | 2 |
| PHYSICS 45 | Light and Heat (or PHYSICS 65) | 4 |
| PHYSICS 46 | Light and Heat Laboratory (or PHYSICS 67) | 1 |
| PHYSICS 70 | Foundations of Modern Physics (if taking the 40 series) | 4 |
| Technology in Society | ||
| One course required; course must be on the School of Engineering Approved List, Fig 4-3 in the UGHB, the year it is taken. See Basic Requirement 4. | 3-5 | |
| Engineering Fundamentals | ||
| Two courses minimum (CS 106A or B recommended) 2 | 6-10 | |
| Engineering Physics Depth (core) | ||
| Advanced Mathematics: | ||
| One advanced math elective such as | 3-5 | |
| The Fourier Transform and Its Applications | ||
| Mathematical Methods for Physics | ||
| Introduction to Probability for Computer Scientists | ||
| Introduction to Probability and Statistics for Engineers | ||
| Advanced Mechanics: | 3-4 | |
| AA 242A | Classical Dynamics (or ME 333 or PHYSICS 110) | 3 |
| Intermediate Electricity and Magnetism | 6-8 | |
| Select one of the following sequences: | ||
| Intermediate Electricity and Magnetism I and Intermediate Electricity and Magnetism II | ||
| Engineering Electromagnetics and Electromagnetic Waves | ||
| Numerical Methods | ||
| Select one of the following: | 3-4 | |
| Introduction to Scientific Computing | ||
| Introduction to Numerical Methods for Engineering | ||
| Computational Physics | ||
| Electronics Lab | ||
| Select one of the following: | 3-5 | |
| Circuits I | ||
| Circuits II | ||
| An Intro to Making: What is EE (or ENGR 40A+ENGR 40B; must take both [not offered 2019-20]) | ||
| Electronics and Introduction to Experimental Methods (2020-21 only) | ||
| Intermediate Physics Laboratory I: Analog Electronics | ||
| Laboratory Electronics | ||
| Writing in the Major (WIM) | ||
| Select one of the following: | 4-5 | |
| Directed Research and Writing in Aero/Astro (for Aerospace specialty only) | ||
| Writing of Original Research for Engineers (for students pursuing an independent research project) | ||
| Ethics in Bioengineering (for Biophysics specialty only) | ||
| Computers, Ethics, and Public Policy (for Computational Science specialty or other specialty with prereqs) | ||
| Ethics, Public Policy, and Technological Change (for Computational Science specialty or other specialty with prereqs) | ||
| Introduction to Photonics (for Photonics specialty only. Not offered 2019-20) | ||
| Energy Materials Laboratory (for Materials Science and Renewable Energy specialties) | ||
| Electronic and Photonic Materials and Devices Laboratory (for Materials Science and Renewable Energy specialties) | ||
| Intermediate Physics Laboratory II: Experimental Techniques and Data Analysis (for Quantum Science & Engineering or other specialty) | ||
| Quantum Mechanics | ||
| Select one of the following sequences: | 6-8 | |
| Applied Quantum Mechanics I and Applied Quantum Mechanics II | ||
| Quantum Mechanics I and Quantum Mechanics II | ||
| Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics | ||
| PHYSICS 170 & PHYSICS 171 | Thermodynamics, Kinetic Theory, and Statistical Mechanics I and Thermodynamics, Kinetic Theory, and Statistical Mechanics II | 3-8 |
| or ME 346A | Introduction to Statistical Mechanics | |
| Design Course | ||
| Select one of the following: | 3-4 | |
| Spacecraft Design | ||
| Object-Oriented Systems Design | ||
| Analog Communications Design Laboratory | ||
| Design and Manufacturing | ||
| Introduction to Mechatronics | ||
| Advanced Physics Laboratory: Project | ||
| Specialty Tracks | ||
| See Undergraduate Engineering Handbook for important details. Select three courses from one specialty area: | 9-12 | |
| Aerospace Physics: | ||
| Optimal and Learning-based Control | ||
| Rarefied and Ionized Gases | ||
| Introduction to Plasma Physics and Engineering | ||
| Introduction to the Space Environment | ||
| Space Mechanics | ||
| Dynamic Systems, Vibrations and Control | ||
| Biophysics: | ||
| Introduction to Biophysics | ||
| Advanced Imaging Lab in Biophysics | ||
| Physical Biology | ||
| Fundamentals for Engineering Biology Lab | ||
| Systems Biology | ||
| Systems Physiology and Design | ||
| Bioengineering Systems Prototyping Lab | ||
| Biophysics of Multi-cellular Systems and Amorphous Computing | ||
| Representations and Algorithms for Computational Molecular Biology | ||
| Introduction to Bioimaging | ||
or EE 369A | Medical Imaging Systems I | |
| Computational Science: | ||
| Advanced Software Development for Scientists and Engineers | ||
| Advanced Computational Fluid Dynamics | ||
| Advanced Computational Fluid Dynamics | ||
Any CME course with course number greater than 300 and less than 390 | ||
| Mathematical Foundations of Computing | ||
| Introduction to the Theory of Computation | ||
| Design and Analysis of Algorithms | ||
| Continuous Mathematical Methods with an Emphasis on Machine Learning | ||
| Artificial Intelligence: Principles and Techniques | ||
| Probabilistic Graphical Models: Principles and Techniques | ||
| Machine Learning | ||
| Data Mining and Analysis | ||
| Electromechanical System Design: | ||
| Mechanics of Materials | ||
| Mechanical Systems Design (formerly ME 112) | ||
| Introduction to Mechatronics | ||
or EE 118 | Introduction to Mechatronics | |
| Materials Science: | ||
Any MATSCI courses numbered 151 to 199 (except 159Q) or PHYSICS 172 | ||
| Quantum Science & Engineering (See UGHB for further important details.) | ||
| Atoms, Fields and Photons | ||
| Probability and Quantum Mechanics | ||
| Quantum Hardware | ||
| Computational Complexity | ||
| Elements of Quantum Computer Programming | ||
| Photonics Laboratory | ||
| Lasers | ||
| Semiconductor Optoelectronic Devices | ||
| Optical Micro- and Nano-Cavities | ||
| Experimental Methods in Quantum Physics | ||
| Advanced Topics in Quantum Mechanics | ||
| Quantum Gases | ||
| Graduate Quantum Mechanics I | ||
| Graduate Quantum Mechanics II | ||
| Information Theory | ||
| Renewable Energy: | ||
| 100% Clean, Renewable Energy and Storage for Everything | ||
| Power Electronics | ||
| Green Electronics | ||
| Fundamentals of Energy Processes | ||
| Solar Cells, Fuel Cells, and Batteries: Materials for the Energy Solution | ||
| Solar Cells | ||
| Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology | ||
ME 260 | ||
| Total Units | 93-119 | |
| 1 | PHYSICS 67 Introduction to Laboratory Physics (2 units), recommended in place of PHYSICS 44 Electricity and Magnetism Lab |
| 2 | The Engineering Fundamental courses are to be selected from the Basic Requirements 3 list. Fundamentals courses acceptable for the core program may also be used to satisfy the fundamentals requirement as long as 45 unduplicated units of Engineering are taken. |
| 3 | Although not required, PHYSICS 59 (Frontiers in Physics Research, 1 unit) and PHYSICS 91SI (Practical Computing for Scientists, 2 units) are highly recommended. |
| 4 | A course may only be counted towards one requirement; it may not be double-counted. All courses taken for the major must be taken for a letter grade if that option is offered by the instructor. Minimum Combined GPA for all courses in Engineering Fundamentals and Depth is 2.0. |
For additional information and sample programs see the Handbook for Undergraduate Engineering Programs (UGHB).
Honors Program
The School of Engineering offers a program leading to a Bachelor of Science in Engineering: Engineering Physics with Honors.
Honors Criteria
- Minimum overall GPA of 3.5.
- Independent research conducted at an advanced level with a faculty research adviser and documented in an honors thesis. The honors candidate must identify a faculty member who will serve as his or her honors research adviser and a second reader who will be asked to read the thesis and give feedback before endorsing the thesis. One of the two must be a member of the Academic Council and in the School of Engineering.
Application: The deadline to apply is November 1 in Autumn Quarter of the senior year. The application documents should be submitted to the Student Services Officer. Applications are reviewed by a subcommittee of the faculty advisers for Engineering Physics majors. Applicants and thesis advisers receive written notification when the application is approved. An application consists of three items:
- One-page description of the research topic
- The Honors Application form is available on Engineering Physics page of the Undergraduate handbook. It must be signed by honors thesis adviser.
- Unofficial Stanford transcript
Requirements and Timeline for Honors in Engineering Physics:
- Declare the honors program in Axess (ENGR-BSH, Subplan: Engineering Physics)
- Obtain application form from the student services officer.
- Apply to honors program by November 1 in the Autumn Quarter of the senior year.
- Maintain an overall GPA of at least 3.5.
- Optional: Under direction of the thesis adviser, students may enroll for research units in ENGR 199W Writing of Original Research for Engineers or in departmental courses such as AA 190 Directed Research and Writing in Aero/Astro or ME 191H Honors Research.
- Submit a completed thesis draft to the research adviser and second reader by April 15.
- Present the thesis work in an oral presentation or poster session in an appropriate forum (e.g., an event that showcases undergraduate research and is organized by the department of the adviser, the school of the adviser, or the University).
- Incorporate feedback, which the adviser and second reader should provide by April 30, and obtain final endorsement signatures from the thesis adviser and second reader by May 15.
- Submit a pdf of the thesis, including the signature page signed by both readers, to the student services officer by May 15. Students are sent email instructions on how to archive a permanent electronic copy in Terman Engineering library.
