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Applied physics - mod. PHYSICS
FABRIZIO FIORI

Seat Medicina e Chirurgia
A.A. 2013-2014
Credits 4
Hours 40
Period 1^ semestre
Language ENG
U-gov code MU01-09-11 LS002A

Prerequisites

Knowledge of basic principles of mathematics and geometry.

Development of the course

The course aims to give fundamental notions of physics, useful for the identification, understanding and interpretation of biomedical phenomena.

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course the student should be able to recognize the fundamental physical principles which both the main biological/physiological phenomena and the main diagnostic techniques used in Medicine are based on.

Program

Introduction:
Recalling some basic mathematic principles; vectors. Physical quantities, units.

Mechanics:
Kinematics and laws of motion. Forces and laws of dynamics. Inertial mass; weight. Gravity; elastic forces; constrain reaction; static and dynamic friction. Inertial forces. Systems of particles, center of mass; momentum and its conservation. Work; kinetic energy. Conservative fields, potential energy and conservation of mechanical energy. Elastic and anelastic collisions. Torque; angular momentum and its conservation. Rotational dynamics and rigid bodies; momentum of inertia. Statics; levers in the human body.

 

Statics e dynamics of fluids:

Definition of pressure. Pascal's principle. Hydrostatic pressure  and Stevin's law. Pressure measurements. Archimede's principle. Bernoulli's law and applications: Torricelli's theorem, stenosis and aneurysm. Real fluids: viscosity, laminar motion and Poiseuille's law; hydraulic resistance. Turbulence and Reynolds' number. Viscous friction; measurement of the velocity of erythrocyte sedimentation (VES).

Thermodynamics:
Physical concept of temperature, thermometer. State variables, thermodynamic equilibrium. Ideal gases. Thermodynamic work, heat and internal energy. Specific heat. First principle of thermodynamics. Thermodynamic transformations. Enthalpy. Thermal engines and second principle of thermodynamics. Irreversible transformations, entropy.

 

Electromagnetism:
Electrical charge. Electrical field and electrical potential. Gauss' law. Electrical fields and potential generated by some charge distributions. Capacity and capacitors. Electrical current; electrical resistance and Ohm's law; elementary circuits, RC circuits. Forces on moving charges and magnetic field. Ampére's law, Biot-Savart's law. Magnetic fields generated by current distributions: straight wire, loop and solenoid. Mass spectrometer. Time-variable electrical and magnetic fields: Faraday-Neumann's law, Ampére-Maxwell's law. Maxwell's equations; electromagnetic radiation and photons.

Elements of Biomedical Physics and Physical Techniques for Medical Diagnostics:

Blood circulation and heart work. Electrical behavior of the cell membrane. Principles of X-ray radiography and nuclear magnetic resonance.

Development of the examination

During the course three written tests will take place (multiple-answer quizzes), about arguments of mechanics, fluid-mechanics/thermodynamics and electromagnetism, respectively.

The student will be admitted to the oral exam if he/she passes two written tests of three (at least), or alternately the written exam (multiple-answer quizzes).

Recommended reading

a)     F.Rustichelli, Introduzione alla Fisica Biomedica, Ed. Libreria Scientifica Ragni, Ancona.

b)     G.Bellini, G.Manuzio, Fisica per le Scienze della Vita, Ed. Piccin, Padova.

c)      A.Giambattista, B.McCarthy-Richardson, R.C.Richardson, Fisica Generale - Principi e Applicazioni, Ed. McGraw-Hill, Milano.

Courses

• Medicina e Chirurgia