Caltech Physics League

Spring 2013

meeting times: Mondays, 5:45PM, E. Bridge 114. (again...)

May 13th: space debris I - debris size
Question for next meeting: Could you think up a theory for the 1/L^2 rule of debris size distribution?
Space debris about the Earth

NASA, via http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=4765&page=64

Problem 1: Magentic field and Einstein challenge. (will be discussed on May 13th)

April 29th: magnetic fields of stars. (notes to come)

April 22nd: Black hole batteries (click for notes)

Black-hole batteries paper
Black-hole neutron-star binary

April 8th, 15th: Slowing light (class notes)
and - more elaborate notes discussing QM dyamics

Slowing light paper
speed of slowed-down light (Hau's exp.)

Winter 2013

Meeting times: Mondays, 5:45PM, E. Bridge 114.

Optical solitons notes

Photonic crystals notes

Challenge 2: Motorcycles: crash and jump

Challenge 1: Flats and jets

jet solution: notes from meeting discussion

Winter 2012

Organizational meeting : 10/1/2012(Tuessday), 6PM, Bridge 114.
Weekly meeting : Tuessday, 6PM, Bridge 114.

Challenge 1: Earthquake!

Challenge 2: Altitude sickness
Challenge 2: Mathematica notebook

Challenge 3: Black Hole Battery

Fall 2011

Organizational meeting : 10/11/2011(Tuessday), 6PM, Bridge 114.
Weekly meeting : Tuessday, 6PM, Bridge 114.
Challenge 1: From diffraction patterns
Challenge 1: Mathematica notebook

Challenge 2: Quasicrystals form an odd angle
Challenge 2: Mathematica notebook

Challenge 3: Dispersion of Graphene

Game Show!

Spring 2011

Organizational meeting : 1/6/2011(Thursday), 6PM, Bridge 114.

Tidal Speed note

Desert Chimney note

Tokamak note

Fall 2010

CPL meeting times: Thursday, 6pm - 7:30pm, Bridge 114.

meeting 1: Earth rotation induction generator notes
superconducting critical field example experiment

Challenge 1: Magnetic-breaking

Challenge 2: Speed of the tide
Here's the tidal energy note by Gil

Spring 2010

Last meeting: Memorial day, 6pm, bridge 114. Featuring: Clockwise-counterclockwise.

First challenge - Hanburry Brown - Twiss and Sirius

Noise correlations:

    - Hanbury Brown-Twiss Sirius Nature paper

    - Correlations in BEC's and Mott insulators:
        Ketterle's webpage: http://cua.mit.edu/ketterle_group/
    Ian Spielman's noise measurements: http://arxiv.org/abs/cond-mat/0606216

Winter 2010

Second challenge - Magnetic pinball
Solution
winners: John Forbes and Tony Baojia

First challenge - Atmosphere vs. Astronomy
due: extension made till monday Feb 15th.
Solution
winner: John Forbes

2/11/10 meeting: slowing light. (17m/s!) nature-paper

3/4/10 meeting: Aurora slide show

Fall 2009

Second challenge - Electric images
    Preparation problem: The imperfect electric mirror
   Challenge 2 Problems
   Solutions

winners: John Forbes and Tony Baojia

First challenge - Mars elevator under fire