Role within programme and connections to other courses. Solid state physics, also referred to as condensed matter physics, is the study of matter in which a large number of atoms (10²³ cm^-3) are bound together, forming a dense solid aggregate. It is a fundamental field of physics that leads to such areas and topics as material science, nanotechnology, and superconductivity. In this course, the student will study the structure of solids and how this structure affects such things as their mechanical properties, their thermal properties, and their electronic properties. This course builds on concepts introduced in thermodynamics and statistical physics, as well as quantum mechanics, with links to electromagnetism (e.g. van der Waals forces). Content. Lattice structure and dynamics, electron kinetics and dynamics, applications (e.g. semiconductors, superconductors, magnetic resonance). Usually offered on rotation with Atomic & Molecular Physics and Subatomic Physics.