Preston D.W., Dietz E.R. The Art of Experimental Physics

Wiley, New York, 1991. — 452 pages, ISBN: 0471847488Fills the need for an experimental physics text. There are three main sections of the text. The first is an introduction that offers valuable insights into the importance of the human element in physics and traces the course of its historical development. This section also explains the objectives of the physics laboratory and the skills you must master to maintain a ``Notebook′′ and analyze data, and presents a general discussion of spectroscopy experiments. The second section discusses the unique and valuable role of the computer in the laboratory and explains how to use it; software is included with the text. The final section contains over twenty experiments, providing students with a broad introduction into the use of a variety of instruments for carrying out many different measurements.Introduction

Physics: a human endeavor
Objectives of the Physics Laboratory
Laboratory NotebookError analysis
Measurements, Errors, and a Nobel Prize
Types of Experimental Errors
Statistical Analysis of Random Errors
Gauss Distribution
Review Exercises
Estimation of Random Error
Propagation of ErrorsSignificant figures
Handling of Significant Figures in Calculations
Review ExercisesGraphical analysis
Plotting Data on Semilog Paper
Plotting Data on Log-Log PaperCurve fitting
Method of Least Squares and Linear Regression
Method of Least Squares and Nonlinear Regression
Chi-Square Test of FitJournals of physics
How to Publish Your Results: Summary of Twelve Referenced Journals, Style Manual of the American Institute of Physics
Chapter I of the Style Manual of the American Institute of Physics
Summary of Physics and Astronomy Classification Scheme (PACS)Responsibility of the experimentalist

Spectroscopy: an important class of experiments

Experiments
Laboratory instrumentation
Transmjssjon of Radjatjon
Coaxial Transmission Line. Velocity of Propagation, Impedance Matching
Waveguide. Microwave Detection, Impendance Matching, Cavity Q
Optical Fiber. Numerical Aperture, Attenuation
Lasers
Introduction to Laser Physics
Helium, Neon, and Helium-Neon Laser Spectra
Laser Cavity ModesMicrocomputers
Compton Scattering: Gamma Ray
Introduction to Computer-Assisted Spectroscopy Experimentation
Ionization of Gases by Alpha ParticlesFundamental experiments
Rutherford Scattering
Thermodynamics of Photons and Physical Optics
Electrons 139
22. Faraday Effect