Solid State Physics

1. Magnetism in Solids
   1. Types of Magnetism
      1. Diamagnetism
         1. Lenz's law and induced magnetic field
         2. Material examples: Bismuth, Copper
         3. Temperature dependence
      2. Paramagnetism
         1. Curie's law
         2. Magnetic susceptibility
         3. Role of unpaired electrons
         4. Material examples: Aluminum, Oxygen
      3. Ferromagnetism
         1. Weiss molecular field theory
         2. Magnetic ordering and Curie temperature
         3. Magnetic saturation
         4. Material examples: Iron, Nickel, Cobalt
         5. Domains and domain walls
      4. Antiferromagnetism
         1. Néel temperature
         2. Spin alignment in opposite directions
         3. Material examples: Manganese oxide
         4. Exchange interaction
      5. Ferrimagnetism
         1. Mixed spin orientations
         2. Lower net magnetization than ferromagnetism
         3. Material examples: Ferrites
         4. Applications in magnetic storage
   2. Magnetic Domains and Hysteresis
      1. Definition and formation of magnetic domains
      2. Domain wall movement
      3. Hysteresis loop and coercivity
      4. Energy loss and magnetic anisotropy
      5. Remanence and retentivity
   3. Spin Waves and Magnons
      1. Concept of spin excitations
      2. Magnon dispersion relations
      3. Quantization of spin waves
      4. Role in thermal properties
      5. Observations via neutron scattering
   4. Interaction with External Fields
      1. Zeeman effect
      2. Influence of external magnetic fields
      3. Measurement techniques such as SQUID
      4. Effects on electronic transport
   5. Magnetic Materials and Applications
      1. Permanent magnets and electromagnets
      2. Soft magnetic materials
      3. Hard magnetic materials
      4. Magnetocaloric materials for refrigeration
      5. Spintronic devices and applications
   6. Quantum Mechanical Basis of Magnetism
      1. Role of spin and angular momentum
      2. Pauli exclusion principle
      3. Exchange interactions and Heisenberg model
      4. Quantum tunneling of magnetization
   7. Advanced Topics in Magnetic Phenomena
      1. Anisotropic magnetoresistance (AMR)
      2. Giant magnetoresistance (GMR) and applications in data storage
      3. Tunneling magnetoresistance (TMR)
      4. Spin-Hall effect
   8. Magnetic Measurement and Characterization Techniques
      1. Vibrating sample magnetometry (VSM)
      2. Mössbauer spectroscopy
      3. Ferromagnetic resonance (FMR)
      4. Magnetic force microscopy (MFM)