- UCAS course code
- FG31
- UCAS institution code
- M20
Bachelor of Science (BSc)
BSc Mathematics and Physics
Duration: 3 years
Year of entry: 2025
UCAS course code: FG31 / Institution code: M20
- Key features:
Scholarships available
Accredited course
- Typical A-level offer: A*A*A including specific subjects
- Typical contextual A-level offer: A*AA including specific subjects
- Refugee/care-experienced offer: AAA including specific subjects
- Typical International Baccalaureate offer: 38 points overall with 7,7,6 at HL, including specific requirements
Fees and funding
Fees
Tuition fees for home students commencing their studies in September 2025 will be £9,535 per annum (subject to Parliamentary approval). Tuition fees for international students will be £36,500 per annum. For general information please see the undergraduate finance pages.
Policy on additional costs
All students should normally be able to complete their programme of study without incurring additional study costs over and above the tuition fee for that programme. Any unavoidable additional compulsory costs totalling more than 1% of the annual home undergraduate fee per annum, regardless of whether the programme in question is undergraduate or postgraduate taught, will be made clear to you at the point of application. Further information can be found in the University's Policy on additional costs incurred by students on undergraduate and postgraduate taught programmes (PDF document, 91KB).
Scholarships/sponsorships
The University of Manchester is committed to attracting and supporting the very best students. We have a focus on nurturing talent and ability and we want to make sure that you have the opportunity to study here, regardless of your financial circumstances.
For information about scholarships and bursaries please visit our undergraduate student finance pages and our Department funding pages .
Course unit details:
Particle Physics
| Unit code | PHYS30221 |
|---|---|
| Credit rating | 10 |
| Unit level | Level 3 |
| Teaching period(s) | Semester 1 |
| Available as a free choice unit? | No |
Overview
Particle Physics
Pre/co-requisites
| Unit title | Unit code | Requirement type | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Introduction to Nuclear and Particle Physics | PHYS30121 | Pre-Requisite | Compulsory |
Follow - Up Units
PHYS40521 - Frontiers of Particle Physics 1
PHYS40722 - Frontiers of Particle Physics 2
Aims
To study the basic constituents of matter and the nature of interactions between them.
Learning outcomes
On completion successful students will be able to:
1. understand the principles of the quark model.
2. understand all interactions in terms of a common framework of exchange quanta.
3. represent interactions and decays in terms of Feynman diagrams.
4. apply relativistic kinematics to reaction and decay processes.
5. appreciate the likely direction of new research over the next 10 years.
Syllabus
1. Ingredients of the Standard Model
Quarks and leptons. Mesons and baryons.
Exchange of virtual particles. Strong, electromagnetic and weak interactions.
2. Relativistic kinematics
Invariant mass, thresholds and decays.
3. Conservation laws
Angular momentum. Baryon number, lepton number. Strangeness. Isospin.
Parity, charge conjugation and CP.
4. The quark model
Supermultiplets.
Resonances; formation, production and decay.
Heavy quarks, charm, bottom and top.
Experimental evidence for quarks.
Colour; confinement and experimental value.
5. Weak interactions
Parity violation. Helicity.
CP violation, K0 and B0 systems.
6. The Standard Model and beyond
Quark-lepton generations.
Neutrino oscillations.
The Higgs boson.
Grand Unified Theories
Supersymmetry.
Assessment methods
| Method | Weight |
|---|---|
| Written exam | 100% |
Feedback methods
Feedback will be offered by examples class tutors based on examples sheets, and model answers will be issued.
Recommended reading
Martin, B.R. & Shaw, G. Particle Physics (Wiley) (Main text)
Perkins, D.H. Introduction to High Energy Physics (CUP)
Study hours
| Scheduled activity hours | |
|---|---|
| Assessment written exam | 1.5 |
| Lectures | 23 |
| Independent study hours | |
|---|---|
| Independent study | 75.5 |
Teaching staff
| Staff member | Role |
|---|---|
| Yvonne Peters | Unit coordinator |
| Alexander Oh | Unit coordinator |