Partial differential equations

Contact Details

Manas Rachh
Arthur K Watson - 109
Email: firstname.lastname (at) yale (dot) edu

Lecture Notes (Last updated: May 2)

Homework sets, Practice Midterm and Midterm

  1. Practice problem set 5 - (not to be handed in)
  2. Problem set 6 - (Due Apr 25)
  3. Practice problem set 4 - (not to be handed in)
  4. Problem set 5 - (Due Apr 11)
  5. Problem set 4 - (Due Mar 28)
  6. Practice midterm
  7. Problem set 3 - (Due Mar 9)
  8. Practice problem set 3 - (not to be handed in)
  9. Problem set 2 - (Due Feb 28)
  10. Practice problem set 2 - (not to be handed in)
  11. Problem set 1 - (Due Feb 14)
  12. Practice problem set 1 - (not to be handed in)

Solutions

  1. Practice Problem Set 5
  2. Practice Problem Set 4
  3. Problem Set 6
  4. Problem Set 5
  5. Problem Set 4
  6. Midterm
  7. Problem Set 3
  8. Problem Set 2
  9. Practice Problem Set 2
  10. Problem Set 1

Syllabus

The topics covered in this class will include:
  1. Introduction to partial differential equations
  2. Elementary solutions and properties of solutions several PDEs arising in Physics such as the: Wave equation, Heat equation, Laplace's equation, Schrodinger's equation, and Burger's equation
  3. Solution techniques: Method of characteristics, Fourier methods, Separation of variables, Green's function methods, elementary numerical methods
  4. Calculus of variations and PDEs
I will roughly be following the text: Partial Differential Equations: An introduction, 2nd edition by Walter Strauss

Grading policy

6 Assignments - 30 pts
Midterm (Mar 9 2017, in class) - 30 pts
Final (May 9 2017, 7pm - 9pm) - 40 pts

Homework policy

Late homework will not be accepted. It is okay to discuss the homework problems with other students as long as you list down your collaborators. I would highly recommend to try the problems yourself before discussing them with your peers. You must however write your own solutions!

Feedback

Please feel free to give any feedback regarding the class or if you want any particular thing to be covered in class. You can provide anonymous feedback in the box below. I will be checking it on a regular basis and adapting the lectures based on that.