Survey track-related courses

Lecture courses Master track Transport Physics October 2011
● 10 ECTS
● 17 ECTS
● 14 ECTS
compulsory courses Master programme Applied Physics
3AP15 Electrodynamics (3 ECTS)
3AP16 Computational Physics (4 ECTS)
2DN40 Complex Analysis (3 ECTS)
track-related courses
8 ECTS compulsory courses:
3T100 Advanced Fluid Dynamics (4 ECTS)
3T340 Micro- and Nanofluidics (4 ECTS)
9 ECTS track-related elective courses (see below)
free elective courses
Track-related courses taught by lecturers of the groups in Transport Physics:
Quarter 1
3T340 Micro- and Nanofluidics *
3T350 Statistical Fluid Mechanics and Chaos **
3T220 Chaos (only in academic year 2011-2012)
(Darhuber/Harting/Huinink)
(Toschi/vdWater)
(van de Water/Toschi)
Quarter 2
3T360 Hydrodynamic Stability **
3T280 Turbulent Flow Phenomena
3F240 NMR/MRI
(Kamp/vdWiel/Clercx)
(Trieling/vdWiel/vSteenhov)
(Kopinga)
Quarter 3
3T100 Advanced Fluid Dynamics *
3T370 Experimental Methods in Transport Physics
3T380 Advanced Computational Fluid Dynamics
3T390 Atmospheric Physics
(van Heijst)
(Darhuber/Trieling/vdWater)
(Toschi/Clercx/Harting/others)
(Boersma/vdWiel)
Quarter 4
3T250 Geophysical Fluid Dynamics
3F250 Transport in Porous Media
(van Heijst)
(Pel)
* track-compulsory course (4 ECTS)

** starts in the academic year 2012-2013

3T100 Advanced Fluid Dynamics 4 ECTS
Lecturer:
Prof. GertJan van Heijst
Objectives
The student learns about the role of vorticity in viscous and inviscid flows. Specific goals
are:
• to analyse mechanisms of production of vorticity and redistribution through
diffusion;
• to analyse and model different coherent vortex structures.
In the second part of the lecture course the student learns how irrotational flows can be
described by applying complex function theory. Specific goals are:
• to apply concepts of complex function theory to flows around solid bodies and to
calculate forces on these;
• to apply the theory of conformal mapping.
Contents
In this course some important fundamental aspects of fluid mechanics will be discussed
which one often encounters both in theoretical problems and in industrial applications.
The first part of the course concentrates on the subject of 'vortex dynamics'. Topics like
vortex theorems, vorticity production and diffusion, coherent vortices in 2D flows and 3D
vortex structures will be discussed. The second part of the course concentrates on the
application of 'complex function theory' in fluid dynamics (complex flow potential,
Milne-Thomson circle theorem, forces on bodies in potential flows, and conformal
mapping).

3T280 Turbulent Flow Phenomena 3 ECTS
Lecturers:
Dr. Ruben Trieling
Prof. Anton van Steenhoven (W)
Dr. Bas van de Wiel
Objectives
The student obtains basic knowledge about the theory of turbulent flow phenomena.
Specific goals are:
• to analyse stability/instability of laminar flows;
• to gain understanding of the basic phenomenological theory of turbulence;
• to analyse the statistical properties of turbulence using statistical procedures;
• to characterize turbulent flows using the concepts of correlation functions and
spectra;
• to analyse the structure of turbulent flows near walls;
• to analyse the production, transport and dissipation of energy in turbulent flows;
• to apply the concept of vorticity to turbulent flows;
• to be familiar with numerical techniques related to turbulence modelling.
Contents
Many flows in nature and in industrial situations are turbulent. This course serves as an
introduction in the theory of such turbulent flow phenomena. Since turbulent flows
emerge as a result of instability processes of laminar flows, the course starts with stability
analysis. Subsequently, the following subjects are considered: general features of
turbulence including statistical properties and spectra, the structure of turbulent flows
near walls, some aspects of vorticity and the energy budget, closure models, introduction
to numerical techniques such as k- modelling and LES, and turbulent diffusion.

3T250 Geophysical Fluid Dynamics 3 ECTS
Lecturer:
Prof. GertJan van Heijst
Objectives
The student learns about the effects of background rotation and density stratification on
incompressible fluid flow. Specific goals are:
• to analyse complex flow phenomena by using the concept `potential vorticity’;
• to analyse basic dynamic balances and the role of viscous effects (Ekman
boundary layers);
• to gain understanding of basic mechanisms of varying kinds of wave phenomena
in rotating and/or stratified fluids;
• to analyse stability/instability of flows.
Contents
This course focusses on some basic features of the dynamics of large-scale geophysical
flows as met in oceans and planetary atmospheres, which are essentially affected by
background rotation and density stratification of the medium. Topics that are discussed:
geostrophic flow, conservation of potentical vorticity, Ekman boundary layers, spin-up,
wind-driven ocean circulation, Boussinesq approximation, waves in rotating and
stratified fluids, density currents, geostrophic adjustment, barotropic and baroclinic
instability, aspects of 2D turbulence ad dynamics of coherent vortex structures. A
laboratory course ‘geophysical fluid dynamics’ is organized with experimental and
computer sessions, in which students can investigate some dynamical features of rotating
and stratified flows in the laboratory and by numerical simulations.

3T390 Atmospheric Physics 3 ECTS
Lecturers:
Dr. Folkert Boersma
Dr. Bas van de Wiel
Objectives
The objective of the course is to show how simple principles of physics can be applied to
describe a complex system as the atmosphere, and how one can reduce the complex
system to build models. The second objective is to convey a basic but current knowledge
of atmospheric composition in terms of air pollution and greenhouse gas concentrations,
and their effects, along with an appreciation for the research that led to this knowledge.
Contents
This course introduces students to a basic knowledge of physics and transport in the
atmosphere, relevant for understanding air pollution and the greenhouse effect. The
course starts with some basics on the structure of the atmosphere. Subsequently simple
atmospheric concepts are introduced that help explain the horizontal and vertical
transport of atmospheric constituents, using the concept of lifetime of a species.
Atmospheric transport in all dimensions is discussed: geostrophic flow, the general
circulation, vertical transport, and turbulence. We conclude the course with examining
the role that atmospheric constituents play in controlling the temperature of the Earth.
Exercises are an essential part of the course, and students are encouraged to work through
them. These exercises demonstrate and apply related concepts to current issues in
atmospheric research, and they often tell important stories based on research papers.

3T340 Micro- and Nanofluidics 4 ECTS
Lecturers:
Prof. Anton Darhuber
Dr. Jens Harting
Dr. Henk Huinink
Objectives
This course will provide students with an overview of micro- and nanofluidics, i.e.
aspects of fluid mechanics, heat- and mass transfer at small length scales where surface
and interface effects dominate the dynamics. The students will gain insight into the forces
and physical mechanisms that determine and are available for transport at micro- and
nanoscales. Although the course does not focus on microfabrication and device design, it
will provide students with a basis for estimating quantities such as stresses exerted by
liquids on microscopic objects, flow velocities and mixing efficiencies. These skills will
facilitate the identification of the best-suited transport mechanism for a specific system in
the context of fundamental research or industrial R&D.
Contents
1. Length scales:
- The transition from the molecular to the continuum picture
2. The predominance of viscous friction and interfacial effects:
- The Stokes equation and corresponding boundary conditions
3. Surface forces:
- Liquids in contact with other phases: surface tension, Van der Waals & Casimir
forces, contact angles, superhydrophobic surfaces
4. Mixing:
- Brownian motion and diffusion
- Micromixing and chaotic advection
5. Applications:
- Transport in porous media
- Biological systems, lipid membranes and vesicles

3T350 Statistical Fluid Mechanics and Chaos 3 ECTS
Lecturers:
Prof. Federico Toschi
Prof. Willem van de Water
Objectives
[no learning objectives have been formulated yet]
Contents
Many flow regimes in Nature or in industrial applications display unpredictable behavior.
This course serves as an introduction to chaos and to modern techniques for the study of
the statistical properties of fluid flows in chaotic regime. To begin with, we will study the
basis of chaos: the disordered behavior of nonlinear dynamical systems. Even very
simple but nonlinear systems can display chaotic and unpredictable behaviour. The
emphasis will be on a scaling description, a concept beautifully illustrated by fractals.
Regarding chaotic fluids the focus will be on both Eulerian and Lagrangian chaos.
Central to the course is the exposure to the modern literature. During one half of the
course basic concepts are introduced, and in the other half each participant presents an
article on chaos or chaotic flows that appeared in recent years in Physical Review Letters.
Of course, adequate coaching is offered.
Recommended prior knowledge:
3T280 Turbulent Flow Phenomena

3T360 Hydrodynamic Stability 3 ECTS
Lecturers:
Dr. Leon Kamp
Dr. Bas van de Wiel
Prof. Herman Clercx
Objectives
The student learns how to analyse the (in)stability of flows by some basic analysis
techniques, including nonlinear theory.
Contents
• Introduction: basics and fundamental concepts, what is (in)stability, mechanisms
of instability.
• Techniques and methods to investigate hydrodynamic stability (laboratory
experiments, numerical simulations, linear and weakly nonlinear theory, normal
mode analysis, bifurcation and chaos, strongly nonlinear theory, development of
instabilities in space and time).
• Kelvin-Helmholtz instability.
• Capillary instability of a jet (Rayleigh's theory).
• Rayleigh-Bénard convection.
• Centrifugal instability (swirling flows, Couette flow, Görtler instability).
• Stability of parallel flows (inviscid; Rayleigh's stability problem, viscous; Orr-
Sommerfeld problem, stratification; generalization of Kelvin-Helmholtz
instability, Rayleigh-Taylor instability, baroclinic instability).
Book: Introduction to Hydrodynamic Stability by P.G. Drazin

3T370 Experimental Methods in Transport Physics 3 ECTS
Lecturers:
Prof. Anton Darhuber
Dr. Ruben Trieling
Prof. Willem van de Water
Objectives
This course will provide students with an overview of experimental methods in fluid
mechanics and their modern technological implementations. The students will gain
insight into the underlying physical mechanisms, the capabilities regarding temporal and
spatial resolution and accuracy as well as the strengths and limitations of the methods.
The course will provide students with a basis for selecting the optimal technique for a
certain measurement problem in the context of academic research or industrial R&D.
Contents
Three general categories of methods will be discussed:
1) Measurement techniques for large-scale flows such as particle image velocimetry
(PIV), particle tracking velocimetry (PTV), hot-wire anenometry, laser-induced
fluorescence (LIF), laser-Doppler anemometry (LDA).
2) Measurement methods for micro- and nanofluidic systems such as tensiometry, surface
topography and film-thickness metrology (interferometric and ellipsometric techniques),
2D- and 3D-optical microscopy and resolution-enhancement techniques, flow metrology
and manipulation using optical tweezers.
3) Experimental methods for the characterization of transport in porous media:
techniques for measuring porosity and permeability as well as multicomponent and
multiphase heat- and mass transfer, such as nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) imaging
and x-ray tomography.

3T380 Advanced Computational Fluid Dynamics 3 ECTS
Lecturers:
Prof. Federico Toschi
Prof. Herman Clercx
Dr. Jens Harting
Dr. Jan ten Thije Boonkkamp
Prof. Ronny Keppens (KU Leuven)
Objectives
The course provides an introduction to advanced computational methods useful to
investigate fluid flows from the micro to the macro-scales under laminar and turbulent
flow regime.
Contents
The course will present an overview of several complementary computational methods
(particles-based methods like Stochastic Rotation or Dissipative Particle Dynamics,
mesoscopic methods like Lattice Boltzmann and spectral methods). The first part of the
course is common and provides a general background on advanced techniques for
computational fluid dynamics and their mathematical foundations. In the second part
there is the possibility to choose to specialize either on large-scales (e.g. turbulence and
MHD) or on small-scales (micro, nano-fluidics and multiphase flows) flows.
Recommended prior knowledge:
2DN08 Numerical Methods
3CC80 Computational Physics
Related courses:
3T220 Chaos
3T280 Turbulent Flow Phenomena
3P270 Computational Plasma Physics
3NC10 Mathematical Methods in Physics
3T340 Micro- and Nanofluidics

3T220 Chaos 3 ECTS
Lecturers:
Prof. Willem van de Water
Prof. Federico Toschi
Objectives
(have not been formulated)
Contents
Chaos is the disordered behavior of nonlinear systems with just a few degrees of
freedom: very simple but nonlinear systems. We will see why the route to chaos is often
universal. This universality can be expressed in terms of a renormalisation theory, which
embodies the invariance of the dynamics under a change of scale. We will discuss the
Feigenbaum–Cvitanovic renormalization equation for the route to chaos through period
doublings. Next, we will walk the road to chaos along the golden mean in the case of
competition of nonlinear oscillators.
Fluids are described by (nonlinear) partial differential equations, which can be viewed as
many dynamical systems glued together and talking to each other. We will discuss
synchronization in these systems. More general, we will explore the dynamics of weakly
nonlinear systems described by partial differential equations. We will also discuss how
the path of fluid parcels can be chaotic, and how concepts of chaos can be applied to
these chaotic flows.
Throughout these subjects, the emphasis is on a scaling description. A theory of scales is
beautifully illustrated by the concept of fractals. It is possible to give a thermodynamic
description of these strange things.
Central to the course is the exposure to the modern literature. During one half of the
course basic concepts are introduced, and in the other half each participant presents an
article on chaos and nonlinear fluids which appeared in the past year in Physical Review
Letters. Adequate coaching is offered.
Recommended prior knowledge:
3T280 Turbulent Flow Phenomena

3F240 NMR/MRI 3 ECTS
Lecturer:
Prof. Klaas Kopinga
Objectives
• Understanding the basic principles of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR).
• Understanding NMR-based imaging techniques (MRI).
• Have knowledge of frequently used MRI pulse sequences.
• Understanding measurements of flow and diffusion using MRI
Contents
In this course the basics of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) and Magnetic
Resonance Imaging (MRI) will be introduced. Most of the phenomena will be described
in terms of semi-classical models; quantum-mechanical models will only be used when
strictly necessary. The following topics will be considered: Mathematics of NMR, Spin
Physics, NMR Spectroscopy, Fourier Transforms, Imaging Principles, the k-space,
Fourier Transform Imaging Principles, Basic Imaging Techniques, Spectroscopic
Imaging, Imaging Hardware, Image Presentation, Image Artifacts and Advanced Imaging
Techniques. Some attention will be given to measurements of flow and diffusion with
MRI.

3F250 Transport in Porous Media 3 ECTS
Lecturer:
Dr. Leo Pel
Objectives
This course is a first introduction and provides a basic theoretical background for
modelling transport phenomena engaged in various engineering projects. Subjects are:
porosity, capillary pressure, permeability, transport in saturated materials, absorption and
drying, oil/water transport, moisture and ion transport.
Contents
The transport of, e.g., water, oil in porous media is studied in various disciplines, e.g.,
civil engineering, building physics, chemical engineering, reservoir engineering and soil
science. In all these disciplines, problems are encountered in mass and heat are
transported through a porous material. In these disciplines many models have been
develop to describe the transport processes in porous media. It is beyond the scope of this
course to go into the details of these various theories. This course is a first introduction
and provides a basic theoretical background for modelling transport phenomena engaged
in various engineering projects The discussion in this course will be limited to the
transport in the isothermal situations.
Subjects are: porosity, capillary pressure, permeability, transport in saturated materials,
absorption and drying, oil/water transport, moisture and ion transport.

Master track Transport Physics
Other relevant elective lecture courses:
2DN41 Aeroacoustics
(Rienstra/Hirschberg)
3CS01 Percolation, Fractals and Scaling in Condensed Matter (Michels)
3CS02 Nonequilibrium Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics (van der Schoot)
3CS03 Theory of Liquids
(Clercx/Toschi)
3P110 Introduction to Plasma Physics
(van de Sanden)
3S390 Biosensors for Medical Diagnostics
(van IJzendoorn)
4P060 Fundamentals of Gas Dynamics
(Smeulders/Hirschberg)
4P510 Renewable Energy Sources
(van Noort/Kramer/
van de Sanden/Creatore)
4P540 Multiphase Flow with Heat Effects
(van der Geld)
4P630 Application of FEM to Heat and Flow Problems (Rindt)
4P700 Turbo Machinery
(de Lange)
4P710 Micro Heat Transfer
(Frijns)
4P720 Wind Energy
(van Esch)
8W090 Cardiovascular Fluid Mechanics
(van de Vosse/Bogaerds)
8W150 Multi-fluid Mechanics
(Anderson/Meijer)
8W270 Fluid Biomechanics
(van de Vosse/Bogaerds)

2DN41 Aero-acoustics 3 ECTS
Lecturers:
Dr. Sjoerd Rienstra / Prof. Mico Hirschberg
Objectives
Introduction to acoustics and flow-acoustics.
Contents
Aeroacoustics is the study of sound generation by flows. The basic concepts of acoustics
are introduced. We consider acoustics of pipes and of free field. Then we focus on the
theory of Lighthill for sound generation by flows and the vortex-sound theory. Theory is
illustrated as much as possible by examples of applications (speech production, whistling,
woodwind musical instruments, turbine sound, aircraft noise, ...).

3CS01
Lecturer:
Percolation, Fractals and Scaling in Condensed Matter
(caput Theoretical Physics)
1 ECTS
Prof. Thijs Michels
Objectives
No learning objectives have been stated yet for this course
Contents
Many materials of practical relevance are, by nature or by design, disordered in their
microstructure: concrete, reinforced or conductive composites, porous catalysts,
polymeric semiconductors, sandbeds, fractured rocks, biotissue, etc. Often the disordered
structure at the mesoscale between the scale of the constituent molecules and that of the
specimen has the property or designed function of transporting something through the
material: charge, mass, momentum or energy. The physics underlying this material
function is intimately related to the mesoscale morphology, in particular to the presence
of network-like sample-spanning pathways through the material. A fundamental
framework to understand the relation between material microstructure and transport
property is provided by the theoretical concepts of percolation, fractals and scaling. This
Caput Theoretical Physics provides a short mathematical introduction in these three
fundamental concepts. They are illustrated in the application to DC and AC conduction
through random composites and in the growth mechanism of fractal pathways.

3CS02
Lecturer:
Non-equilibrium Thermodynamics and Statistical
Mechanics (caput Theoretical Physics)
2 ECTS
Prof. Paul van der Schoot
Objectives
No learning objectives have been stated yet for this course
Contents
Thermodynamics and statistical mechanics provide a powerful theoretical framework for
understanding how materials or collections of molecules behave in a state of equilibrium,
e.g., under what conditions certain types of molecule choose to be in a gaseous state or to
condense into liquid, liquid-crystallin, plactic, or crystalline states of aggregation.
Equilibrium states of materials are characterised by a total absence of their properties on
time. However, if materials are suddenly brought under altered thermodynamic
conditions of, say, pressure, volume or temperature, they ideally move towards their new
equilibrium state with progressing time. Such non-equilibrium processes are described by
non-equilibrium extensions of classical thermodynamics and statistical mechanics, the
fundamentals of which will be discussed in the course. Practical applications will focus in
particular on diffusive transport processes involving mass and heat, as well as phase
ordering kinetics, including spinodal decomposition, nucleation and growth, and latestage
coarsening.

3CS03 Theory of Liquids (caput Theoretical Physics) 2 ECTS
Lecturers:
Prof. Herman Clercx / Prof. Federico Toschi
Objectives
No learning objectives have been stated yet for this course
Contents
Liquids lack the long-range order typical for solids. Collisional processes and short-range
correlations distinguish liquids from dilute gases. Therefore, no idealized models
comparable with the perfect gas or the harmonic solid are available for even simple
liquids. During the last half of the 20th century a rapid progress has been made in our
understanding of the microscopic structure and the dynamics of simple liquids. With
advances in experiments (light and neutron scattering), theoretical analysis (statistical
mechanics, kinetic theory of strongly correlated systems) and numerical tools (Molecular
Dynamics and Monte Carlo simulations) a rather clear and complete picture emerged on
the properties of simple atomic liquids. Since the last few decades a variety of more
complicated systems are being studied: ionic, molecular and polar liquids, liquid metals,
liquid-vapor interfaces, liquid crystals, and colloidal suspensions. In this lecture we will
address the basic theory of the liquid state based on a statistical mechanical description of
liquids. Topics that will be discussed include static properties of liquids, distribution
function theories, perturbation theory and inhomogeneous fluids. We will conclude with
an outlook to more complex fluids.

3S390 Biosensors for medical diagnostics 3 ECTS
Lecturer:
Dr. Leo van IJzendoorn
Objectives
Obtaining sufficient knowledge to be able to read and understand recent literature on
biosensors as well as obtaining the basic knowledge required to start (experimental)
research on biosensors.
Contents
In this course, new developments will be discussed in the design of biosensors that can
measure extremely low concentrations of proteins or nucleic acids (picomolar) in a small
volume (microliter) of body fluid (e.g. blood, saliva, urine). At present, a strong
worldwide research competition is ongoing to apply (new) physical detection principles
in fast and compact biosensors that can be used in ‘point-of-care’ applications. After a
short introduction in biochemistry for physicists, this course will start with the principles
of molecular recognition through the use of various types of immunoassays.
Subsequently the kinetics of the molecular recognition will be discussed which is, inside
the biosensor, determined by a combination of reaction kinetics, convection and
diffusion. Next, the physical detection principles of the new sensors will be addressed:
1. magnetic detection applying the Giant Magnetic Resistance or Hall effects
2. electrical detection methods (impedance spectroscopy)
3. optical detection techniques applying fluorescence, chemiluminescence and
surface plasma resonance.
A critical evaluation of the sensitivity of different technologies will be given on the basis
of recent literature.

4P060 Fundamentals of Gas Dynamics 3 ECTS
Lecturers:
Prof. David Smeulders / Prof. Mico Hirschberg
Objectives
Basic knowledge of quasi-one-dimensional steady and unsteady gasdynamics.
Contents
Gas dynamics is that part of fluid mechanics in which fluid compressibility, characterised
by the speed of sound, is important. The following subjects will be discussed during the
course: one-dimensional propagation of waves in tubes, distortion of waves with a high
amplitude. The formation of almost discontinuous pressure-waves, characterized by a
large change in velocity and thermodynamic state, the so-called shock waves. The
possibility to create well-defined shock waves in a laboratory using a shock tube and its
use for studying physical and chemical properties of gases. The correspondence between
waves in gases and waves in traffic density on a highway. Steady compressible flow in
tubes of varying diameter.