Instructor: Prof. Ian Affleck
Office: SCI 342E
Office Hours: Wed. 2-4 PM
Thurs. 4-5 PM
Phone: 617-353-2601
e-mail: py541@physics.bu.edu (best way to contact
me)
Grader: Nicolas Giovambattista
Office: SCI 240
Phone: 3-4737
e-mail: ngiovamb@physics.bu.edu
Lectures: Tuesdays and Thursdays 2-3:30 PM in PRB146
Discussions: Wednesdays 4:00-5:00 in SCI 111
Grade:
Homework: 25%
First Exam : 25%
Second Exam: 25%
Final Exam: 25%
Homework is due at the beginning of the class. Late homework will not be accepted for credit.
First Exam : Tuesday, October 1 , 2:00-3:30, in class
Second Exam : Thursday, October 31, 2:00-3:30, in class
Final Exam: Monday, December 16, 9:00-11:00 AM
Required text: R.K. Pathria, Statistical Mechanics
Recommended text: M. Plischke & B. Bergersen,
Equilibrium
Statistical Physics
(These are both available at the B.U. bookstore.)
Other useful books :
(These should eventually be on reserve at the Science
and Engineering Library.)
Undergraduate texts:
C. Kittel and H. Kroemer, Thermal Physics
F. Reif, Fundamentals of Statistical and Thermal Physics
Graduate texts:
L.D. Landau and E.M. Lifshitz, Statistical Physics,
Parts I and II
D. Chandler, Introduction to Modern Statistical Mechanics
L. Reichl, A Modern Course in Statistical Physics
1. Fundamental principles of Statistical Physics:
-probabilistic description of large systems
-assumption of equal a priori probabilities (ergodic
hypothesis)
-statistical ensembles: the micro-canonical ensemble
-Liouville's theorem
-quantum statistics and the density matrix
-entropy and the 2nd law of thermodynamics
-thermal, mechanical and diffusive equilibrium
2. Thermodynamics:
-thermodynamic viewpoint
-quasi-static and reversible processes
-heat engines and Carnot inequality
-Joule-Thomson process
-entropy of mixing (the Gibbs paradox)
-thermodynamic potentials: enthalpy, Helmholtz and Gibbs
free energies and their importance
-Maxwell relations
3. The Canonical and Grand Canonical Ensembles:
-equilibrium with a heat bath
-Helmholtz free energy and grand free energy: contact
with thermodynamics
-fluctuations and reduction to the micro-canonical ensemble
for large systems
4. Ideal Gases I:
-Boltzmann distribution: counting the quantum states
-free energy of an ideal gas: ideal gas law
-diatomic gases: rotational and vibrational energy
-electronic and orbital angular momentum of electrons
5. Ideal Bose Gases:
-Bose condensation
-black body radiation
-phonons in solids
6. Ideal Fermi Gases:
-heat capacity
-Pauli paramagnetism and Landau diamagnetism: the quantum
Hall effect
-electrons in metals:
-screening
of Coulomb interactions
-thermo-ionic
and photo-electric effect
-white dwarf and neutron stars
7. Interacting Gases:
-virial expansion
-van der Waals equation of state
- elementary transport theory
8. First Order Phase Transitions:
-phase diagram of a solid or fluid
-first order transitions: latent heat, Clausius-Clapeyron
equation
-van der Waals approach
-metastability and surface effects
9. Second Order Phase Transitions and Critical Phenomena:
-ferromagnetism
-definition of critical exponents
-mean field theory
-Landau-Ginsburg theory
-universality and scaling
-the Ising model in one and two dimensions: transfer
matrix methods
-the renormalization group approach to critical phenomena
Problem Set 6 Solutions (This link will not work until Thursday afternoon)