PHEN 3110 Statistical Thermodynamics

This course seeks to investigate how the unifying concepts of atomic theory can lead to an understanding of the observed behavior of macroscopic systems, how quantities describing the directly measurable properties of such systems are interrelated, and how these quantities can be deduced from a knowledge of atomic characteristics. Topics to be covered include properties of equilibria, heat and temperature, statistical ensembles, probability, specification of the state of a system, thermal interaction, work, internal energy, entropy, Maxwell distribution, equipartition theorem, applications to an ideal gas, phases, thermal conductivity, and transport of energy. There is no lab for this course.

Credits

4

Prerequisite

PHYS 1220 or PHEN 1220

Offered

Spring