PHY
6536
Statistical
Mechanics
In this course we will study "statistical physics.'' This subject is a link between the microscopic world of one or two particles and the macroscopic world of Avogadro's number of little particles, all the same. In the micro-world, energy is conserved; the equations are exact, reversible, and can be solved at any level of detail required. In the macro-world the details are lost in some thermodynamic limit; we work with very general relationships among macroscopic properties of systems; and entropy always increases.
Announcements:
The
latest announcements will be here
Time
and
place:
MWF
6th (12:50-1:40
pm) NPB 1101
Text
R.K.
Pathria,
Paul
D. Beale
Statistical Mechanics (Third edition, 2011)
Additional text: J.P. Sethna, Statistical Mechanics: Entropy, Order Parameters and Complexity (Oxford University Press, 2006).
Introductory text: Roger Bowley, Mariana Sanchez, Introductory Statistical Mechanics
Instructor: Sergei Obukhov
email: sergei at phys.ufl.edu
Phone: 392-8752
Office: 2164 NPB
Grader Schlittenhardt, Tim
tschlittenhardt at phys.ufl.edu, 2110 NPB,
Phone 392-6859
lecture notes:
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/4239962/gsm.pdf
Office hours: 2.00 pm-3.00 pm MW
Final
exam: April 30, Tuesday, 10 am - 12 pm in class room
Methods
by
which
students
will be
evaluated and their grade determined:
Grades
will
be
based
on one midterm
exam (25%), one final (35%) and homework (40%). There will be
approximately 10
homework assignments.
Other
course
notes:
All
students are required to abide
by the Academic
Honesty
Guidelines of
the University of Florida.
Attendance will not be monitored; however, exam questions will come from topics discussed in class.
