PHY 4523 -- Statistical Physics
Tentative Syllabus (Version of 6 January 2003)
Spring 2003 for 3 credits
http://www.phys.ufl.edu/~meisel/statmech2003.htm
Instructor:
Mark
W. Meisel, Department of Physics, University of Florida
Best
Place to Find Me: NPB B133, Tel: 2-9147, Fax: 2-7709
Prerequisite:
PHY 3513 or similar or permission of the Instructor.
Meeting Times:
M W F 8th period (15:00 – 15:50 hrs) in NPB 1011.
Students
are expected to attend the lecture sessions.
Textbook:
R. Bowley and M. Sanchez, “Introductory Statistical Mechanics (2nd Edition)”, (Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1999).
Grading:
During the course, there will be nominally 9, 5-point quizzes, normally 10 minutes in length and usually on Friday at the end of the class period. In addition, there will be 2 homework assignments, each worth 5 points. The 10 best quiz/homework scores will be used for computing the final grade. There will also be three, 50-point, 50-minutes mid-term examinations. The mid-term examinations will be given in class. At the end of the course, there will be one, 100-point two-hour final examination. The grade at the end of the semester will be based upon the summation of all possible points. In other words, the total number of available points is 300. No make-up quizzes, homework assignments, or examinations are scheduled. Attendance at all quizzes and examinations is definitely expected, and the homework is due at the start of the announced class period.
Posting:
Materials and information concerning the course will be posted on the Course Webpage, see http://www.phys.ufl.edu/~meisel/statmech2003.htm.
Subject and Focus of the Course:
This
course is a basic course covering “statistical physics”, which is generally
taken to mean the microscopic approach of the subject. Consequently, it
is an extension of “macroscopic’ thermodynamics. Since the microscopic
approach will be taken, then the quantum mechanical nature of the particles
will be an issue. Although the courses on undergraduate quantum mechanics
are not required, most students find it useful to have taken the first semester
of quantum mechanics before taking this course. The course will begin
with a quick review of “macroscopic” thermal physics, and then kinetic theory
and statistical mechanics will be discussed providing and introduction for more
advanced work on Maxwell-Boltzmann, Bose-Einstein, and Fermi-Dirac statistics.
Students entering this course have a wide variety of backgrounds. Although quite a bit of material may seem redundant, do not be fooled or lulled into a false sense of intellectual security. The course will attempt to be self-contained and will lay the foundations of the mathematics necessary for understanding the material. If you find this material boring, please understand that its coverage is necessary for those students whose background may not be as comprehensive as your own. If at any time you are truly bored, please talk to the Instructor. He can make suitable arrangements/adjustments or assign more sophisticated problems or projects for your private consideration.
The course is constructed and aimed for constant class participation. The
instructor will assume that you are reading the book and working the examples
and relevant problems. You are expected to maintain the pace of the
course, and the quizzes and examinations are designed to help guide you in this
process. Cramming before an examination will not work! Like a
world-class athlete, you must train your mind to think physics, and this
training should be performed EVERYDAY. Of course, you do not want to
burn-out, but you must train to think like a physicist everyday.
Attendance
in class is definitely expected since material outside the textbook may be
presented. YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR ALL MATERIAL COVERED IN THE TEXT AND
IN CLASS. ALL THIS MATERIAL IS RELEVANT FOR QUIZZES AND EXAMINATIONS,
unless otherwise stated.
The ultimate goal of the course is for the students to learn more details about thermodynamics and statistical mechanics and to be able to use the machinery of mathematics to solve general problems associated with the subject. Highly specialized problems are the subject of advanced courses in physics, chemistry, and engineering. To realize this goal, the students will not be allowed to use textbooks or notes for the quizzes or the examinations. Any specialized details, formulas or physical constant values will be provided as needed.
A final word about successful completion of the course: there is no secret. If you attend class (and participate), read the textbook, and work the problems and examples, then you will learn the material. When in doubt, WORK MORE PROBLEMS! If you exhaust all problems from the textbook, see the instructor who will be happy to supply more. Remember: this stuff should be fun! If in itself it is not fun and challenging, then it should be some hoop that you are jumping so you may proceed with some fun stuff. So, you should always stay motivated to learn the material.
If at any time there is a question in your mind about anything, please do not hesitate to talk to the instructor. See him immediately before or after class, if necessary, to set specific appointments.
Academic Honesty:
Each student is expected to generate graded work by an individual and original effort. It is understood that some students benefit from "group study". However, all quizzes, all mid-term examinations and the final examination will be individual efforts, using only the materials authorized by the Instructor.
Any violation of this policy will be prosecuted to the full-extent possible (usually a failing grade is given on the assignment). Please review the University Policies on Academic Honesty.
Final Exam:
Wednesday, 30 April, 17:30-19:30 hrs (Final Exam Group 30E)
Special Notes about the Syllabus:
Please note that the dates for all quizzes, examinations and chapter starts are TENTATIVE. The schedule will be finalized during the course and will be announced in class.
Other potentially useful books:
Most physics graduate programs assume incoming students have taken an advanced undergraduate course on thermodynamics and statistical mechanics. The textbook for this course is a popular choice, and other texts that are often used are:
F. W. Sears and G. L. Salinger, “Thermodynamics, Kinetic Theory, and Statistical Thermodynamics (3rd Edition)”, (Addison-Wesley, Reading, MA, 1975).
F. Reif, “Fundamentals of Statistical and Thermal Physics”, (McGraw-Hill, Boston, 1965).
H. B. Callen, “Thermodynamics and an Introduction to Thermostatistics (2nd Edition)”, Wiley and Sons, 1985.
Although the website has not been maintained recently, a rather comprehensive listing of additional references at the undergraduate and graduate levels is given at: http://stp.clarku.edu/