Handbook 1996 : Faculty of Science (Volume 4 page 214)
Mathematics subject : Next:618-341 | Prev:618-332 | Search | Help
618-340 "Statistical Mechanics" appears differently in several places - choose the one you want:
1. Mathematics, Faculty of Science (v4, p214) : Next:618-341 | Prev:618-332
Credit points: 15
Coordinator: Dr P A Pearce
Prerequisite: 618-130 (or 132) and either 231 or 232. Some knowledge of thermodynamics will be assumed.
Contact: 39 lectures (three a week)
Timetable: First semester
Objectives:
On completion of this subject, students should:Comprehend:
- the formalism of thermodynamics and statistical mechanics and how to apply it to a range of models.
Have developed:
- the necessary skill and knowledge to compute the properties of simple models using the formalism of statistical mechanics.
Appreciate:
- the power of statistical mechanics to describe the properties of collections of interacting objects.
Content:
Basic thermodynamics and statistical mechanics: ensembles and the partition function, thermodynamic limit. Phase transitions: first order and continuous transitions, singularities, critical exponents, universality, scaling and homogeneous functions, mean field theory, correlation functions. Enumeration: transfer matrices, generating functions, random walks. Applications: ideal gas, Van der Waals-Maxwell fluid, Ising magnets, percolation.
Assessment:
Up to 26 pages of written assignments and up to three hours of end-of-semester written examination.
1. Mathematics, Faculty of Science (v4, p214) : Next:618-341 | Prev:618-332
2. Math. & Stats., Faculty of Educ(Parkville) (v5, p149) : Next:618-341 | Prev:618-332
Credit points: 15.0
Coordinator: Dr P A Pearce.
Prerequisite: 618-130 (or 132) and either 231 or 232. Some knowledge of thermodynamics will be assumed.
Contact: 39 lectures (three each week)
Timetable: First semester.
Objectives:
On completion of this subject, students should:Comprehend:
- the formalism of thermodynamics and statistical mechanics and how to apply it to a range of models.
Have developed:
- the necessary skill and knowledge to compute the properties of simple models using the formalism of statistical mechanics.
Appreciate:
- the power of statistical mechanics to describe the properties of collections of interacting objects.
Content:
Basic thermodynamics and statistical mechanics Ensembles and the partition function, thermodynamic limit. Phase transitions First order and continuous transitions, singularities, critical exponents, universality, scaling and homogeneous functions, mean field theory, correlation functions. Enumeration Transfer matrices, generating functions, random walks. Applications Ideal gas, Van der Waals-Maxwell fluid, Ising magnets, percolation.
Assessment:
Up to 26 pages of written assignments and up to three hours of end-of-semester written examination.
* Note that CONTACT, CONTENT, POINTS differs from the maintainer's version above. A log of variations is available.
2. Math. & Stats., Faculty of Educ(Parkville) (v5, p149) : Next:618-341 | Prev:618-332
Status: Official 1996 Date created: Oct 9 1995 Last modified: Oct 9 1995 Authorised by: Academic Registrar Email enquiries: Course_Information@registrar.unimelb.edu.au
Maintained by: Dept. of Mathematics, Faculty of Science.
Copyright © University of Melbourne 1995,1996.