Thermal & Statistical Physics
In the wake of the Industrial Revolution, physicists developed thermal physics as a way of improving the efficiency of steam engines. At nearly the same time, the development of statistical physics gave birth to an understanding of how large ensembles of particles interacted. We will study both the macroscopic (“Thermal”) and microscopic (“Statistical”) view of systems and the connection between those two via multiplicity and the second law of thermodynamics. This topic is of broad scientific interest within physics and beyond: biology, chemistry, computer science, engineering, mathematics, and even economics can draw on thermal and statistical physics.
We will be using the Bennington Physics Slack Workspace to communicate this term. Please make sure you join both of the Spring 2021 Thermal & Statistical Physics channel: #spring2021-thermalphysics.
We will meet as a class every Tuesday and Friday from 10:30am to 12:20pm.
The schedule for the course is below. Note that links to problem sets, materials, and projects will become active as the term goes on.
| Week of | Topic | Reading | Problem Sets |
| Feb 15 | Foundations & “Systems” | Ch. 1 | Problem Set 1 |
| Feb 22 | Heat & Work | Ch. 1.1 – 1.6 | |
| March 1 | Heat & Work | Ch. 1.1 – 1.6 | Problem Set 2 |
| March 8 | The Second Law | Ch. 2 | |
| March 15 | The Second Law + Applications | Ch. 2 & 3 | Problem Set 3 |
| March 22 | Applications of the Second Law | Ch. 3 | Problem Set 4 |
| March 29 | The Third Law / Review | Ch. 3 | |
| April 5 | Midterm Exam (No Class Friday) | ||
| April 12 | Macroscopic Entropy and the Thermodynamic Identity | Ch. 3 | Problem Set 5 |
| April 19 | Heat Engines and Refrigerators | Ch. 4 | |
| April 26 | Heat Engines and Refrigerators | Ch. 4 | Problem Set 6 |
| May 3 | Boltzmann Statistics (No Class Tuesday) | Ch. 6 | Problem Set 7 |
| May 10 | Boltzmann Statistics | Ch. 6 | |
| May 17 | Stellar Structure | TBA | |
| May 24 | Final Exam |
