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STATISTICAL MECHANICS
An Intermediate Course
2nd Edition
by G Morandi, E Ercolessi (University of Bologna, Italy) & F Napoli (University of Genoa, Italy)
This book covers the foundations of classical thermodynamics, with emphasis on the use of differential forms of classical and quantum statistical mechanics, and also on the foundational aspects. In both contexts, a number of applications are considered in detail, such as the general theory of response, correlations and fluctuations, and classical and quantum spin systems. In the quantum case, a self-contained introduction to path integral methods is given. In addition, the book discusses phase transitions and critical phenomena, with applications to the Landau theory and to the Ginzburg–Landau theory of superconductivity, and also to the phenomenon of Bose condensation and of superfluidity. Finally, there is a careful discussion on the use of the renormalization group in the study of critical phenomena.
Contents:
- Thermodynamics
- Equilibrium Classical Statistical Mechanics
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Spin Hamiltonians I: Classical
- Equilibrium Quantum Statistical Mechanics
- Identical Particles in Quantum Statistical Mechanics
- Spin Hamiltonians II: Quantum
- Phase Transitions and Critical Phenomena
- Model Systems, Scaling Laws and Mean Field Theories
- Superconductivity and Superfluidity
- The Renormalization Group and Critical Phenomena
Readership: Upper level undergraduates, graduate students, researchers
and lecturers in physics.
"... the authors put a lot of effort to make it well-arranged ... it is extremely difficult to present this rather abstract field in acceptable and understandable compact form without leaving out the essentials ... the present book is one of the successful attempts in this aspect."
| Acta Physica Slovaca, Oct 2001 |
"Statistical mechanics can be treated in a very mathematical way, which then tends to lose contact with the underlying physical ideas, or one may concentrate on the physics and leave out quite a bit of the mathematical foundations, such as ergodic theory, for example. The authors of this book attempt to steer a middle course and, broadly speaking, they succeed in this endeavour."
| Contemporary Physics, 2002 |
| 668pp |
Pub. date: May 2001 |
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