Equilibrium statistical mechanics (Q2753235)

In six chapters this book reviews the fundamental principles of equilibrium statistical mechanics. General principles of equilibrium statistical mechanics of gases, liquids and solids are analyzed in the first chapter. Here the readers finds a classical discussion of the basic principles of statistical mechanics, including the Nose's dynamics. General principles of the thermodynamics of ideal, real gases, including Landau's theory of phase transition phenomena, is reviewed in the second chapter. In Chapter 3 quantum statistical mechanics is introduced. Here general principles, quantum and quadratic Hamiltonians, blackbody radiation, Bose-Einstein condensation and so on are discussed. The fourth chapter is devoted to statistical mechanics of liquids. This chapter begins with ideal gases with internal degrees of freedom, goes through Mayer cluster expansion, low-density limit and effective Hamiltonians, and finishes discussing dissociation and ionization of composite particles. The reader may find interesting results in parts 4.6 and 4.7, discussing problems of spatial and structural configurations of liquids and results obtained beyond perturbation theory.NEWLINENEWLINENEWLINEIn the main and largest chapter of this book (Chapter 5), equilibrium properties of dielectric and magnetic materials are studied. In this chapter the statistical mechanics of dipoles, interaction of dipole moments, free charged particles in a static magnetic field, one-dimensional and \(n\)-dimensional Ising models are discussed. Here a short review of magnetic lattice models, and results of Monte Carlo simulation are also presented. Chapter 6 is devoted to the statistical mechanics of solids. Fifteen short but very useful mathematical appendices conclude the book. Unfortunately, only in a few parts of this book comparisons of the macroscopic results with the microscopic approaches, and numerical simulation are profoundly discussed.NEWLINENEWLINENEWLINEThis book will be useful for advanced graduate students and for scientists that are working in other fields of physics and mechanics.