The goals of this course are to further hone your skills for dealing with randomness in physics. We will begin with a review of phase transitions: we will explore the Landau theory of phase transitions and develop renormalization group techniques for calculating properties of critical systems. We will then move on to understanding how typical experimental probes work. This will lead us to the theory of linear response and fluctuation disipation theorems. Depending on student interest, the final part of the course will either look at applications to atomic gases/superfluids or develop nonequilibrium techniques.
Erich Mueller, em256@cornell.edu, Clark 507, 5-1568
We will be having extra classes on Wednesday mornings: 10-11:15am.
We will mostly be following Plischke and Bergersen's "Equilibrium Statistical Physics." Since this is the second graduate statistical mechanics course I will assume that students are comfortable with chapters 1 and 2. I will be devoting a single lecture to reviewing this material. Some of the more advanced topics in the course will refer to other texts. I will supply photocopied handouts of any of this advanced material. A set of relevant books will be on reserve in the physical sciences library: Reserve List.
I will post the reading assignment for each lecture on the course web site. I will attempt to cover the most important bits of this information in lecture, though you will be responsible for material in the reading assignment which I do not have time to discuss. The reading is heaviest for the first few classes, where I am just reviewing material that you should already know.
http://people.ccmr.cornell.edu/~emueller/teaching/p653/
Statistical Physics I: (P 562 or equivalent), Quantum Mechanics I: (P 572 or equivalent). No field theory background is assumed.
Tuesdays, Thursdays, 10:10am-11:25am in Clark 309.
Weekly homework assignments will be asigned. The problems will be posted on the web page, and solutions will be posted after the problems are handed in. Please contact me if you find errors or if anything is unclear. The first assignment will be given on Thursday Aug 25, to be handed in on Thursday Sept 1.
Final. Due Dec 2, 5:00pm...Solutions
There will be a "take-home" exam which will cover all of the material from this course.
I will be available on Wednesdays from 3:00-4:00 in Clark 507. I can also be reached at other times by email, and we can set up an appointment.