|
Instructors: Univ.-Prof. Dr. Friederike Schmid
Event type:
Lecture/practice class
Displayed in timetable as:
Theo 7
Hours per week:
6
Credits:
6,0
Language of instruction:
Englisch
Min. | Max. participants:
- | -
Requirements / organisational issues:
Statistical physics and thermodynamics (theory 4 in the bachelor course)
Contents:
Building on the basic lecture "thermodynamics and statistical physics", the class will cover advanced concepts of equilibrium and nonequilibrium statistical physics. These are relevant for systems whose behavior is dominated by cooperative phenomena and large fluctuations, for example all fluids, colloidal suspensions, many plastics, most biomaterials, but also social networks and stock markets. We will focus on the role of general overarching principles such as symmetries, cooperative processes and phase transitions, scales and scale free behavior, the concept of coarse-graining. The actual examples are motivated by the research in Mainz, mostly in the area of ''soft matter''.
Content
1) Basics of the statistical description of materials
- Structure and scattering
- Statistical theory of fluids
- Model building and coarse graining concepts (reduction of degrees of freedom)
2) Phase transitions
- Mean field concepts, Ginzburg-Landau theory
- Fluctuations and critical phenomena
- Scale invariance and renormalization
- (possibly: Basic notions in statistical field theory)
3) Nonequilibrium statistical physics
- Newtonian and Brownian dynamics
- Linear response and transport
- Stochastic processes
Recommended reading list:
- Chaikin/Lubensky: Principles of Condensed Matter Physics
- Plischke/Bergersen: Equilibrium Statistical Physics
- Landau/Lifshitz: Theoretische Physik, Band V und IX
- Guyon/Hulin/Petit/Mitesu: Physical Hydrodynamics
- de Gennes: Scaling Concepts in Polymer Physics
- Doi/Edwards: The Theory of Polymer Dynamics
- Grosberg/Khokhlov: Statistical Mechanics of Macromolecules
|
