Lecture Notes

The lecture note materials for this course include contributions from Professor Sylvia T. Ceyer.

Thanks to Ziad Ganim, the course teaching assistant, for his assistance in proofreading, improving, and transcribing the lecture notes.



KN: Professor Keith Nelson
PCS: Physical Chemistry Staff

SES # TOPICS LECTURERS

1

Assemblies, Ensembles, and The Ergodic Hypothesis (PDF) KN
2 E, A, and S: Macroscopic Properties from Microscopic Probabilities {Pi } (PDF) KN
3 Canonical Partition Function: Replace {Pi } by Q (PDF) KN
4 Microcanonical Ensemble (PDF) KN
5 Molecular Partition Function: Replace E Assembly by E Molecule (PDF) PCS
6 Q Corrected for Molecular Indistinguishability (PDF) KN
7 Boltzmann, Fermi-Dirac, and Bose-Einstein Statistics (PDF) KN
8 Translational Part of Boltzmann Partition Function (PDF) KN
9 Macroscopic Quantities from Qtrans (PDF) KN
10 Quantum vs. Classical Qtrans . Equipartition. Internal Degrees of Freedom (PDF) KN
11 Internal Degrees of Freedom for Atoms and Diatomic Molecules (PDF) KN
12 Rotational Partition Function. Equipartition (PDF) KN
13 Nuclear Spin Statistics: Symmetry Number, Sigma (PDF) KN
14 Polyatomic Molecules (PDF) PCS
15 Polyatomic Molecules (cont.)

Exam Review
PCS/KN
16 Chemical Equilibrium I (PDF) PCS
17 Chemical Equilibrium II

Examples (PDF) (PDF 2)
PCS
18 Model Intermolecular Potentials (PDF) PCS
19 Configurational Integral: Cluster Expansion (PDF) PCS
20 Virial Equation of State (PDF) PCS
21 Thermodynamics of Solids (PDF)

Some Nice Online Dynamical Illustrations of Acoustic Modes: Phonon Java Program, Atomic Vibrations in Crystals Simulation
KN
22 Einstein -> Debye Solids (PDF) KN
23 Phonons: 1-D Linear Chain of Atoms (PDF) KN
24 Free Electron Theory of a Metal (PDF) KN
25 Heat Capacity in Metals: Fermi Energy(PDF) KN
26 Semiconductors (PDF) KN
27 Crystal Phase Equilibria and Critical Phenomena (PDF - 1.1 MB) KN
28 Kinetic Theory of Gases: Maxwell-Boltzmann Distribution (PDF) PCS
29 Kinetic Theory of Gases: Collisions with Walls, Ideal Gas Law, Effusion (PDF) PCS
30 Kinetic Theory of Gases: Collisions Between Molecules, Scattering, Mean Free Path (PDF) PCS
31 Kinetic Theory of Gases: Mean Free Path and Transport (PDF) PCS
32 Kinetic Theory of Gases: Transport Coefficients (PDF) PCS
33 Chemical Reaction Rates I

Kinetic Theory (PDF)
PCS
34 Chemical Reaction Rates II

Transition State Theory (PDF)
PCS
35 Rice, Ramsperger, Kassel, and Marcus Unimolecular Reaction Rate Theory (PDF) PCS
36 Classical Trajectories and Reaction Rates and/or Surprisal Analysis (Nonequilibrium SM) PCS
37 Statistical Mechanics for Photons: How Statistical Mechanics Begat Quantum Mechanics KN