Scribd
Upload
108 views5 pages

MIT8 044S13 ps3

This document contains 6 physics problems related to statistical mechanics and thermodynamics for Problem Set #3 of the MIT course 8.044 Statistical Physics I in Spring 2013. The problems cover topics like the probability distribution of an impurity moving along a nano-wire due to laser sweeps, ratios of standard deviations to means for kinetic energies, identifying equations of state, calculating work done on solids and radiation fields during temperature and pressure changes, modeling magnetic susceptibility and spontaneous magnetization near the Curie temperature, and deriving an equation of state for a ferromagnet. Students were instructed to show their work for full credit and the problems were due by February 27th.

Uploaded by

*83*22*
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
108 views5 pages

MIT8 044S13 ps3

This document contains 6 physics problems related to statistical mechanics and thermodynamics for Problem Set #3 of the MIT course 8.044 Statistical Physics I in Spring 2013. The problems cover topics like the probability distribution of an impurity moving along a nano-wire due to laser sweeps, ratios of standard deviations to means for kinetic energies, identifying equations of state, calculating work done on solids and radiation fields during temperature and pressure changes, modeling magnetic susceptibility and spontaneous magnetization near the Curie temperature, and deriving an equation of state for a ferromagnet. Students were instructed to show their work for full credit and the problems were due by February 27th.

Uploaded by

*83*22*
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 5

MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

Physics Department

8.044 Statistical Physics I Spring Term 2013

Problem Set #3
Due in hand-in box by 12:40 PM, Wednesday, February 27

Problem 1: Clearing Impurities

p(x)
1/3

0 a x

In an effort to clear impurities from a fabricated nano-wire a laser beam is swept repeatedly
along the wire in the presence of a parallel electric field. After one sweep an impurity initially
at x = 0 has the following probability density of being found at a new position x
1 2
p(x) = δ(x) + exp[−x/a] 0≤x
3 3a

= 0 elsewhere

where a is some characteristic length.

Give an approximate probability density for the total distance d the impurity has moved
along the wire after 36 sweeps of the laser beam.

Problem 2: Probability Densities of Macroscopic verses Microscopic Variables

Consider one cubic centimeter of a dilute gas of atoms of mass M in thermal equilibrium
at temperature T= 0o C and atmospheric pressure. (Recall that Lochmidt’s number – the
number of atoms (or molecules) in a cubic meter of an ideal gas at T= 0o C and atmospheric
pressure – has the value 2.69×1025 m−3 .)

a) For the kinetic energy of a single atom, find a numerical value for the ratio of standard
deviation (the square root of the variance) to the mean. You may use the results you
found in problem 4 on Problem Set 2.

b) Find the same ratio for total energy of the gas, assumed to be all kinetic.

Problem 3: Temperature

Systems A and B are paramagnetic salts with coordinates H, M and H ' , M ' respectively.
System C is a gas with coordinates P , V . When A and C are in thermal equilibrium, the
equation
nRCH − M P V = 0
is found to hold. When B and C are in thermal equilibrium, we get

nRΘM ' + nRC ' H ' − M ' P V = 0

where n, R, C, C ' , and Θ are constants.

a) What are the three functions that are equal to one another at thermal equilibrium?

b) Set each of these functions equal to the ideal gas temperature T and see if you recognize
any of these equations of state.

Problem 4: Work in a Simple Solid

In the simplest model of an elastic solid

dV = −V KT dP + V αdT

where KT is the isothermal compressibility and α is the thermal expansion coefficient. Find
the work done on the solid as it is taken between state (P1 , T1 ) and (P2 , T2 ) by each of
the three paths indicated in the sketch. Assume that the fractional volume change is small
enough that the function V (P, T ) which enters the expression for dV can be taken to be
constant at V = V1 = V (P1 , T1 ) during the process.

Problem 5: Work and the Radiation Field

The pressure P due to the thermal equilibrium radiation field inside a cavity depends only
on the temperature T of the cavity and not on its volume V ,
1
P = σT 4 .
3
In this expression σ is a constant. Find the work done on the radiation field as the cavity is
taken between states (V1 , T1 ) and (V2 , T2 ) along the two paths shown in the diagram.

Practice Problem, do not hand this in: Exact Differentials

Which of the following is an exact differential of a function S(x, y)? Find S where possible.

a) 2x(x3 + y 3 )dx + 3y 2 (x2 + y 2 )dy


S(x, y) = (2x5 + 5x2 y 3 + 3y 5 )/5 + C

b) ey dx + x(ey + 1)dy
S(x, y) does not exist.

c) (y − x)ex dx + (1 + ex )dy
S(x, y) = y + (1 + y − x)ex + C

Problem 6: Equation of State for a Ferromagnet

For a ferromagnetic material in the absence of an applied field, H = 0, the spontaneous


magnetization is a maximum at T = 0, decreases to zero at the critical temperature T = Tc ,
and is zero for all T > Tc .

For temperatures just below Tc the magnetic susceptibility and the temperature coefficient
of M might be modeled by the expressions

∂M a
χT ≡ = + 3bH 2
∂H T (1 − T /Tc )

∂M 1 f (H) 1 M0 1
= 2
−
∂T H Tc (1 − T /Tc ) 2 Tc (1 − T /Tc )1/2

where M0 , Tc , a, and b are constants and f (H) is a function of H alone with the property
that f (H = 0) = 0.

a) Find f (H) by using the fact that M is a state function.

b) Find M (H, T ).

MIT OpenCourseWare
http://ocw.mit.edu

8.044 Statistical Physics I


Spring 2013

For information about citing these materials or our Terms of Use, visit: http://ocw.mit.edu/terms.

You might also like