Chronological table of course content. Readings, deadlines and links to files.
2023-2024 school year (2023W)
This will be updated (almost) daily as we go through the course. Please check here first if you need anything.
- Future information (except for test dates and deadlines) is subject to change
- Weekly Practice assignments are due every Tuesday. They will be online, in WeBWorK (WeBWorK basic info for those who are not familiar with it), accessed from the Canvas page.
- Problem Sets will be posted at least a week in advance. Solutions will be posted after the due date.
- Available before class:
- Worksheets are generally posted the evening before class. You may download a PDF version of the worksheet to work on in class if you prefer to work on a tablet or iPad.
- Lecture slides will be posted before the lecture when applicable.
- Worksheet solutions and lecture notes (with clicker question answers) are posted after the worksheet is completed in class.
Date (mo/day) | Deadlines, tests and reminders | In-class topics and materials | Textbook readings | Things to do after class |
| Lecture 1 Tue 01/09 | Course organization and syllabus What is Thermal Physics? Binomial coefficient distribution (worksheet) Probability distribution of a large number of independent random variables: the central limit theorem Intro slides Lecture 1 Worksheet 1: Binomial coefficients Jupyter file: the coin toss experiment Lecture 1 slides, worksheet discussion Lecture 1 slides, annotated Watch: The Galton Board YouTube video: another way to think about binomial coefficients | Schroeder 2.1 | Read the course Syllabus. Another great YouTube video(by 3Blue1Brown) on Binomial distributions. The details relevant to us start at 5:40 if you want to skip ahead. Finally, if you are looking for a very basic intro to probability concepts, you can try chapters 1 and 3 from this online textbook (high school level) available from wikibooks. | |
| Lecture 2 Thu 01/11 | Finish Worksheet 1 Worksheet 1.5 Interactions: atoms moving between containers; energy moving between atoms Lecture 2 notes, including slides and clicker questions Lecture 2 slides, annotated Lecture 2 asynchronous recording Worksheet 1 solutions: Jupyter code and output with some extra explanations and summary slides with answers and some more explanations; Solutions to the optional page of WS1. Solutions to worksheet 1.5. | We are covering this material in different order than the book. Don’t worry if the details don’t make sense to you yet, we will get to them. Schroeder 2.3 talks conceptually about the same things as the lecture, but uses a different example (the Einstein solid, section 2.2) that we have not covered yet. You can read 2.3 for review of the concepts, or 2.2 and 2.3 together to get a more detailed view. | Work on the first Weekly Practice on WeBWorK (opens a new tab; you must be logged into Canvas to have this link take you to your Phys 203 WebWork). There are also “Orientation” and “Assignment 0” WebWork question sets there; these are just for optional practice, if you’re not used to using WebWork. | |
| Lecture 3 Tue 01/16 | Weekly Practice 1 is due before class (9am). | Thermal equilibrium Thermodynamic limit Macrostates, microstate, multiplicity clicker questions and answers Lecture 3 slides Lecture 3 slides, annotated | Schroeder 2.1-2.3, for definitions mostly | Weekly Practice 1 Solutions |
| Lecture 4 Thu 01/18 | Temperature and beta Probabilities and the Boltzmann factor Partition function Average energy Microscopic model of pressure Lecture 4 slides Lecture 4 slides, annnotated Lecture 4 zoom recording (including after-class questions) | Schroeder 6.1, 6.2 (pages 229-230 only) 🙂 | Friday, Jan 19 is the last day to withdraw from a course without a W standing. To withdraw from the course after Jan 19, contact Faculty of Science advising office. | |
| Lecture 5 Tue 01/23 | Weekly Practice 2 is due before class (9am). | Ideal gas law (derivation) Thermodynamics and functions of state Functional definition of temperature and a gas thermometer Equipartition theorem Lecture 5 slides Lecture 5 slides, annotated Lecture 5 zoom recording | Schroeder 1.1, 1.2, 6.3 Note on Schroeder’s approach vs our approach: Since we were able to include the result of section 6.3 (average energy of a free, non-relativistic particle, equation (6.40)), we were able to derive the ideal gas law, rather than assume it the way the book does on page 12. Schroeder 1.3, 1.4, 1.5 (up to page 22) | Weekly Practice 2 Solutions |
| Lecture 6 Thu 01/25 | Practice Test 1 is available | *** start of material for test 2*** More on the equipartition theorem (details and clicker questions from last lecture notes) Work Ideal gas heat and work: Worksheet 2, parts 1 and 2 Lecture 6 slides Lecture 6 slides, annotated Ideal gas heat and work: Worksheet 2, parts 1 and 2 contd. | Schroeder 1.4, 1.5, 1.6 | Start working on Problem Set 1 |
| Lecture 7 Tue 01/30 | Weekly Practice 3 is due before class (9am). | Worksheet 2 solutions probs 1,2 *** end of material for test 1*** Heat capacity: first look, ideal gas only Finish WS2: part 3 work for an adiabatic curve How a car engine works Lecture 7 slides Lecture 7 slides, annotated Worksheet 3-4 | Schroeder 4.1 (up to and including equation (4.1) + figures 4.1, 4.2 and 4.3) | Weekly Practice 3 Solutions Practice Test 1 answers |
| Lecture 8 Thu 02/01 | Heat engines basic concept: efficiency Adiabatic transformations, Heat engines: The Otto cycle Heat capacities (in general) and latent heat Worksheet 3 Heat engine example: Carnot cycle with ideal gas Lecture 8 slides Lecture 8 slides, annotated Solutions to worksheet 3 | Schroeder 4.3 (section on internal combustion engines only) | Test 1 (evening 6pm-7pm, Hebb 100 (60 minutes) It will cover lectures 1-7, together with appropriate sections from Schroeder as listed above, Worksheets 1-2 and Weekly Practice assignments 1-3. Test 1 solutions Midterm 1 reflection assignment Optional reflection assignment for those with > 95% | |
| Lecture 9 Tue 02/06 | Weekly Practice 4 is due before class (9am). | Intensive vs extensive quantities A bit of a review: microstates, macrostates, fundamental assumption of Statistical Mechanics, the Law of Increase of Multiplicity, thermodynamic limit, beta and temperature Entropy and the Second law of thermodynamics Entropy and missing information Lecture 9 slides Lecture 9 slides, annotated | Schroeder 2.3 Schroeder 2.4 (page 60 only) Schroeder 2.6 (up to page 77) Schroeder 3.1 Schroeder 3.2 (section on The Macroscopic View of Entropy only) Schroeder: Extensive end Intensive Quantities, pg 163-164 | Weekly Practice 4 Solutions |
| Lecture 10 Thu 02/08 | Problem Set 1 is due at 4pm. | Connection between entropy and heat capacities Reversible and irreversible processes, examples Pressure as a derivative of internal energy The (fundamental) thermodynamic identity Lecture 10 slides Lecture 10 slides, annotated | Schroeder 3.4 Schroeder 2.6 (reversible and irreversible processes) | Problem set 1 Solutions |
| Lecture 11 Tue 02/13 | Weekly Practice 5 is due before class (9am). | Entropy of the ideal gas The Sackur-Tetrode equation Mixing and entropy, entropy of mixing, identical particles Lecture 11 slides Lecture 11 slides, annotated | Schroeder 2.6 (entropy of an ideal gas) Schroeder 2.4 (pg 60-62) Schroeder Fig 2.10 and the second sentence underneath Schroeder 2.6 (entropy of mixing) + Schroeder 2.5 (section of Multiplicity is covered on the Worksheet, section on Interacting gases is similar in spirit to PS1, Q3 and PS2, Q4) | Weekly Practice 5 Solutions |
| Lecture 12 Thu 02/15 | Practice Test 2 available over midterm break | Mixing and entropy, entropy of mixing, identical particles (contd.) Approximations, Stirling’s Approximation Multiplicity of the ideal gas The paramagnet in microcannonical ensemble, Worksheet 5 (part 1, paramagnet) Worksheet 5 (part 2, Einstein solid) Solutions to Worksheet 5 Lecture 12 slides Lecture 12 slides, annotated *** end of material for test 2*** | Schroeder 2.6 (entropy of mixing) Schroeder 2.1 Schroeder 3.3 Schroeder 2.2 | (WP 6 is included in Test 2 material) Start working on Problem Set 2 |
| (Feb 19-23) | MID TERM BREAK Practice Test 2 | Monday Feb 19 is Family Day and UBC is closed. | ||
| Lecture 13 Tue 02/27 | Weekly Practice 6 is due before class (9am). | Brief review of the material so far (test 2 concept review) *** start of material for test 3*** Helmholtz free energy F: introduction Enthalpy H; introduction Lecture 13 slides Lecture 13 slides, annotated | Schroeder 2.4 (pages 63-66: the book computes the multiplicity of the Einstein solid in the high temperature limit only, which makes the Stirling approximation harder to use; section on sharpness is similar in spirit to PS1, Q3 and PS2, Q4) Schroeder 1.6 (enthalpy) Schroeder 5.1 (up to page 155) | Weekly Practice 6 Solutions Solutions to Practice Test 2 |
| Lecture 14 Thu 02/29 | Practice material is posted here and on Canvas Problem Set 2 is due Monday at 11:59pm. | Enthalpy H and Gibbs free energy G Free energy as available work Chemical reactions and batteries (as applications) Lecture 14 slides Lecture 14 slides, annotated | Test 2, evening 6pm-7pm, Chem B150 (60 minutes) It will cover lectures 6-12 (the first half of lecture 13 is a useful review), together with appropriate sections from Schroeder as listed above, worksheets 3 and 5, and Weekly Practice assignments 4-6. Bring your formula sheet! Friday, Mar 1 (tomorrow) is the last day to withdraw from a course (with a W standing). | |
| Lecture 15 Tue 03/05 | Weekly Practice 7 is due before class starts (9am) | Thermodynamic identities Maxwell relations Free energy wants to be minimized Pressure from free energy Chemical potential and diffusive equilibrium Thermodynamic identities with change in number of particles Gibbs free energy and chemical potential Worksheet 6 Worksheet 6, solns Lecture 15 slides Lecture 15 slides, annotated | Schroeder 5.1 (Thermodynamic Identities) Schroeder 5.2 Schroeder 3.5 (for chemical potential) | If you want to know more about the mathematics of Legendre transform, check out this article. Table of thermo numbers Weekly Practice 7 Solutions Problem set 2 solutions |
| Lecture 16 Thu 03/07 | Phase transitions and phase diagrams Phase transitions and Gibbs free energy Clausius-Clapeyron relation Worksheet 7 Worksheet 7, solns Lecture 16 slides Lecture 16 slides, annotated | Schroeder 5.3 (pg 166-169, Clausius-Clapeyron) | Test 2 solutions Reflection assignment for Exam 2 (due Thu 03/14 11:59pm). | |
| Lecture 17 Tue 03/12 | Weekly Practice 8 is due before class starts (9am) | Example: boiling water (worksheet 8) More on phase transitions: graphite and diamond nucleation and boiling (optional) superheated and supercooled water (optional) Worksheet 8 Lecture 17 slides Lecture 17 slides, annotated | Schroeder 5.3 (except for van der Waals model) Water behaving weirdly: Behaviour of water at its triple point: youtube video Supercooled water: youtube video Superheated water: youtube video One more phase diagram video, this time with nitrogen and its triple point: youtube video. Finally, dry ice (CO2) at its critical point: youtube video. | Weekly Practice 8 Solutions |
| Lecture 18 Thu 03/14 | Vapour equation, vapour partial pressure and humidity, dew point Heat engines: the general set-up and theory Heat engines on a T-S diagram (not in the book!) Lecture 18 slides Lecture 18 slides, annotated Worksheet 8 solutions | Schroeder 4.1, 4.2 | Problem Set 3 (HW3) Problem Set 3 solutions | |
| Lecture 19 Tue 03/19 | Weekly Practice 9 is due before class starts (9am) | Heat engines on a T-S diagram (not in the book!) Refrigerators and the COP Real refrigerators and throttling (Joule-Thomson effect) COP of a real refrigerator The steam engine Lecture 19 slides Lecture 19 notes | Schroeder 4.3 (except for steam engine) Schroeder 4.4 | Weekly Practice 9 Solutions |
| Lecture 20 Thu 03/21 | The steam engine (Worksheet 9) Worksheet 9 solutions *** end of material for test 3*** Back to Stat Mech: chapters 6 and 7 Review of canonical approach to stat mech from the beginning of course. Boltzmann factor and probabilities Partition function Spectrum, multiplicities Average energies (magic formula) Lecture 20 slides Lecture 20 slides, annotated | Schroeder 4.3 (steam engine) Schroeder 6.1 Schroeder 6.2 (without paramagnetism or rotation of diatomic molecules sections) Schroeder 6.5 | Practice Midterm 3 Practice Midterm 3, solutions Weekly Practice 10 Solutions | |
| Lecture 21 Tue 03/26 | Weekly Practice 10 is due before class (9am) | Partition function and (Helmholtz) free energy. Average energy at fixed temperature (canonical ensemble), example: paramagnetism. Partition function of composite systems Worksheet 10 Worksheet 10 solutions (distinguishable particles). Continuous random variables and the probability density. Proof of the equipartition theorem (again) Lecture 21 slides Lecture 21 slides, annotated with recording | Schroeder 6.2 (without rotation of diatomic molecules section) Schroeder 6.3 Schroeder 6.4 | |
| Lecture 22 Thu 03/28 | Speed distribution for a particle in one dimension Speed distribution for a particle in three dimensions (Maxwell Speed Distribution) Worksheet 11 Worksheet 11, solutions Partition functions of distinguishable vs indistinguishable particles Indistinguishable particles slide deck Lecture 22 slides Lecture 22 slides, annotated with recording Ideal Gas in the canonical ensemble intro Worksheet 12 | Schroeder 6.6, 6.7 | Plots of the Maxwell distribution (useful for Weekly Practice 11) Test 3, evening 6:30pm-7:30pm, Hebb 100 (60 minutes) It will cover lectures 13-20, together with the appropriate sections from Schroeder as listed above, worksheets 6-9, and Weekly Practice assignments 7-10. The Practice exam is available above and on Canvas. (UBC will be closed Friday March 29 and Monday April 1 for Easter long weekend.) | |
| Lecture 23 Tue 04/02 | Ideal Gas in the canonical ensemble Worksheet 12 Worksheet 12, solutions Partition function of a dilute composite system of N indistinguishable particles The partition function and thermodynamics of the ideal gas More on indistinguishable particles Lecture 23 slides Lecture 23 slides, annotated | Schroeder 6.6, 6.7 (The textbook does a fully quantum mechanical treatment of the ideal gas in equations (6.75)-(6.79), before changing the sum to an integral which in effect takes the classical limit.) | Start working on Problem Set 4 (HW4) Problem Set 4 solutions | |
| Lecture 24 Thu 04/04 | Weekly Practice 11 due before class starts (9am) | Bosons and fermions The Gibbs factor and the grand partition function Lecture 24 slides Lecture 24 slides, annotated The Fermi-Dirac and Bose-Einstein distributions Worksheet 13 Worksheet 13 solutions | Schroeder 7.1, 7.2 Schroeder 7.4 Schroeder 7.3 (selected) | Weekly Practice 11 Solutions |
| Lecture 25 Tue 04/09 | Density of states Quantum gases (applications of FD and BE distributions) Blackbody radiation Lecture 25 slides Lecture 25 slides, annotated Worksheet 14 (material to study, but will not be graded) Worksheet 14 solutions | Schroeder 7.4 Schroeder 7.3 (selected) | Test 3 solutions Reflection assignment for Exam 3 (due Tues 04/16 5:00pm). | |
| Lecture 26 Thu 04/11 | Weekly Practice 12 due before class starts (9am) Problem Set 3 due 11:59pm | Special topics (for fun): Black holes Course evaluations Lecture 26 slides Lecture 26 slides, annotated | Weekly Practice 12 Solutions Today, Thu April 11, is the last class 🙂 Please submit your SEI reports: we need 75% response for 2pts on the final! | |
| Exam period is April 16-27 inclusive, including Saturdays and Sundays. | ||||
| Final Exam April 24, 2024 | Time: 3:30pm Duration: 2 hours, 50 min. Location: Biol 1000 Format: Similar to the Tests, but more multiple choice | Practice material to study for the Final Worksheet 14 — problems and solutions after Test 3, for practice Formula sheet for Final Exam (final version) Final Exam cover sheets Review session on Apr 18 |