Equilibrium Statistical Mechanics

The International Encyclopedia of Physical Chemistry and Chemical Physics, Volume 1: Equilibrium Statistical Mechanics covers the fundamental principles and the development of theoretical aspects of equilibrium statistical mechanics. Statistical mechanical is the study of the connection between the macroscopic behavior of bulk matter and the microscopic properties of its constituent atoms and molecules. This book contains eight chapters, and begins with a presentation of the master equation used for the calculation of the fundamental thermodynamic functions. The succeeding chapters highlight the characteristics of the partition function and its application to the analysis of perfect and imperfect gases, solids, and dense fluids. These topics are followed by discussions on the fundamentals of quantum statistics, with particular emphasis on its application in certain media. The last chapter outlines the derivation of the relations between the partition functions and the thermodynamic quantities. This book will be of value to physical chemists, chemical physicists, mathematicians, and researchers in the allied fields of statistical mechanics.