Course Identification

Statistical physics 1
20221141

Lecturers and Teaching Assistants

Prof. Oren Raz
Yotam Kadish, Roi Holtzman, Shahaf Aharony Shapira, Dr. Rohit Reghupathy, Sapir Yevdayev, Dr. Ohad Mamroud, Einav Berin, Natan Gordon

Course Schedule and Location

2022
First Semester
Sunday, 09:15 - 11:00, Weissman, Auditorium
Tuesday, 09:15 - 11:00, Weissman, Auditorium

Tutorials
Wednesday, 14:15 - 16:00, Weissman, Auditorium
24/10/2021
11/02/2022

Field of Study, Course Type and Credit Points

Physical Sciences: Lecture; Obligatory; Regular; 6.00 points
Chemical Sciences: Lecture; Elective; Regular; 6.00 points
Life Sciences: Lecture; Elective; Regular; 6.00 points
Life Sciences (Brain Sciences: Systems, Computational and Cognitive Neuroscience Track): Lecture; Elective; Regular; 6.00 points

Comments

This course will be recorded
Obligatory for 1st year MSc students
Special first year schedule (including exam schedules - A and B)

All courses in the first semester will be held on-line via zoom.

Prerequisites

No

Restrictions

40

Language of Instruction

English

Attendance and participation

Expected and Recommended

Grade Type

Numerical (out of 100)

Grade Breakdown (in %)

50%
50%

Evaluation Type

Examination

Scheduled date 1

10/02/2022
Weissman, Seminar Rm A
1000-1400
N/A

Scheduled date 2

01/03/2022
Weissman, Seminar Rm A
1000-1400
N/A

Estimated Weekly Independent Workload (in hours)

8

Syllabus

The course will deal with the following topics:

Equilibrium statistical physics: Phase transitions and critical phenomena, including: 

Ising type models; Analyticlal and numerical methods; renormalization group approach; correlation functions.

Spin Glass physics: mean-field models, the replica trick, replica symmetry breaking.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this course students should be able to:

  1. Recall the basic notions of thermodynamics and statistical physics from a new deductive perspective.
  2. Discuss interacting systems and phase transitions.
  3. Appreciate how competition of order and disorder determines the properties of systems at different space dimensionalities, how the renormalization group framework explains universality of critical phenomena.
  4. Become acquainted with spin glasses, glass transition, the replica symmetry and its breaking.

Reading List

Lecture notes part 1


Basic books:

  1. L. D. Landau and E. M. Lifshitz, Statistical Physics Part 1.
  2. R. K. Pathria, Statistical Mechanics.
  3. R. Kubo, Statistical Mechanics.
  4. K. Huang, Statistical Mechanics.
  5. H. Callen  Thermodynamics


Course reading:

  1. S K Ma Modern Theory of Critical Phenomena   The Bejamin Cummings Publishing Co
  2. D J Amit Field Theory Renormalization Group and Critical Phenomena   World Scientific
  3. L. Peliti  Statistical Physics in a Nutshell
  4. M. Kardar Statistical Physics of Fields
  5. M. Kardar Statistical Physics of Particles

Website

N/A