Lectures on Statistical Mechanics

TL;DR

This paper compiles lecture notes on both equilibrium and non-equilibrium statistical mechanics, covering fundamental theories, classical and quantum systems, and various equations and processes relevant to the field.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive, structured overview of statistical mechanics topics as taught in a graduate course, including classical, quantum, and non-equilibrium aspects.

Findings

Detailed exposition of equilibrium statistical mechanics fundamentals

Introduction to non-equilibrium processes like Brownian motion and Fokker-Planck equation

Coverage of both classical and quantum statistical mechanics concepts

Abstract

Presented here is a transcription of the lecture notes from Professor Allan N. Kaufman's graduate statistical mechanics course at Berkeley from the 1972-1973 academic year. Part 1 addresses equilibrium statistical mechanics with topics: fundamentals, classical fluids and other systems, chemical equilibrium, and long-range interactions. Part 2 addresses non-equilibrium statistical mechanics with topics: fundamentals, Brownian motion, Liouville and Klimontovich equations, Landau equation, Markov processes and Fokker-Planck equation, linear response and transport theory, and an introduction to non-equilibrium quantum statistical mechanics.