Statistical mechanics : entropy, order parameters, and complexity
- Oxford, Oxford University Press 2006
- 349P:
What is statistical mechanics? Random walks with emergent properties Temperature and equilibrium Phase-space dynamics and ergodicity Entropy Free energies Quantum statistical mechanics Calculation and computation Order parameters, broken symmetry, and topology Correlations, response, and dissipation Abrupt phase transitions Continuous phase transitions Appendix: Fourier methods
Sethna distills the core ideas of statistical mechanics to make room for new advances important to information theory, complexity, and modern biology. He explores everything from chaos through to life at the end of the universe