Statistical mechanics of a nonequilibrium steady-state classical particle system driven by a constant external force

A classical particle system coupled with a thermostat driven by an external constant force reaches its steady state when the ensemble-averaged drift velocity does not vary with time. In this work, the statistical mechanics of such a system is derived solely based on the equiprobability and ergodicity principles, free from any conclusions drawn on equilibrium statistical mechanics or local equilibrium hypothesis. The momentum space distribution is determined by a random walk argument, and the position space distribution is determined by employing the equiprobability and ergodicity principles. The expressions for energy, entropy, free energy, and pressures are then deduced, and the relation among external force, drift velocity, and temperature is also established. Moreover, the relaxation towards its equilibrium is found to be an exponentially decaying process obeying the minimum entropy production theorem.     

On the inverse problem in statistical mechanics

We review briefly the status of some inverse problems in classical equilibrium statistical mechanics.This paper is dedicated to Professor P. G. Bergmann on the occasion of his sixtieth birthday.Supported by NSF grant No. GP42614X.     

Foundations of the quantum statistics of systems in equilibrium: A measuretheoretic approach

The fundamental equations of equilibrium quantum statistical mechanics are derived in the context of a measure-theoretic approach to the quantum mechanical ergodic problem. The method employed is an extension, to quantum mechanical systems, of the techniques developed by R. M. Lewis for establishing the foundations of classical statistical mechanics. The existence of a complete set of commuting observables is assumed, but no reference is made a priori to probability or statistical ensembles. Expressions for infinite-time averages in the microcanonical, canonical, and grand canonical ensembles are developed which reduce to conventional quantum statistical mechanics for systems in equilibrium when the total energy is the only conserved quantity. No attempt is made to extend the formalism at this time to deal with the difficult problem of the approach to equilibrium.     

The nature of the liquid-vapour interface and other topics in the statistical mechanics of non-uniform,classical fluids

Recent theoretical work on the microscopic structure and surface tension of the liquid-vapour interface of simple (argon-like) fluids is critically reviewed. In particular, the form of pairwise intermolecular correlations in the liquid surface and the capillary wave treatment of the interface are examined in some detail. It is argued that conventional capillary wave theory, which leads to divergences in the width of the density profile, is unsatisfactory for describing all the equilibrium aspects of the interface. The density functional formalism which has been developed to study the liquid-vapour interface can also be profitably applied to other problems in the statistical mechanics of non-uniform fluids; here a new generalization of the ‘linear’ theory of spinodal decomposition is formulated and by considering a ‘nearly uniform’ fluid, some useful results for the long-wavelength behaviour of the liquid structure factor of various monatomic liquids are obtained. Some other topics of current interest in this area are briefly discussed.     

Long-Time Tails, Weak Localization, and Classical and Quantum Critical Behavior

An overview is given of the long-time and long-distance behavior of correlation functions in both classical and quantum statistical mechanics. After a simple derivation of the classical long-time tails in equilibrium time correlation functions, we discuss analogous long-distance phenomena in nonequilibrium classical systems. The paper then draws analogies between these phenomena and similar effects in quantum statistical mechanics, with emphasis on the soft modes that underly long-time tails and related phenomena. We also elucidate the interplay between critical phenomena and long-time tails, using the classical liquid-gas critical point and the quantum ferromagnetic transition as examples.     

分析力学中加速度的去魅

利用经典力学的拉格朗日方法,分别讨论了静平衡的条件和连续介质动力学.利用哈密顿方法,介绍了相空间中独特的平衡点以及适用于统计力学的稳定系综分布.这些例子表明:在分析力学的框架内,加速度概念已经去魅,所谓的“平衡态”也具有不同于牛顿方法的实现方式.     

Generalizing Planck’s distribution by using the Carati–Galgani model of molecular collisions

Classical systems of coupled harmonic oscillators are studied using the Carati–Galgani model. We investigate the consequences for Einstein’s conjecture by considering that the exchange of energy in molecular collisions follows the Lévy type statistics. We develop a generalization of Planck’s distribution admitting that there are analogous relations in the equilibrium quantum statistical mechanics of the relations found using the nonequilibrium classical statistical mechanics approach. The generalization of Planck’s law based on the nonextensive statistical mechanics formalism is compatible with our analysis.     

Equilibrium and nonequilibrium properties of systems with long-range interactions

We briefly review some equilibrium and nonequilibrium properties of systems with long-range interactions. Such systems, which are characterized by a potential that weakly decays at large distances, have striking properties at equilibrium, like negative specific heat in the microcanonical ensemble, temperature jumps at first order phase transitions, broken ergodicity. Here, we mainly restrict our analysis to mean-field models, where particles globally interact with the same strength. We show that relaxation to equilibrium proceeds through quasi-stationary states whose duration increases with system size. We propose a theoretical explanation, based on Lynden-Bell’s entropy, of this intriguing relaxation process. This allows to address problems related to nonequilibrium using an extension of standard equilibrium statistical mechanics. We discuss in some detail the example of the dynamics of the free electron laser, where the existence and features of quasi-stationary states is likely to be tested experimentally in the future. We conclude with some perspectives to study open problems and to find applications of these ideas to dipolar media.     

Some Observations on the Early History of Equilibrium Statistical Mechanics

The article begins with some personal comments by the author on the outstanding contributions of Michael Fisher to statistical mechanics and critical phenomena. Its major aim is to trace the contributions of a number of pioneering personalities to the early history of equilibrium statistical mechanics. Four different areas are considered: (1) Classical Statistical Mechanics, (2) Quantum Statistical Mechanics, (3) Interacting Systems, and (4) The Ising Model. The article is concerned with the development and applications of statistical mechanics when certain basic assumptions are made. It does not deal with the justification of these assumptions which is a sophisticated discipline of its own.     

Dynamical pair correlations of classical and quantum fluids perturbed with weak long-range forces

We study time dependent correlation functions of ideal classical and quantum gases using methods of equilibrium statistical mechanics. The basis for this is the path integral formalism of quantum mechanical systems. By this approach the statistical mechanics of a quantum mechanical system becomes the equivalent of a classical polymer problem in four dimensions where imaginary time is the fourth dimension. Several non-trivial results for quantum systems have been obtained earlier by this analogy. Here we will focus upon particle dynamics. First ideal gases are considered. Then interactions, that are assumed weak and of long range, are added, and methods of classical statistical mechanics are applied to obtain the leading contribution. Comparison is performed with known results of kinetic theory. These results demonstrate how methods developed for systems in thermal equilibrium also is applicable outside equilibrium. Thus, more generally, we have reason to expect that these methods will be accurate and useful for other situations of interacting many-body systems consisting of quantized particles too. To indicate so we sketch the computation of the induced Casimir force between parallel plates filled with ions for the situation where the ions are quantized, but the interaction remains electrostatic. Further in this respect we establish expressions for a leading correction to ab initio calculations for the energies of the quantized electrons of molecules. To our knowledge these two latter applications go beyond earlier results.     

The formalism of equilibrium quantum statistical mechanics revisited

It is shown that the traditional formalism of equilibrium quantum statistical mechanics may fully be incorporated into a general macro-observable approach to quantum statistical mechanics recently proposed by the same author. ^(1,2) In particular, the partition functions which in the traditional approach are assumed to connect nonnormalized density operators with thermodynamic functions are reinterpreted as functions connecting so-called quantum mechanical effect operators with state parameters. It is argued that these functions although only part of a much richer internal structure of the macro-observable are sufficient to cope with all problems one usually encounters in equilibrium quantum statistical mechanics. p]Denn eigentlich unternehmen wir umsonst, das Wesen eines Dinges auszudrücken. Wirkungen werden wir gewahr, und eine vollständige Geschichte dieser Wirkungen umfaßte wohl allenfalls das Wesen jenes Dinges. Johann W. v. Goethe Farbenlehre     

Equilibrium properties of a multi-component ionic mixture: II. Fluctuation formulae

The complete set of fluctuation formulae for the partial densities, the pressure and the energy density of a multi-component ionic mixture is derived from equilibrium statistical mechanics. Sum rules for the pair correlation functions are used to write the fluctuation formulae in terms of thermodynamical quantities.     

Mixtures of anisotropic and spherical colloids: Phase behavior, confinement, percolation phenomena and kinetics

Purely entropic systems such as suspensions of hard rods, platelets and spheres show rich phase behavior. Rods and platelets have successfully been used as models to predict the equilibrium properties of liquid crystals for several decades. Over the past years hard particle models have also been studied in the context of non-equilibrium statistical mechanics, in particular regarding the glass transition, jamming, sedimentation and crystallization. Recently suspensions of hard anisotropic particles also moved into the focus of materials scientists who work on conducting soft matter composites. An insulating polymer resin that is mixed with conductive filler particles becomes conductive when the filler percolates. In this context the mathematical topic of connectivity percolation finds an application in modern nano-technology. In this article, we briefly review recent work on the phase behavior, confinement effects, percolation transition and phase transition kinetics in hard particle models. In the first part, we discuss the effects that particle anisotropy and depletion have on the percolation transition. In the second part, we present results on the kinetics of the liquid-to-crystal transition in suspensions of spheres and of ellipsoids.     

关于相对论等离子体统计力学的一些问题

相对论统计力学的发展已近一个世纪，目前仍处于有争议阶段，本文对相对论等离子体理论的发展、基本概念和一些问题作一简要评述。     

Positive Commutators in Non-Equilibrium Quantum Statistical Mechanics

The method of positive commutators, developed for zero temperature problems over the last twenty years, has been an essential tool in the spectral analysis of Hamiltonians in quantum mechanics. We extend this method to positive temperatures, i.e. to non-equilibrium quantum statistical mechanics. We use the positive commutator technique to give an alternative proof of a fundamental property of a certain class of large quantum systems, called Return to Equilibrium. This property says that equilibrium states are (asymptotically) stable: if a system is slightly perturbed from its equilibrium state, then it converges back to that equilibrium state as time goes to infinity. Received: 27 December 2000 / Accepted: 21 June 2001     

Effective temperatures of a driven system near jamming

Fluctuations in a model of a sheared, zero-temperature foam are studied numerically. Five different quantities that independently reduce to the true temperature in an equilibrium thermal system are calculated. One of the quantities is calculated up to an unknown coefficient. The other four quantities have the same value and all five have the same shear-rate dependence. These results imply that statistical mechanics is useful for the system even though it is far from thermal equilibrium.     

Analytical model for super-ideal gases

The equations of state for the ideal classical gas are generalized with two characteristic constants known as the state indices. A simple and complete representation is developed for the super-ideal gas, with explicit results which are general enough to cover a wide range of equilibrium systems and states. Evidence and justification are provided in terms of examples and results of statistical physics. The new model should prove useful for treating problems involving physical behavior and properties which might otherwise call for specialized or advanced methods of statistical mechanics.