Thermodynamic properties of electrons in finite systems

The aim of this work is to study quantitatively how the Coulomb interaction of the electrons leads to the canonical ensemble average instead of the grand canonical one. Within the “equal level spacing” model we are able to give explicit expressions for a finite model interaction, and it turns out that for real systems at low temperatures the canonical average is an appropriate approximation. Further, we compare our theoretical results to experimental datas on TCNQ salts, which we regard as a collection of interrupted strands.