The aim of this book is the pedagogical exploration of the basic principles of quantum-statistical thermodynamics as applied to various states of matter - ranging from rare gases to astrophysical matter with high-energy density. The reader will learn in this work that thermodynamics and quantum statistics are still the concepts on which even the most advanced research is operating - despite of a flood of modern concepts, classical entities like temperature, pressure, energy and entropy are shown to remain fundamental. The physics of gases, plasmas and high-energy density matter is still a growing field and even though solids and liquids dominate our daily life, more than 99 percent of the visible Universe is in the state of gases and plasmas and the overwhelming part of matter exists at extreme conditions connected with very large energy densities, such as in the interior of stars. This text, combining material from lectures and advanced seminars given by the authors over many decades, is a must-have introduction and reference for both newcomers and seasoned researchers alike.

'Practical Temperature Measurement' introduces the concepts of temperature and its measurement to engineers, physicists and chemists of all disciplines. The author describes the wide range of techniques and specific devices available for temperature measurement and provides guidance for the selection of a particular method for a given application. It is of value to engineering and physics postgraduates studying modules on instrumentation and process control and, in addition, for practical project work requiring an understanding of temperature measurement methods.
For postgraduates and industrialists faced with the task of selecting a particular measurement method or sensor for an experiment, product or process, this text provides both thorough descriptions of the various techniques, as well as guidance for their selection.
Essential for all those who need to measure temperature in real-life situations
Includes worked examples of real situations commonly found in industry

The book deals with the development of continual models of turbulent natural media. Such models serve as a ground for the statement and numerical evaluation of the key problems of the structure and evolution of the numerous astrophysical and geophysical objects. The processes of ordering (self-organization) in an originally chaotic turbulent medium are addressed and treated in detail with the use of irreversible thermodynamics and stochastic dynamics approaches which underlie the respective models. Different examples of ordering set up in the natural environment and outer space are brought and thoroughly discussed, the main focus being given to the protoplanetary discs formation and evolution.

This comprehensive and carefully edited volume presents a variety of experimental methods used in Shock Waves research. In 14 self contained chapters this 9th volume of the "Shock Wave Science and Technology Reference Library" presents the experimental methods used in Shock Tubes, Shock Tunnels and Expansion Tubes facilities. Also described is their set-up and operation. The uses of an arc heated wind tunnel and a gun tunnel are also contained in this volume. Whenever possible, in addition to the technical description some typical scientific results obtained using such facilities are described. Additionally, this authoritative book includes techniques for measuring physical properties of blast waves and laser generated shock waves. Information about active shock wave laboratories at different locations around the world that are not described in the chapters herein is given in the Appendix, making this book useful for every researcher involved in shock/blast wave phenomena.

Bridging the gap between statistical theory and physical experiment, this is a thorough introduction to the statistical methods used in the experimental physical sciences and to the numerical methods used to implement them. An accompanying CD-ROM provides detailed code for implementing many of these algorithms. The treatment emphasises concise but rigorous mathematics but always retains its focus on applications. Readers are assumed to have a sound basic knowledge of differential and integral calculus and some knowledge of vectors and matrices. After an introduction to probability, random variables, computer generation of random numbers and important distributions, the book turns to statistical samples, the maximum likelihood method, and the testing of statistical hypotheses. The discussion concludes with several important statistical methods: least squares, analysis of variance, polynomial regression, and analysis of time series. Appendices provide the necessary methods of matrix algebra, combinatorics, and many sets of useful algorithms and formulae.

This book provides a unique insight into the latest breakthroughs in a consistent manner, at a level accessible to undergraduates, yet with enough attention to the theory and computation to satisfy the professional researcher Statistical physics addresses the study and understanding of systems with many degrees of freedom. As such it has a rich and varied history, with applications to thermodynamics, magnetic phase transitions, and order/disorder transformations, to name just a few. However, the tools of statistical physics can be profitably used to investigate any system with a large number of components. Thus, recent years have seen these methods applied in many unexpected directions, three of which are the main focus of this volume. These applications have been remarkably successful and have enriched the financial, biological, and engineering literature. Although reported in the physics literature, the results tend to be scattered and the underlying unity of the field overlooked.

This graduate textbook is concerned with both the formulation and the solution of radiation heat transfer problems in enclosures. The book is essentially self-contained and includes a brief historical survey. The foundations are carefully discussed from the point of view of the exact mathematical basis of boundary value problems and their variational solutions as well as of the physical foundations. The computational methods developed by the authors are used in engineering applications. The combination of exact mathematical modelling with numerical skills makes this a unique textbook.

This set of lecture notes gives a first coherent account on a novel aspect of the living world that can be called biological information. The book presents both a pedagogical and state-of-the art roadmap of this rapidly evolving field and covers the whole range from information which is encoded in the molecular genetic code to the description of large-scale evolution of complex species networks. The book will prove useful for all those who work at the interface of biology, physics and information science.

This book provides an introduction to the most important optical measurement techniques that are applied to engineering problems. It will also serve as a guideline to selecting and applying the appropriate technique to a particular problem. The text of the first edition has been completely revised and new chapters added to describe the latest developments in Phase-Doppler Velocimetry and Particle Image Velocimetry.The editors and authors have made a special effort not only to describe and to explain the fundamentals of measuring techniques, but also to provide guidelines for their application and to demonstrate the capabilities of the various methods.The book comes with a CD-ROM containing high-speed movies visualizing the methods described in the book.

In a number of famous works, M. Kac showed that various methods of probability theory can be fruitfully applied to important problems of analysis. The interconnection between probability and analysis also plays a central role in the present book. However, our approach is mainly based on the application of analysis methods (the method of operator identities, integral equations theory, dual systems, integrable equations) to probability theory (Levy processes, M. Kac's problems, the principle of imperceptibility of the boundary, signal theory). The essential part of the book is dedicated to problems of statistical physics (classical and quantum cases). We consider the corresponding statistical problems (Gibbs-type formulas, non-extensive statistical mechanics, Boltzmann equation) from the game point of view (the game between energy and entropy). One chapter is dedicated to the construction of special examples instead of existence theorems (D. Larson's theorem, Ringrose's hypothesis, the Kadison-Singer and Gohberg-Krein questions). We also investigate the Bezoutiant operator. In this context, we do not make the assumption that the Bezoutiant operator is normally solvable, allowing us to investigate the special classes of the entire functions.

Across the centuries, the development and growth of mathematical concepts have been strongly stimulated by the needs of mechanics. Vector algebra was developed to describe the equilibrium of force systems and originated from Stevin's experiments (1548-1620). Vector analysis was then introduced to study velocity fields and force fields. Classical dynamics required the differential calculus developed by Newton (1687). Nevertheless, the concept of particle acceleration was the starting point for introducing a structured spacetime. Instantaneous velocity involved the set of particle positions in space. Vector algebra theory was not sufficient to compare the different velocities of a particle in the course of time. There was a need to (parallel) transport these velocities at a single point before any vector algebraic operation. The appropriate mathematical structure for this transport was the connection. I The Euclidean connection derived from the metric tensor of the referential body was the only connection used in mechanics for over two centuries. Then, major steps in the evolution of spacetime concepts were made by Einstein in 1905 (special relativity) and 1915 (general relativity) by using Riemannian connection. Slightly later, nonrelativistic spacetime which includes the main features of general relativity I It took about one and a half centuries for connection theory to be accepted as an independent theory in mathematics. Major steps for the connection concept are attributed to a series of findings: Riemann 1854, Christoffel 1869, Ricci 1888, Levi-Civita 1917, WeyJ 1918, Cartan 1923, Eshermann 1950.

Modulation Calorimetry reviews modulation techniques for measuring specific heat, thermal expansivity, temperature derivative of resistance, thermopower, and spectral absorptance. Owing to the periodic nature of the temperature oscillations, high sensitivity and excellent temperature resolution are peculiar to all these methods. The monograph presents the various methods of the modulation and of measuring the temperature oscillations. Important applications of the modulation techniques for studying physical phenomena in solids and liquids are considered in depth (equilibrium point defects, phase transitions, superconductors, liquid crystals, biological materials, relaxation phenomena in specific heat, and more).

The authors are very glad to see the publication ofThermodynamicEquilibriaand Extrema in English and would like to express their gratitude to everybody who contributed to this end. The book is devoted to the analysis of attainability regions and partial equilibria in physicochemical and other systems. This analysis employs the extreme models ofclassicalequilibriumthermodynamics. Considerationisgiventotheproblemof choosing, from the set of equilibrium states belonging to the attainability regions, that equilibrium corresponding to the extreme values of a property of interest to a researcher. For example, one might desire to maximize the concentration of target products of a chemical reaction. The problem of coordinating thermodynamics and kinetics is very important in the analysis presented. Ataglance, itmayseemthattheobjectsofstudyinthermodynamics(thescience ofequilibria)andkinetics(thescienceofmotiontowardequilibrium)coincideonly in the case of complete and ?nal equilibrium. In reality, joint application of th- modynamics and kinetic models gives a clearer understanding of the regularities of the kinetics involved. Relativity of the notions of rest and motion was already ?rmly established in mechanics when the principles of equilibrium were formulated by Galilei, D'Alembert, and Lagrange. Historically, the theories of motion and equilibrium states are related. It is precisely the study of gas kinetics that led Clausius and Boltzmann to the main principles of thermodynamics. The systematic analysis of theseprinciplesintheclassicbookbyGibbs, OntheEquilibriumofHeterogeneous Substances 54], demonstrated the feasibility of substituting the models of rest for themodelsofmotionwhenstudyingvariousphysicochemicalprocesses.

This thesis presents a new method for following evolving interactions between coupled oscillatory systems of the kind that abound in nature. Examples range from the subcellular level, to ecosystems, through climate dynamics, to the movements of planets and stars. Such systems mutually interact, adjusting their internal clocks, and may correspondingly move between synchronized and non-synchronized states. The thesis describes a way of using Bayesian inference to exploit the presence of random fluctuations, thus analyzing these processes in unprecedented detail. It first develops the basic theory of interacting oscillators whose frequencies are non-constant, and then applies it to the human heart and lungs as an example. Their coupling function can be used to follow with great precision the transitions into and out of synchronization. The method described has the potential to illuminate the ageing process as well as to improve diagnostics in cardiology, anesthesiology and neuroscience, and yields insights into a wide diversity of natural processes.

Ring polymers are one of the last big mysteries in polymer physics, and this thesis tackles the problem of describing their behaviour when interacting in dense solutions and with complex environments and reports key findings that help shed light on these complex issues. The systems investigated are not restricted to artificial polymer systems, but also cover biologically inspired ensembles, contributing to the broad applicability and interest of the conclusions reached. One of the most remarkable findings is the unambiguous evidence that rings inter-penetrate when in dense solutions; here this behaviour is shown to lead to the emergence of a glassy state solely driven by the topology of the constituents. This novel glassy state is unconventional in its nature and, thanks to its universal properties inherited from polymer physics, will attract the attention of a wide range of physicists in the years to come.

The book drawing on the author's nearly half a century of energetic materials research experience intends to systematically review the global researches on liquid explosives. The book focuses on the study of the conception, explosion mechanism, properties and preparation of liquid explosives. It provides a combination of theoretical knowledge and practical examples in a reader-friendly style. The book is likely to be interest of university researchers and graduate students in the fields of energetic materials, blasting engineering and mining.

This is a thoroughly revised version of the original book published in 1986. About half of the contents of the previous version remain essentially unchanged, and one quarter has been rewritten and updated. The rest consists of completely new and extended material.

Recent research has focussed on new materials made through "molecular engineering," and computational materials science through ab initio electron structure calculations. Another trend is the ever growing interdisciplinary aspect of both basic and applied materials science. There is an obvious need for reviews that link well established results to the modern approaches. One purpose of this book is to provide such an overview in a specific field of materials science, namely thermophysical phenomena that are intimately connected with the lattice vibrations of solids. This includes, e.g., elastic properties and electrical and thermal transport.

Furthermore, this book attempts to present the results in such a form that the reader can clearly see their domain of applicability, for instance if and how they depend on crystal structure, defects, applied pressure, crystal anisotropy etc. The level and presentation is such that the results can be immediately used in research.

Graduate students in condensed matter physics, metallurgy, inorganic chemistry or geophysical materials will benefit from this book as will theoretical physicists and scientists in industrial research laboratories.

Conversion of Coal-Fired Power Plant to Cogeneration and Combined-Cycle presents the methodology, calculation procedures and tools used to support enterprise planning for adapting power stations to cogeneration and combined-cycle forms. The authors analyze the optimum selection of the structure of heat exchangers in a 370 MW power block, the structure of heat recovery steam generators and gas turbines. Conversion of Coal-Fired Power Plant to Cogeneration and Combined-Cycle also addresses the problems of converting existing power plants to dual-fuel gas-steam combined-cycle technologies coupled with parallel systems. Conversion of Coal-Fired Power Plant to Cogeneration and Combined-Cycle is an informative monograph written for researchers, postgraduate students and policy makers in power engineering.

This textbook covers a broad spectrum of developments in QFT, emphasizing those aspects that are now well consolidated and for which satisfactory theoretical descriptions have been provided. The book is unique in that it offers a new approach to the subject and explores many topics merely touched upon, if covered at all, in standard reference works. A detailed and largely non-technical introductory chapter traces the development of QFT from its inception in 1926. The elegant functional differential approach put forward by Schwinger, referred to as the quantum dynamical (action) principle, and its underlying theory are used systematically in order to generate the so-called vacuum-to-vacuum transition amplitude of both abelian and non-abelian gauge theories, in addition to Feynman's well-known functional integral approach, referred to as the path-integral approach. Given the wealth of information also to be found in the abelian case, equal importance is put on both abelian and non-abelian gauge theories. Particular emphasis is placed on the concept of a quantum field and its particle content to provide an appropriate description of physical processes at high energies, where relativity becomes indispensable. Moreover, quantum mechanics implies that a wave function renormalization arises in the QFT field independent of any perturbation theory - a point not sufficiently emphasized in the literature. The book provides an overview of all the fields encountered in present high-energy physics, together with the details of the underlying derivations. Further, it presents "deep inelastic" experiments as a fundamental application of quantum chromodynamics. Though the author makes a point of deriving points in detail, the book still requires good background knowledge of quantum mechanics, including the Dirac Theory, as well as elements of the Klein-Gordon equation. The present volume sets the language, the notation and provides additional background for reading Quantum Field Theory II - Introduction to Quantum Gravity, Supersymmetry and String Theory, by the same author. Students in this field might benefit from first reading the book Quantum Theory: A Wide Spectrum (Springer, 2006), by the same author.

The book provides an introduction to the methods of quantum statistical mechanics used in quantum optics and their application to the quantum theories of the single-mode laser and optical bistability. The generalized representations of Drummond and Gardiner are discussed together with the more standard methods for deriving Fokker--Planck equations. Particular attention is given to the theory of optical bistability formulated in terms of the positive P-representation, and the theory of small bistable systems. This is a textbook at an advanced graduate level. It is intended as a bridge between an introductory discussion of the master equation method and problems of current research.

Within the framework of Jaynes' "Predictive Statistical Mechanics," this book presents a detailed derivation of an ensemble formalism for open systems arbitrarily away from equilibrium. This involves a large systematization and extension of the fundamental works and ideas of the outstanding pioneers Gibbs and Boltzmann, and of Bogoliubov, Kirkwood, Green, Mori, Zwanzig, Prigogine and Zubarev, among others.
Chapters 1 to 5 include a description of the philosophy, foundations, and construction (methodology) of the formalism, including the derivation of a nonequilibrium grand-canonical ensemble for far-from-equilibrium systems as well as the derivation of a quantum nonlinear kinetic theory and a response function theory together with a theory of scattering. In chapter 6 applications of the theory are cataloged, making comparisons with experimental data (a basic step for the validation of any theory). Chapter 7 is devoted to the description of irreversible thermodynamics, providing a far-reaching generalization of Informational-Statistical Thermodynamics. The last chapter gives an overall picture of the formalism, and questions and criticisms related to it are discussed.
Audience: This book is directed at an audience of researchers in the field of Statistical Mechanics and Thermodynamics of open nonequilibrium systems. In addition, it is relevant for the study of far-from-equilibrium processes in condensed matter, particularly semiconductor physics, as well as molecular Hydrodynamics, Rheology, many-body systems with complex behavior and areas of engineering, etc. The book can also be used as a complement to advanced graduate courses in Statistical Mechanics.

This book presents a solution for direct and inverse heat conduction problems, discussing the theoretical basis for the heat transfer process and presenting selected theoretical and numerical problems in the form of exercises with solutions. The book covers one-, two- and three dimensional problems which are solved by using exact and approximate analytical methods and numerical methods. An accompanying CD-Rom includes computational solutions of the examples and extensive FORTRAN code.

Computer science and physics have been closely linked since the birth of modern computing. In recent years, an interdisciplinary area has blossomed at the junction of these fields, connecting insights from statistical physics with basic computational challenges. Researchers have successfully applied techniques from the study of phase transitions to analyze NP-complete problems such as satisfiability and graph coloring. This is leading to a new understanding of the structure of these problems, and of how algorithms perform on them.
Computational Complexity and Statistical Physics will serve as a standard reference and pedagogical aid to statistical physics methods in computer science, with a particular focus on phase transitions in combinatorial problems. Addressed to a broad range of readers, the book includes substantial background material along with current research by leading computer scientists, mathematicians, and physicists. It will prepare students and researchers from all of these fields to contribute to this exciting area.

This book is dedicated to the recent developments in RET with the aim to explore polyatomic gas, dense gas and mixture of gases in non-equilibrium. In particular we present the theory of dense gases with 14 fields, which reduces to the Navier-Stokes Fourier classical theory in the parabolic limit. Molecular RET with an arbitrary number of field-variables for polyatomic gases is also discussed and the theory is proved to be perfectly compatible with the kinetic theory in which the distribution function depends on an extra variable that takes into account a molecule's internal degrees of freedom. Recent results on mixtures of gases with multi-temperature are presented together with a natural definition of the average temperature. The qualitative analysis and in particular, the existence of the global smooth solution and the convergence to equilibrium are also studied by taking into account the fact that the differential systems are symmetric hyperbolic. Applications to shock and sound waves are analyzed together with light scattering and heat conduction and the results are compared with experimental data. Rational extended thermodynamics (RET) is a thermodynamic theory that is applicable to non-equilibrium phenomena. It is described by differential hyperbolic systems of balance laws with local constitutive equations. As RET has been strictly related to the kinetic theory through the closure method of moment hierarchy associated to the Boltzmann equation, the applicability range of the theory has been restricted within rarefied monatomic gases. The book represents a valuable resource for applied mathematicians, physicists and engineers, offering powerful models for potential applications like satellites reentering the atmosphere, semiconductors and nano-scale phenomena.

The primary goal of the book is to present the ideas and research findings of active researchers such as physicists, economists, mathematicians and financial engineers working in the field of "Econophysics," who have undertaken the task of modeling and analyzing systemic risk, network dynamics and other topics.

Of primary interest in these studies is the aspect of systemic risk, which has long been identified as a potential scenario in which financial institutions trigger a dangerous contagion mechanism, spreading from the financial economy to the real economy.

This type of risk, long confined to the monetary market, has spread considerably in the recent past, culminating in the subprime crisis of 2008. As such, understanding and controlling systemic risk has become an extremely important societal and economic challenge. The Econophys-Kolkata VI conference proceedings are dedicated to addressing a number of key issues involved. Several leading researchers in these fields report on their recent work and also review contemporary literature on the subject.