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Books > Science & Mathematics > Physics > Thermodynamics & statistical physics
This book explores the role of exaptation in diverse areas of life, with examples ranging from biology to economics, social sciences and architecture. The concept of exaptation, introduced in evolutionary biology by Gould and Vrba in 1982, describes the possibility that already existing traits can be exploited for new purposes throughout the evolutionary process. Edited by three active scholars in the fields of biology, physics and economics, the book presents an interdisciplinary collection of expert viewpoints illustrating the importance of exaptation for interpreting current reality in various fields of investigation. Using the lenses of exaptation, the contributing authors show how to view the overall macroscopic landscape as comprising many disciplines, all working in unity within a single complex system. This book is the first to discuss exaptation in both hard and soft disciplines and highlights the role of this concept in understanding the birth of innovation by identifying key elements and ideas. It also offers a comprehensive guide to the emerging interdisciplinary field of exaptation, provides didactic explanations of the basic concepts, and avoids excessive jargon and heavy formalism. Its target audience includes graduate students in physics, biology, mathematics, economics, psychology and architecture; it will also appeal to established researchers in the humanities who wish to explore or enter this new science-driven interdisciplinary field.
This book presents different thermodynamic approaches in the area of constitutive theory: thermodynamics of irreversible processes, rational thermodynamics, and extended thermodynamics. These different approaches are analyzed with respect to their presuppositions, as well as to their results, and each method is applied to several important examples. In many cases these examples are archetypes for numerous technologically important materials; i.e. complex materials having an internal structure. Some of the examples dealt with in this book are liquid crystals, colloid suspensions, ans fiber suspensions. The book well serves students and researchers who have basic knowledge in continuum mechanics and thermodynamics. It provides a systematic overview of the vast field of thermodynamic constitutive theory, beginning from a historical perspective and concluding with outstanding questions in recent research.
This book is based on the analogy between contact mechanics and fracture mechanics as proposed by the author about twenty years ago. It starts with a chapter devoted to the surface energy and tension of solids and surface thermodynamics, which is followed by a chapter on elastic recall. The methods of Muskhelichvili and Hankel transforms for the resolution of plane and axisymmetric problems are studied. Then the essential conepts of fracture mechanics are presented with emphasis on the thermodynamic aspect of the problem. The reader will find complete analytical results and detailed calculations for cracks submitted to pressure distributions and the Dugdale model, as well as a chapter on contact mechanics. The contact and adherence of rough solids is also studied. This book is intended for advanced students and researchers working in the fields of fracture mechanics or adhesion.
This book presents a selection of the talks resulting from research carried out by different groups at the Centre de Recerca Matematica and presented at the International Congress on Industrial and Applied Mathematics, held in Valencia in 2019. The various chapters describe a wide variety of topics: cancer modelling, carbon capture by adsorption, nanoscale diffusion and complex systems to predict earthquakes. These mathematical studies were specifically aided via collaborations with biomedical engineers, physicists and chemists. The book is addressed to researchers in all of these areas as well as in general mathematical modelling.
This book comprises selected papers from the International Conference on Numerical Heat Transfer and Fluid Flow (NHTFF 2018), and presents the latest developments in computational methods in heat and mass transfer. It also discusses numerical methods such as finite element, finite difference, and finite volume applied to fluid flow problems. Providing a good balance between computational methods and analytical results applied to a wide variety of problems in heat transfer, transport and fluid mechanics, the book is a valuable resource for students and researchers working in the field of heat transfer and fluid dynamics.
Existing texts on the statistical mechanics of liquids treat only spherical molecules. However, nearly all fluids of practical interest are composed of non-spherical molecules that are often dipolar or exhibit other kinds of electrostatic forces. This book describes the statistical mechanical theory of fluids of non-spherical molecules and its application to the calculation of physical properties, and is a sequel to Theory of Molecular Fluids. Volume 1: Fundamentals by C.G. Gray and K.E. Gubbins. The emphasis is on the new phenomena that arise due to the non-spherical nature of the intermolecular forces, such as new phase transitions, structural features and dielectric effects. It contains chapters on the thermodynamic properties of pure and mixed fluids, surface properties, X-ray and neutron diffraction structure factors, dielectric properties and spectroscopic properties. The book is aimed at beginning graduate students and research workers in chemistry, physics, materials science and engineering.
Analytical Mechanics for Relativity and Quantum Mechanics is an
innovative and mathematically sound treatment of the foundations of
analytical mechanics and the relation of classical mechanics to
relativity and quantum theory. It is intended for use at the
introductory graduate level. A distinguishing feature of the book
is its integration of special relativity into teaching of classical
mechanics. After a thorough review of the traditional theory, Part
II of the book introduces extended Lagrangian and Hamiltonian
methods that treat time as a transformable coordinate rather than
the fixed parameter of Newtonian physics. Advanced topics such as
covariant Langrangians and Hamiltonians, canonical transformations,
and Hamilton-Jacobi methods are simplified by the use of this
extended theory. And the definition of canonical transformation no
longer excludes the Lorenz transformation of special relativity.
This wide-ranging book introduces information as a key concept not only in physics, from quantum mechanics to thermodynamics, but also in the neighboring sciences and in the humanities. The central part analyzes dynamical processes as manifestations of information flows between microscopic and macroscopic scales and between systems and their environment. Quantum mechanics is interpreted as a reconstruction of mechanics based on fundamental limitations of information processing on the smallest scales. These become particularly manifest in quantum chaos and in quantum computing. Covering subjects such as causality, prediction, undecidability, chaos, and quantum randomness, the book also provides an information-theoretical view of predictability. More than 180 illustrations visualize the concepts and arguments. The book takes inspiration from the author's graduate-level topical lecture but is also well suited for undergraduate studies and is a valuable resource for researchers and professionals.
This book presents the results of scientific research performed over the past two decades by the authors. The book discusses some issues of separated laminar flows that are of great practical interest for the development of new technologies using microchannel flows, where separation zones can form. Of particular interest is the complex mechanism of flow separation with superimposed high external turbulence. The challenges of finding the optimal location for the cavities and fins on heat exchange surfaces are also considered. This is an important fundamental and practical problem when creating new schemes of efficient heat exchangers in various power plants. A wide class of problems of turbulent flow in tubes with flow separation is considered. These data will be useful in engineering estimates of the thermal-hydraulic efficiency of various heat transfer intensifiers. This book focuses on the analysis of thermal characteristics of separated flows, as well as the possibility of controlling the intensity of heat exchange processes, from the point of view of both their intensification and their suppression.
This book presents in a progressive way the techniques used in the proof of the hydrodynamic behavior of interacting particle systems. It starts with introductory material on independent particles and goes all the way to nongradient systems, covering the entropy and the relative entropy methods, asymmetric processes from which hyperbolic equations emerge, the equilibrium fluctuations and the large deviations theory for short-range stochastic dynamics. It reviews, in appendices, some tools of Markov process theory and derives estimates on the spectral gap of reversible, conservative generators. The book is self-contained and can be read by graduate students in mathematics or mathematical physics with standard probability background. It can be used as a support for a graduate on stochastic processes.
The pendulum is a unique physical system which exhibits remarkably
varied and complex behavior under many different conditions. It is
also a system which, in its many manifestations, has left a
significant imprint on human thought and culture. Using graphs,
figures, and narrative to explain scientific ideas and models,
Gregory Baker gives a lucid account of the physics of the pendulum,
showing the reader how the context of the pendulum progresses over
four centuries from that of a simple system of classical physics,
to that of a chaotic system, and eventually to that of a modern
quantum system. He also describes its fascinating presence in
cultural history, from its role in timekeeping and measurements of
the earth to its importance as a literary symbol of doom.
Quantum information theory is a branch of science at the frontier of physics, mathematics, and information science, and offers a variety of solutions that are impossible using classical theory. This book provides a detailed introduction to the key concepts used in processing quantum information and reveals that quantum mechanics is a generalisation of classical probability theory. The second edition contains new sections and entirely new chapters: the hot topic of multipartite entanglement; in-depth discussion of the discrete structures in finite dimensional Hilbert space, including unitary operator bases, mutually unbiased bases, symmetric informationally complete generalized measurements, discrete Wigner function, and unitary designs; the Gleason and Kochen-Specker theorems; the proof of the Lieb conjecture; the measure concentration phenomenon; and the Hastings' non-additivity theorem. This richly-illustrated book will be useful to a broad audience of graduates and researchers interested in quantum information theory. Exercises follow each chapter, with hints and answers supplied.
As an introductory account of the theory of phase transitions and critical phenomena, Elements of Phase Transitions and Critical Phenomena reflects lectures given by the authors to graduate students at their departments and is thus classroom-tested to help beginners enter the field. Most parts are written as self-contained units and every new concept or calculation is explained in detail without assuming prior knowledge of the subject. The book significantly enhances and revises a Japanese version which is a bestseller in the Japanese market and is considered a standard textbook in the field. It contains new pedagogical presentations of field theory methods, including a chapter on conformal field theory, and various modern developments hard to find in a single textbook on phase transitions. Exercises are presented as the topics develop, with solutions found at the end of the book, making the text useful for self-teaching, as well as for classroom learning.
This book provides a critical update of the most recent and innovative developments of avalanche science. It aims at re-founding avalanche science on clear scientific bases, from field observations and experiments up to mathematical and physical analysis and modeling. In this respect, it stands in a still unoccupied but fundamental niche amidst the abundant avalanche literature. In the current context of a accelerated climate warming, the book also discusses possible evolutions of snow cover extent and stability. It also shows how the present analysis can be extended, in mountainous areas, to other gravitationally induced phenomena that are likely to take over from avalanches under specific circumstances. The text is supported by online links to field experiments and lectures on triggering mechanisms, risk management, and decision making.
This book is intended as reference material for students and professors interested in air pollution modeling at the graduate level as well as researchers and professionals involved in developing and utilizing air pollution models. Current developments in air pollution modeling are explored as a series of contributions from researchers at the forefront of their field. This newest contribution on air pollution modeling and its application is focused on local, urban, regional and intercontinental modeling; emission modeling and processing; data assimilation and air quality forecasting; model assessment and evaluation; aerosol transformation. Additionally, this work also examines the relationship between air quality and human health and the effects of climate change on air quality. This work is a collection of selected papers presented at the 37th International Technical Meeting on Air Pollution Modeling and its Application, held in Hamburg, Germany, September 23-27, 2019.
Nonlinear elliptic problems play an increasingly important role in
mathematics, science and engineering, creating an exciting
interplay between the subjects. This is the first and only book to
prove in a systematic and unifying way, stability, convergence and
computing results for the different numerical methods for nonlinear
elliptic problems. The proofs use linearization, compact
perturbation of the coercive principal parts, or monotone operator
techniques, and approximation theory. Examples are given for linear
to fully nonlinear problems (highest derivatives occur nonlinearly)
and for the most important space discretization methods: conforming
and nonconforming finite element, discontinuous Galerkin, finite
difference, wavelet (and, in a volume to follow, spectral and
meshfree) methods. A number of specific long open problems are
solved here: numerical methods for fully nonlinear elliptic
problems, wavelet and meshfree methods for nonlinear problems, and
more general nonlinear boundary conditions. We apply it to all
these problems and methods, in particular to eigenvalues, monotone
operators, quadrature approximations, and Newton methods.
Adaptivity is discussed for finite element and wavelet methods.
This book gathers contributions on a variety of flowing collective systems. While primarily focusing on pedestrian dynamics, they also reflect the latest developments in areas such as vehicular traffic and granular flows and address related emerging topics such as self-propelled particles, data transport, swarm behavior, intercellular transport, and collective dynamics of biological systems. Combining fundamental research and practical applications in the various fields discussed, the book offers a valuable asset for researchers and practitioners alike.
Energy is at the heart of physics (and of huge importance to
society) and yet no book exists specifically to explain it, and in
simple terms. In tracking the history of energy, this book is
filled with the thrill of the chase, the mystery of smoke and
mirrors, and presents a fascinating human-interest story. Following
the history provides a crucial aid to understanding: this book
explains the intellectual revolutions required to comprehend
energy, revolutions as profound as those stemming from Relativity
and Quantum Theory. Texts by Descartes, Leibniz, Bernoulli,
d'Alembert, Lagrange, Hamilton, Boltzmann, Clausius, Carnot and
others are made accessible, and the engines of Watt and Joule are
explained.
This book is part of a set of books which offers advanced students successive characterization tool phases, the study of all types of phase (liquid, gas and solid, pure or multi-component), process engineering, chemical and electrochemical equilibria, and the properties of surfaces and phases of small sizes. Macroscopic and microscopic models are in turn covered with a constant correlation between the two scales. Particular attention has been given to the rigor of mathematical developments. This second volume in the set is devoted to the study of liquid phases.
This introduction to random walks on infinite graphs gives particular emphasis to graphs with polynomial volume growth. It offers an overview of analytic methods, starting with the connection between random walks and electrical resistance, and then proceeding to study the use of isoperimetric and Poincare inequalities. The book presents rough isometries and looks at the properties of a graph that are stable under these transformations. Applications include the 'type problem': determining whether a graph is transient or recurrent. The final chapters show how geometric properties of the graph can be used to establish heat kernel bounds, that is, bounds on the transition probabilities of the random walk, and it is proved that Gaussian bounds hold for graphs that are roughly isometric to Euclidean space. Aimed at graduate students in mathematics, the book is also useful for researchers as a reference for results that are hard to find elsewhere.
This book presents a collection of essays that explore the life and works of Tatjana Afanassjewa (1876-1964), a Russian-Dutch physicist-mathematician. Readers will discover a scientist whose work on the foundations of thermodynamics significantly influenced the field itself as well as the philosophy of physics. This book highlights the philosophical consequences of her work in physics and mathematics and discusses historical aspects of her writings on the foundations of physics. In addition, it features English translations and critical reviews of key selections from her texts. First and foremost, the book highlights the numerous contributions that Afanassjewa made to the field. In particular, the authors examine her work on the foundations of thermodynamics and statistical physics, starting in the 1920s and extending to 1956, well after the untimely death of her husband in 1933. They also explore her almost entirely forgotten work on the didactics of mathematics. In addition, they discuss her influential collaboration with her husband, the Austrian physicist Paul Ehrenfest (1880-1933). The portrait that emerges is that of a highly original physicist and mathematician, whose legacy continues to influence scientists and philosophers today and whose lesser-known works deserve more attention than they have received. Readers will find a rich body of work that continues to this day to yield insights into the foundations of physics and mathematics.
Statistical Mechanics is the study of systems where the number of
interacting particles becomes infinite. In the last fifty years
tremendous advances have been made which have required the
invention of entirely new fields of mathematics such as quantum
groups and affine Lie algebras. They have engendered remarkable
discoveries concerning non-linear differential equations and
algebraic geometry, and have produced profound insights in both
condensed matter physics and quantum field theory. Unfortunately,
none of these advances are taught in graduate courses in
statistical mechanics.
This book contains the courses given at the Fifth School on Complex Systems held at Santiago, Chile, from 9th .to 13th December 1996. At this school met researchers working on areas related with recent trends in Complex Systems, which include dynamical systems, cellular automata, symbolic dynamics, spatial systems, statistical physics and thermodynamics. Scientists working in these subjects come from several areas: pure and applied mathematics, physics, biology, computer science and electrical engineering. Each contribution is devoted to one of the above subjects. In most cases they are structured as surveys, presenting at the same time an original point of view about the topic and showing mostly new results. The paper of Bruno Durand presents the state of the art on the relationships between the notions of surjectivity, injectivity and reversibility in cellular automata when finite, infinite or periodic configurations are considered, also he discusses decidability problems related with the classification of cellular automata as well as global properties mentioned above. The paper of Eric Goles and Martin Matamala gives a uniform presentation of simulations of Turing machines by cellular automata. The main ingredient is the encoding function which must be fixed for all Turing machine. In this context known results are revised and new results are presented.
Quantum information- the subject- is a new and exciting area of
science, which brings together physics, information theory,
computer science and mathematics. Quantum Information- the book- is
based on two successful lecture courses given to advanced
undergraduate and beginning postgraduate students in physics. The
intention is to introduce readers at this level to the fundamental,
but offer rather simple, ideas behind ground-breaking developments
including quantum cryptography, teleportation and quantum
computing. The text is necessarily rather mathematical in style,
but the mathematics nowhere allowed priority over the key physical
ideas. My aim throughout was to be as complete and self- contained
but to avoid, as far as possible, lengthy and formal mathematical
proofs. Each of the eight chapters is followed by about forty
exercise problems with which the reader can test their
understanding and hone their skills. These will also provide a
valuable resource to tutors and lectures.
This thesis demonstrates the potential of two platforms to explore experimentally the emerging field of quantum thermodynamics that has remained mostly theoretical so far. It proposes methods to define and measure work in the quantum regime. The most important part of the thesis focuses on hybrid optomechanical devices, evidencing that they are proper candidates to measure directly the fluctuations of work and the corresponding fluctuation theorem. Such devices could also give rise to the observation of mechanical lasing and cooling, based on mechanisms similar to a heat engine. The final part of the thesis studies how quantum coherence can improve work extraction in superconducting circuits. All the proposals greatly clarify the concept of work since they are based on measurable quantities in state of the art devices. |
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