Inverse temperature
It is often convenient to define a dimensionless inverse temperature, Failed to parse (SVG (MathML can be enabled via browser plugin): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle \beta} :
- Failed to parse (SVG (MathML can be enabled via browser plugin): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle \beta := \frac{1}{k_BT}}
This notation likely comes from its origin as a Lagrangian multiplier, for which Greek letters are customarily written.
Indeed, it shown in Ref. 1 that this is the way it enters. The task is to maximize number of ways $N$ particles may be asigned to $K$ space-momentum cells, such that one has a set of occupation numbers Failed to parse (SVG (MathML can be enabled via browser plugin): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle n_i} . Introducing the partition function:
- Failed to parse (SVG (MathML can be enabled via browser plugin): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle \Omega\propto\frac{N!}{n_1! n_2! \ldots n_K!} ,}
one could maximize its logarithm (a monotonous function):
where Stirling's approximation for large numbers has been used. The maximization must be performed subject to the constraint:
- Failed to parse (SVG (MathML can be enabled via browser plugin): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle \sum_i n_i=N}
An additional constraint, which applies only to dilute gases, is:
- Failed to parse (SVG (MathML can be enabled via browser plugin): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle \sum_i n_i e_i=E} ,
where Failed to parse (SVG (MathML can be enabled via browser plugin): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle E} is the total energy and Failed to parse (SVG (MathML can be enabled via browser plugin): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle e_i=p_i^2/2m} is the energy of cell Failed to parse (SVG (MathML can be enabled via browser plugin): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle i} .
The method of Lagrange multipliers entail finding the extremum of the function
- Failed to parse (SVG (MathML can be enabled via browser plugin): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle L=\log\Omega - \alpha (\sum_i n_i - N ) - \beta ( \sum_i n_i e_i - E )} ,
where the two Lagrange multipliers enforce the two conditions and permit the treatment of the occupations as independent variables. The minimization leads to
- Failed to parse (SVG (MathML can be enabled via browser plugin): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle n_i=Ce^{-\beta e_i), }
and an application to the case of an ideal gas reveals the connection with the temperature,
- Failed to parse (SVG (MathML can be enabled via browser plugin): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle \beta := \frac{1}{k_BT} .}
References
- Kerson Huang, "Statistical Physics" John Wiley and Sons, second edition, pp. 79-85 (1987)