Subject Matter and Course Text
The subject matter of Physics 140A-B is thermodynamics and statistical physics. During the Fall 2011 quarter (140A) we covered : (i) thermodynamics, (ii) probability, (iii) statistical ensembles, and (iv) quantum statistics. During the Winter quarter (140B) we will cover : (v) interacting systems, (vi) mean field theory, and (vii) kinetics.

The course text is Peliti's "Statistical Mechanics in a Nutshell". This is a new book which I find to be outstanding, with excellent explanations of the material and a thoroughly modern outlook. I will again be following my own lecture notes. I have indicated which sections in the notes I plan on covering. Please make an effort to read the relevant sections ahead of class - it will make the lectures more understandable.

At the beginning of each chapter of my notes, I list some recommended texts. These should be available in the Science and Engineering Library.

Course Web Site
Lecture notes and reading assignments, important announcements, homework assignments and solutions will all be available through the course web site. Please check it each day to see if there is new material. The notes themselves are complete, but I may make some editorial changes or additions as we go along. I will indicate on the lecture notes page the date, time, and size (in pages) of the most recent upload for each chapter.

On the course home page, I have included a number of links to potentially useful websites. The most useful should be the web pages for W09 Physics 140B and S10 Physics 210A. In particular, all the homework sets and exams as well as their detailed solutions are available. (The W09 Physics 140B site contains all the HW from F08 Physics 140A.) This is a superb resource!

Problem Sets
I will try to assign one problem set per week, due at the beginning of the following Tuesday's class. Problem sets will not be printed out for you, but rather will be available through the course website. You are encouraged to discuss the problem sets with your fellow students. I suggest that you initially try to do the problems by yourselves, so that you can more accurately identify your confusions and honestly assess your weaknesses. Then, before you write up your assignment, get together with some of your fellow students to talk over the problems and hammer out the details. Solutions to problem sets will be posted on the course website. Hopefully the solutions and your graded assignments will be made available in a timely manner, but invariably there are lags from time to time.

TA, Office Hours, Problem Sessions
My office hours will be Thursdays from 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm. My office is in 5438 Mayer Hall. The TA for this class is again David Stone. David will hold weekly office hours on Mondays from 1:30 pm to 3:00 pm in Mayer Hall 4430. We will also conduct a weekly problem session Thursdays from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm in Mayer Hall 5623, during which the class will break up into small groups for problem solving. Mayer Hall is locked at 5:00 pm, so to get access to the building, you will need to get access to the SPS room (which also unlocks the building door) from Mr. Lester Brooks in 3426 Mayer Hall.

Grading and exams
The magic formula: 35% problem sets, 15% midterm exam, 50% comprehensive final. The midterm is tentatively scheduled for Feb. 23. Those who are curious of my general grading inclinations can look here.

Discussion Board
The course home page contains a link to the Physics Department discussion boards. You must register in order to be able to post. This is a place where you can publicly discuss the course, ask questions of the professor, exchange tips about homework, tell jokes, pose riddles, post links to interesting web sites, etc. Just keep it clean, folks. The TA and I will be checking in regularly.