PHY3602 Assignment 2

Semester 1 2007/8

1. Consider two identical particles which are to be placed in four single-particle states. Two of these states have energy 0, one has energy , the last has energy 2 . Calculate the partition function given that the particles are (a) fermions and (b) bosons. 2. Consider a system of two atoms, each having only four single-particle states of energies 0, , 2 , and 3 . The system is in contact with a heat bath at temperature T . Write down the energy levels and the partition function given that the particles obey (a) classical statistics because the particles are distinguishable; (b) Fermi-Dirac statistics because they are indistinguishable Fermi particles, which implies that two atoms have to be in different single-particle states; (c) Bose-Einstein statistics because they are indistinguishable Bose particles, which implies that the two atoms can be in the same single-particle states. Zero spin can be assumed. 3. According to the theory of relativity, the energy , of a particle of rest mass m , and momentum p = k is 2 = p 2 c 2 + m 2 c 4 . (a) What is the density of states in energy of a relativistic particle ( p 2 m2c 2 ) enclosed in a volume V ? (b) Give an expression for the partition function of an ideal gas of N relativistic particles at high temperature. 4. The oven in a simple molecular beam apparatus contains H2 molecules at a temperature of 300K and at a pressure of 1 mm of mercury. The hole in the oven has a diameter of 100 m which is much smaller than the molecular mean free path. Calculate: (a) the distribution in speeds of the molecules in the beam; (b) the mean speed of the molecules in the beam; (c) the most probable speed of molecules in the beam; (d) the average rotational energy of the molecules; (e) the flux of molecules through the hole. (A pressure of 760 mm of mercury is equivalent to 1.013 105 Nm 2 ).

5. Calculate the average reciprocal speed u 1 of a Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution for a particle of mass m in three dimensions. 6. Suppose u ( ) d is the energy density per unit volume emitted by a black body in the wavelength range to + d . At what wavelength does u ( ) have its maximum value? Take the radiation from the Sun to be black body radiation with a maximum in u ( ) at 480 nm . What is the temperature of the Sun?

7. Imagine the Universe to be a spherical cavity with radius 1026 m . If the temperature in the cavity is 3 K , estimate the total number of thermally excited photons in the Universe, and the energy content of these photons. Use: x2 x3 dx = 2.40411 ; ex 1 e x 1 dx = 6.49394 . 0 0
8. Consider the reaction 3 O2 2 O3 .

Identify the stoichiometric coefficients. What is the condition for chemical equilibrium between oxygen and ozone? 9. Suppose that there is a density nD of electron donors in a semiconductor. Determine the electron density ne = nD + nh by using the condition for chemical equilibrium. 10. Obtain an expression for for a Fermi gas at high temperatures when n(k ) is given by n ( k ) = e ( ( k ) ) / k BT e 2 ( ( k ) ) / k BT + .