There are many good books on the subject. While
Pathria's book covers much of the core material in the course plan,
so does Kerson Huang's "Statistica Mechanics" (Second Edition). Texts
by Ma, Plischke and Bergersen, McQuarrie are also useful; Landau and
Lifshitz is always recommended.
Lectures: The
lectures are scheduled for Mondays and Wednesdays, 12:30 pm - 1:45 pm,
in Room 322 Jordan.
Homework problems and quizzes: One homework set approximately every 7-10
days.
The homeworks are at the heart of this course, and in some sense more
important than the lectures themselves. This is a subject that you
can only master if you work through a variety of elaborate calculations
yourself. Solutions must be turned in on due date. There will be penalty
for late homework solutions. No homework will be accepted after the solution
set is handed out during class. Problems should be neatly written, in
the order assigned, on 8.5 x 11 pages stapled together (no torn edges or
paperclips).
You MUST explain your steps, and lead the reader through
your solution with sentences, phrases, etc., as if you would be writing
a scientific paper. A pile of formulae on a piece of paper is NOT an acceptable
style for the homework solutions.
Occasionally, quizzes on previously covered material will
be handed out at the beginning of the lecture. These quizzes are
intended to help you focus on the key results we obtained, and
provide you with bonus points (5 points max.) towards your current homework.
When preparing a homework please make sure you observe
the rules (see below) for collaborative work compatible with the Honor
Code of the University. Solutions will be handed out, and if
possible, posted on the web page after the due
date, and you are strongly encouraged to check your solutions against those
posted.
Exams:
There will be a take-home final. The homeworks, however,
will decide the bulk of your numerical final grade. If I
will find it necessary, at the end of the semester (before
deciding your final letter grade) I will have an informal
discussion with each one of you individually (something of an oral
exam) to have an idea of how much you learned.
Grading scheme: Your final grade will be based on your overall performance in
all the course related activities. The numerical grade is calculated at
the end of the semester is calculated as a weighted average of your scores
obtained during the following activities or exams:
| Activity/Examination |
Frequency/Date |
Weight (%) |
| Class Participation |
Lectures |
5 (see below) |
| Exam |
Final |
35 |
| Homework |
7-10 days (approximate) |
60 |
- NOTE: for those with
a.) SUSTAINED class participation and b.) final numerical grade close to,
but below a borderline between two letter grades, I will give the
letter grade above the borderline.
The letter grade scale will
be based on the performance of the class as a whole. Please refer to the
following table to get some idea of the correspondence between the letter
grade and the expected level of performance in the Many Body Physics
course.
|
Letter Grade
|
Performance
|
|
A
|
- Has a firm understanding of all concepts covered in
class,
- Has a global understanding of the interconnected nature
of laws and principles learned during the entire semester,
- Can solve most problems, new or similar to those discussed
in class and in homework.
|
|
B
|
- Has a firm understanding of most concepts,
- Recognizes some relationships between laws and principles
learned in different chapters,
- Can solve most problems that are similar to those discussed
in class/homework, and some of the new problems,
|
|
C
|
- Has a reasonable understanding of most concepts,
- Recognizes some relationships between laws and principles
learned in the same chapters,
- Can solve only problems that are similar to those discussed
in class/homework,
|
|
D
|
- Has a limited understanding of some concepts,
- Recognizes only a few relationships between laws and principles
learned in the same chapters,
- Can solve only the simplest problems,
- Attends all lectures, makes genuine efforts to complete all homework
problems
|
|
F
|
- Little or no understanding of the concepts and phenomena,
- Routinely misses lectures, and/or homework assignments.
|
Honor Code: As a
precondition for your admission to the University of Notre Dame, you agreed
to abide by the University's Academic Code of Honor. Specifically, you pledged
not to receive or give unauthorized aid on a exam, quiz, lab report, or homework
assignment. While collaboration is encouraged in class and during the discussion
sessions, please make sure you observe the following rules:
- During homework preparation you must
spend at least one hour working alone on a particular problem before you
can seek assistance from a friend, study group, tutor, or teaching assistant.
They should ask you guiding questions or point you towards resources that
will help you discover your own solution. You cannot ask them to show
you how to completely solve the problem, nor can you accept such extensive
help.
- Under no circumstances should you copy
or even look at someone else's solution to a problem before you have submitted
your own homework, quiz, or exam for credit.
Any suspected violation of the Honor Code
will be turned over to the Departmental Honesty Committe for investigation.
Penalties can be as severe as dismissal from the University.