PHY210 Solid State Physics
Lecture Contents
This lecture gives an introduction to solid state Physics, i.e. how the atomic properties of different elements give rise to the properties of solids we encounter in every day life. As such, we will study how the structural arrangement of atoms and molecules as well as a few key properties of these atoms and molecules influence the elastic, plastic, thermal, electronic, optical and magnetic properties of these arrangements.
The main line of the course will focus on how such macroscopic properties are dependent on microscopic properties of the atoms, which we know from quantum mechanics.
Apart from these conceptual questions, we will also look at how these properties are investigated experimentally using scattering methods and other experimental techniques.
The course consists lectures (4 hours a week in odd weeks, 2 hours a week in even weeks) and exercises (2 hours a week in even weeks). The module gives 5 ECTS and is closed off with an oral exam at the end of January.
In addition to this course, there is an associated lab course (PHY220), where some of the experimental techniques discussed are carried out directly. See here.
Learning Goals
After completion of this course, you will be able to
- describe structures in real and reciprocal space
- differentiate different kinds of order in solids, liquids and glasses from symmetry arguments
- determine the macroscopic properties of solids from the microscopic properties of their consituents and see where such descriptions fail
- describe thermal properties of solids based on the statistics of phonons
- differentiate conductors, semi-conductors and insulators from the Fermionic properties of electrons
- classify different types of phase transitions according to their symmetry properties
- describe basic properties of superconductors and where they originate.
Assessment:
at least 60% of excersise proplems seriously attempted, passing of final oral exam (30 minutes)
Lecture material
Lecture Notes for this course, as well as the slides shown during the lecture and the notes taken there are available below. In addition, there is a list of textbooks that can be useful in addition to the course.
Slides part 1, introduction, structure (PDF, 3 MB)
Slides part 2, elasticity (PDF, 1 MB)
Slides part 5, phase transitions and superconductivity. (PDF, 2 MB)
Literature:
Gross/Marx: Festkörperphysik, Oldenburg
Ashcroft/Mermin: Solid State Physics, Oldenburg
Chaikin/Lubensky: Principles of Condensed Matter Physics, Cambridge
Demtröder Band 3: Atome, Moleküle und Festkörper, Springer
Kittel: Introduction to Solid State Physics
Ghertsen: Physik, Springer
Preliminary Course Outline (in semester weeks)
Week 1: Emergence, The connection between microscopic and macroscopic Physics, Symmetry, Entropy, Free energy, Point Groups, Symmetries, Correlation functions, Structure factors, reciprocal space
Week 2: Crystals, Bravais lattice, unit cell, basis, form factor, Wigner-Seitz Cell, reciprocal lattice, Brillouin zone, Scattering
Week 3: Quasi crystals, liquid crystals, glasses, fractals, hyperuniform structures, chemical bonds, ionic bonds, Madelung constant, van der Waals interaction, covalent bonds , anharmonic effects
Week 4: Elasticity, elastic waves
Week 5: Defects, dislocation, disclinations, plasticity, fracture, friction, Vibrations, phonons, BZ, dispersion, Debye picture, acoustic phonons
Week 6: specific heat (Einstein + Debye), Debye temperature, optical phonons, LO, LA, TA modes
Week 7: Drude and Sommerfeld models, resistivity, heat capacity; recap: orbitals, covalent bonding, Periodic lattice, Kronig-Penney model, Bloch's theorem, DOS (1,2,3D)
Week 8: Band theory,tight-binding vs. free-electron like, gaps, reduced and extended zone schemes, Fermi energy, metal vs insulator, Fermi surface (in one and higher BZs)
Week 9: Effective mass, electrons and holes, heat conductivity; semi-conductors, dopand bands, electron and hole conductivity, Hall effect, PN- junctions
Week 10: Optical properties: transitions, screening, dielectric function
Week 11: Para-, dia-, ferromagnetism, localized vs itinerant, Stoner criterion, exchange splitting, Heisenberg model, anti-FM, ferri-FM, Curie and Néel-T
Week 12: Fermi surface: Landau levels, Zeeman-splitting, spin-orbit interaction
Week 13: Landau theory, mean field theory, first/second order transitions; liquid crystals, Hexatics, Superconducting Phenomenology: resistivity, Meissner-Ochsenfeld, coherence length and penetration depth, Ginzburg-Landau,
Week 14: Flux quantization, Type I and II, magnetic vortices, pinning, high-Tc superconductors, Cooperpairs