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Condensed Matter Physics (Physics)
A Very Short Introduction | Physics
Condensed Matter Physics
ISBN: 9780198845423
Series: A Very Short Introduction
Condensed Matter Physics (Physics)
A Very Short Introduction Condensed Matter Physics (Physics) Media > Books > Non-Fiction > Education Books Expect Delays of Up to 4 Weeks
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ISBN
9780198845423 (10-digit ISBN: 0198845421)
- Description
- Key Features
- Series Description
- Table of Contents
- Provides a modern introduction to a major field of physics that underpins silicon chips and liquid crystals, and explores deep questions about the nature and behaviour of matter
- Focuses on introducing the fundamental concepts of condensed matter physics and uses concrete examples to illustrate these
- Highlights the role of emergence (the whole is greater than the sum of the parts) in condensed matter physics
- Shows how condensed matter physics links to other fields of physics and to other sciences
There are many more states of matter than just solid, liquid, and gas. Examples include liquid crystal, magnet, glass, and superconductor. New states are continually, and unexpectedly, being discovered. Some states, such as superconductor, can act like Schrödinger's cat and exhibit the weirdness normally associated with the quantum theory of atoms, photons, and electrons. Condensed matter physics seeks to understand how states of matter and their distinct physical properties emerge from the atoms of which a material is composed.
A system of many interacting parts can have properties that the parts do not have. Water is wet, but a single water molecule is not. Your brain is conscious, but a single neuron is not. Such emergent phenomena are central to condensed matter physics and also occur in many fields, from biology to computer science to sociology, leading to rich intellectual connections. When do quantitative differences become qualitative differences? Can simple models describe rich and complex behaviour? What is the relationship between the particular and the universal? How is the abstract related to the concrete? Condensed matter physics is all about these big questions.
The materials in silicon chips, liquid crystal displays, and magnetic computer memories, may have transformed society, but understanding them has transformed how we think about complex systems.
Oxford's Very Short Introductions series offers concise and original introductions to a wide range of subjects--from Islam to Sociology, Politics to Classics, Literary Theory to History, and Archaeology to the Bible.
Not simply a textbook of definitions, each volume in this series provides trenchant and provocative--yet always balanced and complete--discussions of the central issues in a given discipline or field. Every Very Short Introduction gives a readable evolution of the subject in question, demonstrating how the subject has developed and how it has influenced society. Eventually, the series will encompass every major academic discipline, offering all students an accessible and abundant reference library.
Whatever the area of study that one deems important or appealing, whatever the topic that fascinates the general reader, the Very Short Introductions series has a handy and affordable guide that will likely prove indispensable.
Please note: As this series is not ELT material, these titles are not subject to discount.
Preface
Acknowledgements
List of illustrations
1:What is condensed matter physics?
2:A multitude of states of matter
3:Symmetry matters
4:The order of things
5:Adventures in flatland
6:The critical point
7:Quantum matter
8:Topology matters
9:Emergence
10:The endless frontier
References
Further reading
Appendix: List of Nobel Prizes in Condensed Matter Physics
Index
There are many more states of matter than just solid, liquid, and gas. Examples include liquid crystal, magnet, glass, and superconductor. New states are continually, and unexpectedly, being discovered. Some states, such as superconductor, can act like Schrödinger's cat and exhibit the weirdness normally associated with the quantum theory of atoms, photons, and electrons. Condensed matter physics seeks to understand how states of matter and their distinct physical properties emerge from the atoms of which a material is composed.
A system of many interacting parts can have properties that the parts do not have. Water is wet, but a single water molecule is not. Your brain is conscious, but a single neuron is not. Such emergent phenomena are central to condensed matter physics and also occur in many fields, from biology to computer science to sociology, leading to rich intellectual connections. When do quantitative differences become qualitative differences? Can simple models describe rich and complex behaviour? What is the relationship between the particular and the universal? How is the abstract related to the concrete? Condensed matter physics is all about these big questions.
The materials in silicon chips, liquid crystal displays, and magnetic computer memories, may have transformed society, but understanding them has transformed how we think about complex systems.
Key Features
- Provides a modern introduction to a major field of physics that underpins silicon chips and liquid crystals, and explores deep questions about the nature and behaviour of matter
- Focuses on introducing the fundamental concepts of condensed matter physics and uses concrete examples to illustrate these
- Highlights the role of emergence (the whole is greater than the sum of the parts) in condensed matter physics
- Shows how condensed matter physics links to other fields of physics and to other sciences
Series Description
Oxford's Very Short Introductions series offers concise and original introductions to a wide range of subjects--from Islam to Sociology, Politics to Classics, Literary Theory to History, and Archaeology to the Bible.
Not simply a textbook of definitions, each volume in this series provides trenchant and provocative--yet always balanced and complete--discussions of the central issues in a given discipline or field. Every Very Short Introduction gives a readable evolution of the subject in question, demonstrating how the subject has developed and how it has influenced society. Eventually, the series will encompass every major academic discipline, offering all students an accessible and abundant reference library.
Whatever the area of study that one deems important or appealing, whatever the topic that fascinates the general reader, the Very Short Introductions series has a handy and affordable guide that will likely prove indispensable.
Please note: As this series is not ELT material, these titles are not subject to discount.
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