Concept map of a Condensed Matter course, in Italian Written in rst. A copy of the tentative plan from Pmwiki/dispense below
The course is offered in Parma University, at Graduate level. It provides the foundations for the hard condensed matter syllabus and is recommended also for the soft matter syllabus. It does not cover topics dealt with in Semiconductor Physics and Applications, Statistical Physics and Magnetism and Quantum Computation. Therefore the present course contains four general chapters (Crystal Symmetries, Band Theory, Order and Excitations and Hands-on DFT), but focuses on two topics (Metals and Metal-Insulator transitions, Superfluids and Superconductors).
This course is work in progress.
Main textbooks
- U. Rössler Solid State Theory, An Introduction. Springer Verlag (with physical intuition, good overview; with problems and solutions)
- J.F. Annett Superconductivity, Superfluids and Condensates. Oxford Master Series (with physical intuition, specific for VI; with exercises and solutions)
- G. Grosso G Parravicini Solid State Physics. Academic Press (more formal, oriented towards semiconductors, good for II. and V.; with a few solved exercises)
- D. Khomskii Basic Aspects of the Quantum Theory of Solids, Order and Elementary Excitations. Cambridge Press (mixes physical intuition and a consistent theoretical approach, oriented towards strongly correlated materials, good for IV.)
Tentative Lecture List (the number.Ch refers to the main textbook inspiration):
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Introduction, the viewpoint of this course. Recap on crystals (4 hours 1.Ch1).
1a. Crystal symmetries, CIF, The Bilbao Crystallographic Server (1.Ch1.2, 3.Ch2.1-3)
1b. Reciprocal lattice (3.Ch.2.4-5), diffraction, VESTA (jmol, xcrystden, ...).
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Band Theory (10 hours: 3.Ch4,3.Ch5,1.Ch4.,1.Ch5)
2a. Introduction, nanostructures and their bricks. Recap of Tight-Binding and the manybody problem
2b. Hartree
2c. Slater determinants, Hartree Fock, phase diagram of electron gas
2d. LCAO, OPW, Pseudopotentials, APW.
2e. Simple examples (3.Ch.6)
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Orders and Excitations. (12 hours 1.Ch.)
3a. Introduction, excitations as quasiparticles, a founding idea. Recap of Born Oppenheimer approximation linear chains, Einstein e Debye.
3b. 3D phonons, density of states
3b. Magnetic orders
3c. Experimental techniques: thermodynamical, neutrons, X rays, magnetic resonance (3.Ch.10.2)
3d. Spin waves
3e. Experimental techniques (3.Ch.10.4)
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Metals and Metal-Insulator Transitions (8 hour)
4a. Introduction: the metal as a quantum state and how to break it. Drude and Sommerfeld models (4.Ch.7 )
4b. Dielectric response function: Thomas Fermi and Lindhard (RPA), charge screening
4c. The Landau Fermi liquid and the measurements of fermiology (4.Ch.10)
4d. Heavy fermions (1.Ch7.5)
4e. The Metal-Insulator Transition, with hints on quantum phase transitions (4.Ch12.6-11 and 1.Ch9.2-5)
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DFT (8 hours, 3.Ch4, 1.Ch5)
5a. Introduction, the importance of computational methods. Kohn-Hohemberg-Sham theorems. Koopmans theorem. Special k-points (3.Ch.2.6.4)
5b. Installation of a DFT suite.
5c. Hands-on
5d. Hellman-Feynman theorem (virtual forces), Hands-on
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Superfluids, Condensates and Superconductors (9.5 ore lezione, 4.5 di esercitazione. umbers in parenthesis refer to 2.Ch)
6a. Introduction, condensation in composite systems as a new paradigm. Bose-Einstein Condensation, van del Waals classical and quantum fluid (1.3,2.1-2)
6b. Macroscopic wave function, properties, flux quantization, vortices, moment distribution and quasiparticles (2.3-7)
6c. Zero resistance, Meissner effect, susceptibility, classification and critical fields (3.1-7)
6d. London Equations, penetration depth (3.8-9)
6e. Ginzburg-Landau Equations, coherence length and gap, macroscopic coherence, Josephson effect (4.1-4,4.6-11,5.8)
6f. BCS model, the gap and coherence length (6.1-7, also 1.Ch8.5-6 and 4.Ch11.5)
6g. Non-conventional superconductors and future research (7.6, also 4.Ch