Phase Transitions and Renormalization Group

Phase Transitions and Renormalization Group

Instructor:

Kai Hebeler
S2|11 101, Tel. -21541
Office hours: Upon request

This course provides an introduction to the basic concepts of the Renormalization Group and application to different fields in physics. A special focus is put on the theoretical description of phase transitions and critical phenomena. The lecture will be held in English, but questions and discussions in German are of course welcome.

Outline and lecture notes

1. Introduction
   April 11 Video: critical opalescence Video: supercritical state
2. Review of relevant parts of statistical physics
   April 13, April 21, , April 25
3. Phase transitions
   May 02, May 05, May 09, May 12, May 16
4. Mean field theory
   May 16, May 19, May 30, June 02, June 09, June 13
5. The Renormalization Group
   June 13, June 23, June 27, June 30, July 04, July 11, July 14

Exercises

Problem set 1 (discussion on April 28)
Problem set 2 (discussion on May 23)
Problem set 3 (discussion on June 20) hints
Problem set 4 (discussion on July 7)

Literature

Goldenfeld, Lectures on phase transitions and the renormalization group
Creswick, Farach, Poole, Introduction to renormalization group methods in physics
Binney, Dowrick, Fisher, Newman, The theory of critical phenomena