PHYS 342 - Thermodynamics

• Apply the zeroth, first, second, and third laws of thermodynamics to solve conceptual and quantitative thermodynamics problems.
• Calculate pressure, temperature, and/or volume for both ideal and non-ideal gases. 
• Summarize the role of thermodynamic microstates and macrostates in the second law of thermodynamics.
• Analyze idealized and realistic thermodynamic cycles to describe the operating principals of heat engines, steam engines, and refrigerators.
• Distinguish between first and second-order phase transitions in physical systems; calculate latent heat and discontinuous volume changes for first-order phase transitions.
• Evaluate calculations of thermodynamic potentials including internal energy, Helmholtz free energy, and Gibbs free energy to predict phase stability.
• Apply appropriate mathematical methods to solve problems in statistical mechanics.