Prof. Yong-Baek Kim
Email: yongbaek.kim@utoronto.ca
Home Page: https://sites.google.com/view/ybkimgroup/home
Office: Rm 1016, McLennan Physical Laboratory
Andrew Hardy
andrew.hardy@mail.utoronto.ca
Asimpunya Mitra
asympunya.mitra@mail.utoronto.ca
1) Some of the lectures will also be given in tutorial hours. Therefore, students should not have an overlap with other classes for both lecture hours and tutorial hours.
We will have lectures in the following tutorial hours.
Jan 8, 3-4pm, TBA
Jan 22, 3-4pm, TBA
2) Two Mid-term test will be held in class (3-5pm)
First - Feb 3, 2026
Second - Mar 10, 2026
Lectures: Tuesdays, 3-5pm, TBA
Tutorials: Thursdays, 3-4pm, TBA
Some of the lectures will also be given in tutorial hours. Therefore, students should not have an overlap with other classes for both lecture hours and tutorial hours.
We will have lectures in the following tutorial hours.
Jan 8, 3-4pm, TBA
Jan 22, 3-4pm, TBA
20% homework assignments, 20% first mid-term test, 20% second mid-term test, 40% final exam
For homework assignments, only some of the questions will be graded. 20% of the maximum mark will be deducted per day. For example, if the work is late for a day, the maximum possible mark will be 80%. After five days, it will be 0%.
R.K. Pathria and B.D. Beal, Statistical Mechanics
Kerson Huang, Statistical Mechanics
L.D. Landau and E.M. Lifshitz, Statistical Physics, Part 1
M. Kardar, Statistical Physics of Particles
Review on Thermodynamics
Phase space and Louville's Theorem, Large N limit
Micro-Canonical Ensemble
Canonical and Grand-Canonical Ensemble
Breakdown of Classical Statistical Mechanics and Quantum Effects
Quantum Statistical Mechanics
Ideal Quantum Gas - Fermions and Bosons
STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES OR ACCOMMODATION REQUIREMENTS
Students with diverse learning styles and needs are welcome in this course. If you have an acute or ongoing disability issue or accommodation need, you should register with Accessibility Services (AS) at the beginning of the academic year by visiting http://www.studentlife.utoronto.ca/as/new-registration. Without registration, you will not be able to verify your situation with your instructors, and instructors will not be advised about your accommodation needs. AS will assess your situation, develop an accommodation plan with you, and support you in requesting accommodation for your course work. Remember that the process of accommodation is private: AS will not share details of your needs or condition with any instructor, and your instructors will not reveal that you are registered with AS.
RELIGIOUS ACCOMMODATION
As a student at the University of Toronto, you are part of a diverse community that welcomes and includes students and faculty from a wide range of cultural and religious traditions. For my part, I will make every reasonable effort to avoid scheduling tests, examinations, or other compulsory activities on religious holy days not captured by statutory holidays. Further to University Policy, if you anticipate being absent from class or missing a major course activity (such as a test or in-class assignment) due to a religious observance, please let me know as early in the course as possible, and with sufficient notice (at least two to three weeks), so that we can work together to make alternate arrangements.
SPECIFIC MEDICAL CIRCUMSTANCES
If you become ill and it affects your ability to do your academic work, consult me right away. Normally, I will ask you for medical documentation in support of your specific medical circumstances. The University’s Verification of Student Illness or Injury (VOI) form is recommended because it indicates the impact and severity of the illness, while protecting your privacy about the details of the nature of the illness. You can submit a different form (like a letter from a doctor), as long as it is an original document, and it contains the same information as the VOI. For more information, please see http://www.illnessverification.utoronto.ca If you get a concussion, break your hand, or suffer some other acute injury, you should register with Accessibility Services as soon as possible.
ACCOMMODATION FOR PERSONAL REASONS
There may be times when you are unable to complete course work on time due to non-medical reasons. If you have concerns, speak to me or to an advisor in your College Registrar’s office; they can help you to decide if you want to request an extension or accommodation. They may be able to provide you with a College Registrar’s letter of support to give to your instructors, and importantly, connect you with other resources on campus for help with your situation.
MENTAL HEALTH AND WELL–BEING
As a student, you may experience challenges that can interfere with learning, such as strained relationships, increased anxiety, substance use, feeling down, difficulty concentrating and/or lack of motivation, financial concerns, family worries and so forth. These factors may affect your academic performance and/or reduce your ability to participate fully in daily activities. Everyone feels stressed now and then – it is a normal part of university life. Some days are better than others, and there is no wrong time to reach out. There are resources for every situation and every level of stress. There are many helpful resources available through your College Registrar or through Student Life (http://studentlife. utoronto.ca and http://www.studentlife.utoronto.ca/feeling-distressed). An important part of the University experience is learning how and when to ask for help. Please take the time to inform yourself of available resources.
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
All students, faculty and staff are expected to follow the University’s guidelines and policies on academic integrity. For students, this means following the standards of academic honesty when writing assignments, collaborating with fellow students, and writing tests and exams. Ensure that the work you submit for grading represents your own honest efforts. Plagiarism—representing someone else’s work as your own or submitting work that you have previously submitted for marks in another class or program—is a serious offence that can result in sanctions. Speak to me or your TA for advice on anything that you find unclear. To learn more about how to cite and use source material appropriately and for other writing support, see the U of T writing support website at http://www. writing.utoronto.ca. Consult the Code of Behaviour on Academic Matters for a complete outline of the University’s policy and expectations. For more information, please see https://www.artsci.utoronto.ca/current/ academic-advising-and-support/student-academic-integrity and http://academicintegrity.utoronto. ca
COURSE MATERIALS, INCLUDING LECTURE NOTES
Course materials are provided for the exclusive use of enrolled students. Do not share them with others. Do not put any of the materials into the public domain or provide the materials to a person not enrolled in the course or to a third party company. The University supports copyright enforcement related to course material, and licensed third party material appears in the lecture notes with additional restrictions.
QUERCUS
This course uses the University’s learning management system, Quercus, to post information about the course. This includes posting readings and other materials required to complete class activities and course assignments, as well as sharing important announcements and updates. The site is dynamic and new information and resources will be posted regularly as we move through the term, so please make it a habit to log in to the site on a regular, even daily, basis. To access the course website, go to the U of T Quercus log-in page at https://q.utoronto.ca. Once you have logged in to Quercus using your UTORid and password, you should see the link or "card" for "PHY452: Statistical Mechanics". You may need to scroll through other cards to find this. Click on the "PHY452: Statistical Mechanics" link to open our course area, view the latest announcements and access your course resources. There are Quercus help guides for students that you can access by clicking on the "?" icon in the left side column.
SPECIAL NOTE ABOUT GRADES POSTED ONLINE
Please also note that any grades posted are for your information only, so you can view and track your progress through the course. No grades are considered official, including any posted in Quercus at any point in the term, until they have been formally approved and posted on ACORN at the end of the course. Please contact me as soon as possible if you think there is an error in any grade posted on Quercus. PRIVACY/FIPPA STATEMENT Personal information is collected pursuant to section 2(14) of the University of Toronto Act, 1971 and at all times it will be protected in accordance with the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. Please note that this course requires presentations of one’s work to the group. For more information, please refer to http: //www.utoronto.ca/privacy.