Statistical physics of nanoparticles in the gas phase. (Q694873)

This book is a short, informal, non-rigorous presentation of the application of the formalism of statistical thermodynamic ensembles to the description of nanoparticles. After a basic introduction to statistical ensembles (Chapters 1--3), the exposition continues with the thermal properties of vibrational motion (Chapter 4), the computation of rates of emission of energy in various forms, the decay and aggregation of particles and their abundance distribution (Chapters 5--7), basics of molecular dynamics and Monte Carlo simulations (Chapter 8), the thermal properties of valence electrons and of helium-4 droplets and the melting (Chapters 9--11). Exercises are proposed at the end of each chapter. Three appendices contain resp. a very short bibliography, a list of some universal constants and conversions of energy units, and a short list of some of the mathematical formulas used in the book.