On the successful completion of Track 1B enrollment process, the followers will get the opportunity to take the course “Intermediary Natural Philosophy PHY 121”, where they (followers) will learn all the necessary mathematics and physics to build a solid background in Statistical Physics. Upon completing the course successfully, the followers need to enroll in the course “Advanced Statistical Mechanics PHY 451” in order to continue the standard track as a membership requirement. However, a follower may also get enrolled in an available course. Note that, failure to enroll in Advanced Statistical Mechanics shall not necessarily expel a follower from CP, but may be sidelined to a non-standard track.

Starting from January 2022, Community of Physics is offering two consecutive courses, “Intermediary Natural Philosophy PHY 121”, and Advanced Statistical Physics (ASP01/2022), each having a duration of six months. It will be an opportunity to learn Statistical Physics rigorously.

Enthusiastic Upper Level Undergraduate and Masters students around the world can be a part of this course. After completing the enrollment process, the followers will take the course INP01/2022. This course is dedicated to build up a firm foundation on Statistical Physics. The followers will get an opportunity to get enrolled in ASP01/2022 based on completion of INP01/2022 with satisfactory grades.

The classes of INP01/2022 begin on January 06, 2022. The course consists of 24 classes (4 hours each on Thursdays), 2 mid-term examinations, and 1 final examination. Classes of INP01/2022 end on June 16, 2021. The classes of ASP01/2022 starts on July 07, 2021. In the course of ASP01/2022, there will be 24 classes (4 hours each on Thursdays), 24 homework assignments, 2 mid-term examinations, and 1 final examination. The course ends on June 16, 2023. All the activities and classes will be conducted onsite.

In this course, the focus will be on statistical physics of particles and fields. The courses will cover starting from thermodynamic laws, entropy, and concepts of canonical ensemble to perturbative renormalization group, lattice system, and beyond spin waves. The first half will contain statistical physics of particles that will include among other things kinetic theory of gases, classical and quantum statistical mechanics. This section will be necessary for the second half of the course, the statistical physics of fields, which will include statistical fields, fluctuations, the scaling hypothesis and many more.

Our interaction with nature takes place essentially with collective entities, rather than a single unit of a physical system. For instance, take a sample gas – a large collection of particles. The characteristic properties of a gas are macroscopic: it occupies a finite volume, it exerts pressure on the boundaries, its temperature changes when heated, it changes phases at certain temperatures etc. Theoretically, knowledge about the constituent particles and their interactions should suffice to reveal the overall characteristic of the system. However, the dynamical equations of motion are differential equations corresponding to each degree of freedom, and they quickly pile up to create a computation nightmare even for a few particles. Since the eighteenth century, physicists have employed probability, statistics, and many mathematical tools and approximation schemes to create a branch of physics called ‘Statistical Physics’ that encapsulates the stochastic nature of large systems. Therefore, we can now deduce the nature of materials not only for gases, but for any kind of phases. Altogether, this is also an essential phase transition all aspiring physicists must undergo in order to master certain philosophical aspects of natural science. Statistical physics also gave rise to many promising fields and frontiers of research, which demonstrate the utmost importance of the topic.

Like all other courses offered by the Community of Physics, the above-mentioned courses are free of cost.

No, we have a strict policy of not making the recordings of the class lectures public. That is why you should not (and must not) miss the lectures.

The prospective followers must complete their applications through the “Application Portal for Track 1B Follower Enrollment 2021-2022”. On the successful submission of their applications, the applicants will be added to a Google Classroom, where they will be asked to upload their academic documents (e.g., academic transcripts). Then the prospective followers will sit for the “Track 1B Entrance Examination 2020-2021” (a take-home test of 100 marks) and upload their answer scripts on Google Classroom. After finishing the aforesaid sections, the followers will be invited to schedule and attend an interview over Skype. Upon successful completion of all the above-mentioned segments, the “Track 1 Follower Enrollment Committee” will make the decision regarding the application. Accepted followers will be provided with CP Moodle accounts to access the courses they intend to enroll.

Perspective followers will be informed through their emails. So, applicants are requested to keep an eye on their inboxes.

The “Application Portal for Track 1B Follower Enrollment 2021-2022” closes on Monday, December 20, 2021. Hurry up and submit your application before it’s too late.