Transport Theory

Lecturer: Armen Sedrakian

SoSe 2021, Block course from 24.6. – 4.7  2021, online mode,  time schedule: 10:00-11:30 and 12:00-13:30 on daily basis 

These lectures are devoted to the key concepts of theory of transport of classical and quantum gases, Fermi-liquids and plasmas. The students will learn the fundamental equations of the theory and will acquire hands on experience in computing the transport properties of gases and plasmas under different conditions. Modern methods of Green’s functions of non-equilirbium as well as the method of projection operators will be introduced and the applications on concrete examples will be worked out.

Die Vorlesung vermittelt die Grundkonzepte der Transporttheorie der klassischen und quanten Gasen, Fermi-­Flüssigkeiten und Plasmen. Die Studierenden lernen die Grundgleichungen kenne und erwerben die Kompetenz die Transporteigenschaften von Gasen und Plasmen unter verschiedenen Bedingungen zu analysieren. Es werden moderne theoretische Methoden wie Greenische Funktionen im Nichtgleichgewicht sowie nichtgliechgewichts Projektionsoperatoren vorgestellt und deren Anwendung anhand konkreter Beispiele illustriert.

Content of lectures:

  1. Kinetic theory of gases (Boltzmann equation, Fokker-Planck equation, transport coefficients)
  2. Kinetic theory of plasmas (Landau collision integral, Coulomb logarithm, oscillations in plasmas)
  3. Kinetic of quantum fluids (Fermi-liquids at low temperatures, Bose-gases and superconductors)
  4. Non-equilibrium diagram technique and Green’s functions (Schwinger-Keldysh fromalism, Kadanoff-Baym kinetic equations)
  5. Projection operator technique and Kubo formulae (Non-equilibrium statistical operator, relativistic fluids, dissipation, computation of transport coefficients from Kubo formulas)

 Lecture notes will be made available for students