Thermodynamics of Crystalline Solids (ME 281, Jan.-Apr. 2022)

Topics: Brushing up: Hamiltonian, bra-ket notation, harmonic oscillator, ladder operators, Brillouin zone; crystal potential and lattice dynamics; harmonic phonons, occupation number and second quantization; renormalized and self-consistent phonon theory; anharmonic perturbation expansion - free energy, phonon frequency shift and width; pressure-volume and stress-strain variables; volume correction and wave propagation. If time permits: band structure theory, adiabatic approximation, electron-phonon interaction and pseudopotential perturbation theory.

Introduction to Materials for Quantum Technologies (QT 204, Jan.-Apr. 2022; Jan.-Apr. 2023)

[Jointly with Dr. Chandni U (IAP), Dr. Pavan Nukala (CeNSE) and Prof. Anshu Pandey (SSCU)]

Topics (covered by Navaneeth): Free electron and nearly free electron models, Hartree and Hartree-Fock theories, screening, phonon dispersions and phonon-phonon interactions, electron-phonon interactions.

Thermodynamics (ME 271, Aug.-Dec. 2021)

[Jointly with Prof. Ravikrishna Rayavarappu (ME)]

Topics (covered by Navaneeth): Thermodynamic system, state and property, thermodynamics processes and cycle, thermodynamic equilibrium, temperature, zeroth law of thermodynamics, heat and work, first law of thermodynamics, energy balance for a closed system, properties of a pure, simple, compressible substance, thermodynamic properties of pure substances, phase diagrams, P-V-T diagram, enthalpy and specific heaat, incompressible substance, ideal gas model, first law of thermodynamics for open system /control volume, heat engine and refrigerator, second law of thermodynamics, Kelvin-Plank and Clausius statement - equivalance, reversible and irreversible processes, reversible heat engine, Carnot cycle, absolute temperature scale, Clausius inequality, entropy, thermodynamic property relations(TdS equation), entropy balance for closed systems, increase in entropy principle, entropy balance for open systems, isentropic process and efficiency, Gibbs and Helmholtz functions, concept of exergy/availability, availability balance for a closed system, availability balance for an open system, flow availability, second law efficiency, thermodynamics functions of two independent variables, fundamental thermodynamic functions and Maxwell's relations, Mollier diagram, Clausius-Clapeyron equation, thermodynamic relation involving specific heat, volume expansivity, compresibility, speed of sound in a medium.

Radiative Transport (ME 279, Jan.-Apr. 2021)

Topics: Blackbody radiation, emmissivity, Kirchoff's law, gray surface, view factor, thermal radiative transport in enclosures, radiative transport in absorbing, emitting and scattering media, equation of radiative transport and their solutions, electromagnetic theory for thermal radiation, selected topics in near-field thermal radiation and fluctuational electrodynamics.

Fundamentals of Nanoscale Conduction Heat Transport (ME 280, Aug.-Nov. 2020; Aug.-Nov. 2022)

Topics: General introduction to classical and quantum mechanics, Lagrangian and Hamiltonian description of motion, Poisson brackets, wave-functions and operators in quantum mechanics, Dirac's bra-ket notation, commutators, classical-to-quantum transition, classical and quantum simple harmonic oscillators, crystal lattice definitions, reciprocal lattice, harmonic and anharmonic potential energy of the crystal, phonons as normal modes/eigenmodes of the crystal lattice vibrations, general introduction to statistical thermodynamics, harmonic properties of the phonons - wavelength, wavevector, dispersions, group velocities and heat capacity, Einstein and Debye models, kinetic theory and transport coefficients, phonon-phonon interactions and thermal conductivity.