Lecture Notes

• Introduction: Emergence in Condensed Matter

• Atoms as Building Blocks; inter-atomic forces.

• Review: Modern physics (elementary concepts in quantum mechanics).

• Phase Transitions

• Crystalline Solids

This beat-up car certainly does not look nearly as pretty as the "girl's best friend" - the diamond. Under the microscope, however, they both look very similar: both the diamond and the iron are simple crystals: neat periodic arrays of atoms

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• Lattice Properties

Phonons, thermal properties, phonon density of states and scattering.

• Free Electron Model of Metals

Electric conductivity and Hall effect, electronic specific heat.

• Band Theory of Solids

Electron in a periodic potential, Fermi surface, classification of solids.

• Semiconductors

Semiconducting materials, electrical and optical properties.

• Semiconductor Devices

Diodes, transistors, opto-electronics, integrated circuits, molecular electronics.

• Superconductivity

Materials and phenomena, BCS description, superconducting junctions and devices.

• Magnetism

Classification of magnetism, ferromagnetic materials, information storage, spin electronics.

• Beyond solids: soft materials

Liquid crystals, polymers, membranes, and more.