GEOSCI 426
Mineral Physics
Professor Lars Stixrude
home syllabus bibliography problems


Introduction. Geological Context

Bonding and Structure of Earth Materials. Packing Fraction, Ionic Model, Pauling's Rules, Structure of the Atom, Bonding in Condensed Matter

Thermodynamics. Generalized Force, Displacement and Material Property, Conjugate Variables,Thermodynamic Potentials, Internal Energy, Legendre Transformations, Fundamental Relations, Maxwell Relations, Thermodynamic Square

Equations of State. Polytropes, Finite Strain, Birch-Murnaghan EOS, Systematics, Thermal Correction, Hugoniot, First Principles EOS

Lattice Vibrations. Monatomic Lattice, Dispersion, Density of States, Debye Approximation, Specific Heat, Quasiharmonicity, Thermodynamics

Electronic Structure. Ions or electrons? Atoms, Molecules, Solids: Metallic, Covalent, Ionic, Density Functional Theory

Elasticity. Tensors, Stress, Strain, Elastic Moduli, Equations of Motion, Elasticity of Composites, Thermoelasticity

Phase Equilibria. Gibss free energy, Chemical Potential, Phase Rule, Classius-Clapeyron Equation

Liquids. Structure, Properties, Mantle Melting

Transport Properties. Deformation, Mass Diffusion, Dislocations, Thermal Conduction, Electrical Conduction

Earth Models. Seismology, Geotherm, Mineralogy, The Core