Thermal Physics

刘玉鑫Peking University Press · ChinaAug 2025

Rating 4.2
Word count
64 words
Chapters
8
ISBN
9787301270196

Tags

Examinations Basic PhysicsCollege ScienceTeaching MaterialThermal PrinciplesPhysics TextbookConcept Derivation

Summary

This is a general physics textbook for physics majors, forming a tiered teaching series with the already published volumes on optics and mechanics and the planned volume on electromagnetism, and based on the author's teaching experience in the School of Physics at Peking University.

Editor's review

This is a general physics textbook on heat, written by Professor Liu Yuxin on the basis of years of teaching experience in the School of Physics at Peking University. Together with the already published volumes on optics and mechanics and the planned volume on electromagnetism, it forms a tiered teaching system. As a textbook, its value lies first in its complete structure and solid explanation of concepts, making it suitable as a companion reader for general physics courses for physics undergraduates. The author has long taught at the front line and should handle with relative clarity the concepts students commonly confuse and the derivations where they commonly get stuck, balancing readability with rigor. Heat itself bridges classical thermodynamics and statistical physics and is an important foundation for later theoretical courses, a connection the book also takes into account pedagogically. In terms of reading context, it is better suited as a synchronized reference for classroom learning, used alongside exercises and lectures, rather than as popular-science reading. For physics students who wish to systematically organize the framework of thermal physics and supplement their lecture notes, this is a reliable teaching text.

Who it's for

A good fit for

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Reading tips

  1. Read each chapter's conceptual introduction first, then use your lecture notes to organize the thread of formula derivations.
  2. Complete the textbook exercises independently after each chapter, marking chapters that connect to statistical physics.
  3. Read alongside the optics and mechanics volumes in the same series to appreciate the unified framework of general physics.

About the publisher

Peking University Press China · Founded in 1979

Peking University Press is a comprehensive university press whose publishing areas cover classical literature, popular science, social culture, world history, Western philosophy, and culture. Its catalogue contains 6,031 titles, with representative books including A Dream of Red Mansions, Relativity: The Special and General Theory (15th Edition) (with Einstein's classic papers on unified field theory and other topics), Elements, Conics, The Aristocratic Families of the Eastern Jin, The Philosophy of Mythology (Volume I), The Philosophy of Mythology (Volume II), and The Origin of Continents and Oceans. Representative authors include Cao Xueqin, Zhou Ruchang, Albert Einstein, Euclid, Apollonius, Tian Yuqing, Schelling, and Xian Gang. The press has developed distinctive strengths in classical Chinese literature and in the translation of Western philosophical classics, while also covering scientific classics and social and cultural studies. As public information is limited, this description is based only on the books in the catalogue and offers no further extrapolation.

Contents

  1. 版权信息
  2. 1
  3. 2
  4. 3
  5. 4
  6. 5
  7. 6
  8. 7

FAQ

Is this book suitable for self-study? What background is needed? The book is positioned as a general physics textbook for physics majors; self-study requires calculus and general physics mechanics. If you already have prior university physics knowledge, you can use it alongside lectures or online courses; readers with no foundation should first fill in mathematics and mechanics before starting this book.
How does this book relate to the optics and mechanics volumes in the same series? According to the publication information, this book forms a tiered teaching series with the already published optics and mechanics volumes and the planned electromagnetism volume, all based on the author's teaching experience in the School of Physics at Peking University. The three connect at the teaching level and can be used together to form a complete reading system for general physics courses.
How does the heat content connect to statistical physics? Heat is a foundational course linking classical thermodynamics and statistical physics. As a general physics textbook, this book lays the conceptual groundwork for later study of statistical physics. Readers are advised to note the correspondence between macroscopic thermodynamic laws and microscopic statistical explanations in preparation for advanced courses.

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About the author

刘玉鑫 Author

Liu Yuxin is an author about whom limited public information is available. Two works can be confirmed: Thermal Physics and Lie Groups and Lie Algebras for Physicists. The subjects span both introductory physics teaching and theoretical-physics reference material. Thermal Physics addresses a foundational course, covering topics such as temperature, heat, and the laws of thermodynamics, while Lie Groups and Lie Algebras for Physicists serves physics learners who need group-theory tools and belongs to the mathematical-physics literature. Together the two books range from basic to advanced, suggesting a writing orientation that combines teaching and specialized exposition. Since no reliable records of birth and death dates, nationality, education, or professional career are available, no inferences are made here; this note merely describes the subject matter and intended use of the works for readers' reference.