Landau theory of second order phase transitions






Advanced Solid State Physics

Magnetic effects and
Fermi surfaces

Linear response

Crystal Physics

Electron-electron
interactions

Structural phase
transitions

Landau theory
of second order
phase transitions

Superconductivity

Landau theory of second order phase transitions

Outline

Landau theory of second-order phase transitions
Broken symmetry
Order parameter
Free energy functional
Examples

Superconductivity
Superfluidity
Ferromagnetism
Peierls transition
Ferroelectricity

Ginzburg-Landau theory

Reading
Kittel chapter 16: the section on Landau theory
Kittel appendix I: Ginzburg Landau Equations

Resources

Order Parameters, Broken Symmetry, and Topology, by James P. Sethna