Structure of Matter 1 (Struttura della Materia 1)

(see the official program and the detailed list of lecture topics - in Italian)

General announcements

Either (or both) the first-semester (Manini) or the second-semester (Onida) class can be held in English upon request.

We invite all students to get involved in peer learning.

Textbooks

A first edition may still be available for purchase, but the second edition is recommended.

Other useful textbooks (with some overlapping contents) include:

• B.H. Bransden and C.J. Joachain, Physics of Atoms and Molecules [covers the first half of the programme in great detail]
• M. Alonso and E. J. Finn, Fundamental University Physics, Vol. III. Quantum and Statistical Physics
• R. Eisberg and R. Resnick, Quantum Physics of Atoms, Molecules, Solids, Nuclei, and Particles - 2ed [includes a bit of nuclear and elementary-particles physics, too]
• J. J. Brehm and W. J. Mullin, Introduction to the Structure of Matter [includes a bit of nuclear and elementary-particles physics, too]
• A. Rigamonti and P. Carretta, Structure of Matter - An Introductory Course with Problems and Solutions [includes many problems and applications]
• L. Salasnich, Quantum Physics of Light and Matter - A Modern Introduction to Photons, Atoms and Many-Body Systems [advanced, better suited for master-level students]
• L. Bonati and F. Mambretti, Esercizi risolti di Struttura della Materia, CUSL Scientifica (2017) [solutions of selected problems taken from previous written tests, in Italian]
• A. Cappai, R. Panai, and L. Colombo, Fisica degli atomi, delle molecole e dei solidi: Esercizi sulla struttura della materia con soluzioni commentate, UNICApress (2024) [solutions of numerous structure-of-matter problems, in Italian]

Educational material, including solved/unsolved problems & useful links

The following list organizes the main topics of the class, mostly with material useful for the "exercises" lectures, including solved problems and selected external links.

1. Spectra and Spectroscopies
   • A basic introduction to spectroscopies
   • The Wikipiedia page on Spectroscopy
2. Atoms
   • One-electron atoms
     • The energy spectrum: problems, and a schematic visualization of the emission spectrum (Bohr-model style);
     • Schrödinger (non-relativistic) wavefunctions: a few problems (radial wavefunctions and expectation values; angular wavefunctions; electric-dipole transition rates);
     • A FAQ;
   • Many-electron atoms/ions
     • Ground state, Hund's rules, coupling to a magnetic field, spin-orbit...;
     • "High-energy" (core) excitations;
     • "Low-energy" optical excitations;
     • Experimental evidence for the violation of the 3^rd of Hund's rules in He spectrum can be retrieved from NIST by inserting "He I" in this form.
3. (Mainly diatomic) molecules. See also:
   • Some basic theory;
   • A few problems with solutions;
   • A java applet displaying the molecular wave functions (molecular orbitals) of the hydrogen molecular ion (H₂⁺) in 3D;
   • Several equilibrium molecular structures, in xyz format.
4. Equilibrium Statistical Mechanics. Additional material:
   • solved problems on spin systems;
   • the ideal Fermi gas;
   • solved problems on the ideal Fermi gas;
   • blackbody radiation;
   • solved problems on blackbody radiation;
   • a general tutorial;
   • a brief summary on Bose-Einstein condensation.
5. Solid-state physics:
   • Images and animations of all point groups;
   • Problems on crystal structures and diffraction experiments;
   • several structures of solids, for 3D visualization in xyz format;
   • An animation illustrating the diamond crystal structure;
   • Photoelectric effect: theory & problems;
   • The Fermi-gas model for electrons in simple metals;
   • Problems on the tight-binding model for band-structure calculations;
   • A nice applet for computing electronic band structure in an arbitrary 1D periodic potential;
   • Nice Fermi-surface drawings;
   • An illustration of the diode functioning;
   • Acoustic and optical phonons in 1 dimension;
   • A nice & useful presentation.
6. Extra material:
   • An applet illustrating the electromagnetic spectrum;
   • A list of questions and answers;
   • A reliable physics encyclopedia, with a nice condensed-matter section;
   • A cute class "Struttura della Materia" by G. Rinaudo at UniTorino (in Italian).
   • A "Forum" with questions & answers on SdM1 problems (in Italian).

Final exam

The final exam consists in a time-ordered pair (written test, oral test), that follow these rules.

• For the written test, a cumulative archive of past tests is available.
• For the oral tests, notes 1-3 of this list of recurring mistakes (in Italian) may provide some useful hint.

The following histogram reports the statistics of the recorded final scores (after written and oral examinations) of SdM1 exams:

Video recordings

End remarks

NM has verified the material of this and most linked sites against major blunders, but bugs may sneak in nonetheless. Debugging email messages are highly welcome! The sources of external material are usually marked, at least implicitly. NM apologizes for any missing reference or acknowledgment...