What is thermodynamics? What does statistical physics teach us? In the pages of this slim book, we confront the answers. The reader will discover that where thermodynami cs provi des a 1 arge scal e, macroscopi c theory of the ef fects of temperature on physical systems, statistical mechanics provides the microscopic analysis of these effects which, invariably, are the results of thermal disorder. A number of systems in nature undergo dramatic changes in aspect and in their properties when subjected to changes in ambient temperature or pres sure, or when electric or magnetic fields are applied. The ancients already knew that a liquid, a solid, or a gas can represent different states of the same matter. But what is meant by "state"? It is here that the systematic study of magnetic materials has provided one of the best ways of examining this question, which is one of the principal concerns of statistical physics (alias "statistical mechanics") and of modern thermodynamics.

Translated from the Japanese, this title is the first modern book on magnetics, a topic of increasing importance. The book provides the foundation for further development in this field, covering magnetic ions in crystals, and magnetism of spin systems, metals and dilute alloys.

This second edition extends and improves on the first, illustrating through myriad examples, the principles and logic used in extending the simple laws of idealised Newtonian physics and quantum physics into the real world of noise and thermal fluctuations.

Starting with a historical introduction to the study of magnetism - one of the oldest sciences known to man - before considering the most modern theories and observations (magnetic bubbles and soap films, effects of magnetic impurities in metals and spin glasses), this book develops the concepts and the mathematical expertise necessary to understand contemporary research in this field. Magnetic systems are important in technology and applied science, but they are also prototypes of more complex mathematical structures of great importance to theoretical physics. These connections are made repeatedly in this volume. After development of the necessary quantum theory of angular momentum and of interacting electron systems, a number of models which have been successful in the interpretation of experimental results are introduced: the Ising model, the Heisenberg model, the Stoner theory, the Kondo phenomenon, and so on. In the second edition the thorough approach and the main features which made the first edition a popular text have been retained. All important theories are worked out in detail using methods and notation that are uniform throughout. Footnotes and an extensive bibliography provide a guide to the original literature. A number of problems test the reader's skill.

This advanced level textbook is devoted to the description of systems which show ordered magnetic phases. A wide selection of topics is covered, including a detailed treatment of the mean-field approximation as the main paradigm for the phenomenological description of phase transitions. The book discusses the properties of low-dimensional systems and uses Green's functions extensively after a useful mathematical introduction. A thorough presentation of the RKKY and related models of indirect exchange is also featured, and a chapter on surface magnetism, rarely found in other textbooks, adds to the uniqueness of this book.For the second edition, three new chapters have been added, namely on magnetic anisotropy, on coherent magnon states and on local moments. Additionally, the chapter on itinerant magnetism has been enlarged by including a section on paramagnons.

Introduction to the Theory of Magnetism is an introductory text on the theory of magnetism. The discussions are organized around diamagnetism, paramagnetism, and ferromagnetism. The exchange interaction and the resulting many-particle problem for a system of atomic spins are also considered, and the properties of this system are examined in several approximations. This book is comprised of three chapters and begins with a review of the fundamental effects of diamagnetism, paying particular attention to the Bohr-van Leeuwen theorem, the Fermi gas, Landau levels, and cyclotron resonance. The diamagnetism of atoms and ions and of electrons is also described, and the magnetic moment of a free electron gas produced by the intrinsic magnetic moment of the electrons is calculated. The next chapter is devoted to the classical theory of paramagnetism and covers the paramagnetism of free electrons, free atoms (rare earths), and atoms in a crystal. Paramagnetic resonance and the Zeeman effect of free atoms are highlighted. The third and last chapter focuses on ferromagnetism and ferromagnetic resonance, together with the molecular-field approximation, spin waves, high temperatures, and the band model. This monograph will be a valuable resource for students of physics.

Magnetism is one of the oldest and most fundamental problems of Solid State Physics although not being fully understood up to now. On the other hand it is one of the hottest topics of current research. Practically all branches of modern technological developments are based on ferromagnetism, especially what concerns information technology. The book, written in a tutorial style, starts from the fundamental features of atomic magnetism, discusses the essentially single-particle problems of dia- and paramagnetism, in order to provide the basis for the exclusively interesting collective magnetism (ferro, ferri, antiferro). Several types of exchange interactions, which take care under certain preconditions for a collective ordering of localized or itinerant permanent magnetic moments, are worked out. Under which conditions these exchange interactions are able to provoke a collective moment ordering for finite temperatures is investigated within a series of theoretical models, each of them considered for a very special class of magnetic materials. The book is written in a tutorial style appropriate for those who want to learn magnetism and eventually to do research work in this field. Numerous exercises with full solutions for testing own attempts will help to a deep understanding of the main aspects of collective ferromagnetism.

The present book is the second edition of Amikam Aharoni's Introduction to the Theory of Ferromagnetism, based on a popular lecture course. Like its predecessor, it serves a two-fold purpose: First, it is a textbook for first-year graduate and advanced undergraduate students in both physics and engineering. Second, it explains the basic theoretical principles on which the work is based for practising engineers and experimental physicists who work in the field of magnetism, thus also serving to a certain extent as a reference book. For both professionals and students the emphasis is on introducing the foundations of the different subfields, highlighting the direction and tendency of the most recent research. For this new edition, the author has thoroughly updated the material especially of chapters 9 ('The Nucleation Problem') and 11 ('Numerical Micromagnetics'), which now contain the state of the art required by students and professionals who work on advanced topics of ferromagnetism. From reviews on the 1/e: '... a much needed, thorough introduction and guide to the literature. It is full of wisdom and commentary. Even more, it is Amikam Aharoni at his best - telling a story... He is fun to read... The extensive references provide an advanced review of micromagnetics and supply sources for suitable exercises... there is much for the student to do with the guidance provided by Introduction to the Theory of Ferromagnetism.' A. Arrott, Physics Today, September 1997