Welcome to the new version of CaltechAUTHORS. Login is currently restricted to library staff. If you notice any issues, please email coda@library.caltech.edu
Published January 2010 | Published
Journal Article Open

The momentum distribution of a one-dimensional ideal gas of N atoms

Boozer, A. D.

Abstract

We calculate the average momentum distribution and the average deviation from this distribution for a one-dimensional ideal gas of N atoms. The calculation is performed using analytical and numerical methods, and the results obtained using the two methods are compared.We use these results to show that in the limit of large N, almost all the possible microstates of an ideal gas have momentum distributions that are very close to the Maxwell distribution. We discuss the significance of this fact for understanding why an ideal gas approaches thermal equilibrium.

Additional Information

© 2010 American Association of Physics Teachers. Received 26 February 2009; accepted 12 August 2009.

Attached Files

Published - Boozer2010p6754Am_J_Phys.pdf

Files

Boozer2010p6754Am_J_Phys.pdf
Files (172.0 kB)
Name Size Download all
md5:25e5c90cad353626ea1a33c2658c8c26
172.0 kB Preview Download

Additional details

Created:
August 21, 2023
Modified:
October 19, 2023