Master - Fakultät für Physik und Astronomie

Ruprecht-Karls-University Heidelberg 67
Department of Physics and Astronomy
Code: MVTheo2
Course Title: Condensed Matter Theory
Programme: Master of Science (Physics)
Type: Lecture with exercises
Credit Points: 8
Workload: 240 h
Teaching Hours:
6/week
Mode:
WPM
Term:
SS
Module Parts:
• Lecture on Condensed Matter Theory (4 hours/week)
• Exercise (2 hour/week)
Module Contents:
• Introductory materials: bosons, fermions and second quantisation
• Green‘s functions approach
• Exactly solvable problems: potential scattering, Luttinger liquids etc.
• Theory of quantum fluids, BCS theory of superconductivity
• Quantum impurity problems: Kondo effect, Anderson model, renormalisation group
approach
Depending on the lecturer more weight will be given to solid state theories or to soft matter.
Objective: The goal is to give a comprehensible introduction into the topics and methods of
modern condensed matter theory. The course consists of two parts. The first one starts with
an instruction on the nowadays `traditional´ diagrammatic technique supplemented by a
detailed survey of the problems which are solved using this method, including Landau's
theory of quantum liquids and BCS theory of superconductivity. The second part of the
course deals with problems which require the use of more advanced non-perturbative
approaches such as renormalisation group transformations, bosonisation and Bethe
Ansatz. These concepts will be introduced on the examples of quantum impurity problems
such as potential scattering in Luttinger liquids, inter-edge tunnelling in fractional quantum
Hall probes and Kondo effect in metals and mesoscopic quantum dots.
Necessary/useful Knowledge: Content of PTP4, MKTP1, Complex Analysis
Recommended Literature: To be announced by lecturer
Specialties: Exercises with homework
Form of Testing and Examination: To be defined by lecturer before beginning of course
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