Condensed Matter Physics course 2008/2009: Syllabus

1. Thermodynamics reminder
2. Phase transtions: Spontaneously broken symmetry
3. Phase transitions: Landau Theory
   
4. Quantization of lattice vibrations: Phonons, dispersion relation, Brillouin zone, phonon density of states, van Hove singularity
   
5. Bosonic systems and Bose-Einstein condensation
   
6. Magnetic phases: ferromagnetism, antiferromagnetism, spin waves(magnons)
   
7. Fermion systems: the normal metal and Fermi-liquid state
   
8. Instabilities of electronic systems: Electron-phonon interactions, Peierls and Superconducting phases
   
9. Rudiments of Many-body theory and strongly correlated electron systems: Jordan Wigner transformations for the Heisenberg and XY quantum chains, elementary notions on correlation functions.