Lecture 02 Kinetic Theory of Gases

Physical Electronics I
Kinetic theory of gases
Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema
University of Nairobi
May 2014
Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 1 / 68

Kinetic molecular theory
Kinetic molecular theory is a classical theory useful in explaining

physical phenomena such as
Pressure of a gas in a containing vessel
Heat capacity of metals
Average speed of electrons in a semiconductor
Electrical noise in electrical conductors

Gas pressure
We consider an ensemble of N monatomic gas particles in a vessel

with rigid walls having a volume V
We assume pressure P of the gas is due to collisions between the gas
particles and the walls of the vessel
The force f acting on the walls due to these collisions is from
Newton’s second law of motion
dp
f =
dt
where p = mv is the mean particle momentum with m, the mass of a
particle and v its average speed

Gas pressure
We assume
Gas particles are in constant motion in random directions
N is su¢ ciently large so that on average, as many particles move in
one direction as any other - centre of mass of ensemble is at rest
The range of interparticle interactions is short compared to interparticle
separation - interparticle interaction force is negligible except during a
collision
Volume of a gas particle is small compared to volume of vessel
Duration of a collision is negligible compared to time spent in free
motion between collisions
Each particle moves at constant velocity between collisions and
gravitational e¤ects and other external e¤ects can be ignored
All collisions are elastic resulting in only a transfer of k. E
Newtonian mechanics is applicable in describing particle motion

Gas pressure
Let v 2 N be the mean-square speed of a gas particle in the ensemble

averaged over the whole ensemble
We suppose that the vessel is a cube of sides a
For a particle moving toward one of the walls, we can resolve particle
velocity into a component normal to the wall, say vx and a
component parallel to the wall, say vy

Gas pressure
A perfect collision with the wall does not a¤ect vy but vx is reversed
Hence, change in particle momentum is
∆px = mvx ( mvx ) = 2mvx
After collision, the particle travels toward the opposite wall and
collides with it to return to the …rst wall again

Gas pressure
The time interval between two successive collisions with the …rst wall
is
2a
∆t =
vx
The x-directed particle momentum changes by ∆px every ∆t
Hence, the time rate of change of momentum is
∆px 2mvx m
fx = = = vx2
∆t 2a/vx a

Gas pressure
Total pressure exerted to the wall due to the collisions is given by the
contributions from all x-directed particles to the force per unit area
exerted on the wall
Thus
N
total force on the wall

m
a ∑ vx2,i m N
Nm 2
P=
area of the wall
= i =1
a2
=
a3 ∑ vx2,i = V
vx N
i =1
where
N
1
vx2 N
=
N ∑ vx2,i
i =1
is the mean-square x-component of particle velocity and V = a3 , the

volume of the vessel

Gas pressure
With particles in random motion and colliding with each other, we

expect
vx2 N = vy2 N = vz2 N
so that the mean-square velocity in a general direction is given by
v2 N
= vx2 N
+ vy2 N
+ vz2 N
= 3 vx2 N
Hence
Nm 2 1
v N = ρ v2 N
P=
3V 3
where ρ = Nm/V is the mass density of the gas

Gas pressure
We can re-write this expression as
2 1
PV = N m v2 N
3 2
and recognise that

1
m v2 N
2
is the mean k. E of a particle
From experiment, we have
N
PV = RT
NA
where R = 8, 314 Jmol 1K 1 is the universal gas constant

Gas pressure
Comparing, we note that the mean particle k. E is given by

1 3
m v2 N
= kT
2 2
where
R 23 1
k= = 1, 38 10 JK
NA
is Boltzmann constant

Heat capacity of a gas
Internal energy of a gas and its temperature will increase when heat is
applied to the gas at constant volume so that no mechanical work is
done in expanding the gas
Rise in internal energy per unit rise in temperature is de…ned as the
heat capacity of the gas
For a mole of gas, this heat capacity is known as the molar heat
capacity, Cm

Total internal energy E of a mole of a non-interacting monatomic gas

is purely kinetic and has value
1 3
Ek = NA m v2 N
= NA kT
2 2
Hence
∆ dE 3 3 1 1
Cm = = NA k = R 12, 5 JK mol
dT 2 2

Maxwell’s principle of the equipartition of energy assigns an average

kinetic energy of kT /2 to each independent energy term contributing
to total energy of a collection of particles in thermal equilibrium
A monatomic particle can only have translational kinetic energy
Hence
1 2 1 2 1 2
mv + mvy + mvz
Ek =
2 x 2 2
Each term is known as a degree of freedom and we see that a
monatomic particle has three degrees of freedom
The average k. E of such a monatomic particle is hence
kT
Ek ,ave = 3
2

A rigid diatomic molecule such as O2 can acquire energy as

translational and rotational k. E as shown below
Ix=0
x x
z z I
z
y y Iy
Degrees of freedom for diatomic molecule

Assuming inertia about the molecular axis is negligible, moment of

inertia in the axial direction is zero
Energy of the molecule is hence
1 2 1 2 1 2 1 1
E = mvx + mvy + mvz + Iy ω 2y + Iz ω 2z
2 2 2 2 2
= translational k. E + rotational k. E
This molecule hence has …ve degrees of freedom and average

molecular energy, Ek ,ave = 5(kT /2)
Thus
5 1 1
Cm = R 20, 8 JK mol
2

In practice, atoms in a molecule will vibrate by stretching or bending

the bond which is assumed to behave like an elastic spring
At room temperature, addition of heat will a¤ect only the
translational and rotational kinetic energy
Vibrational energy is quantised and energy required to excite a more
energetic vibrational mode is much higher than the energy of many of
the molecules
Hence, vibrational k. E remains essentially constant and does not
contribute to the heat capacity of the gas

Heat capacity of a solid
Atoms within a solid can only move relative to one another through
vibrations about the equilibrium interatomic separation
A simple model of the solid visualises the atoms as connected
together through elastic springs
For a given atom, the p. E expressed as a function of displacement
from equilibrium position is such that a restoring force proportional to
the displacement is established
The atom can thus acquire energy by vibrating in the three spatial
directions in the solid (i.e. execute simple harmonic motion)

In the x-direction,
1 2 1
Ex = mv + sx x 2
2 x 2
where sx is the spring sti¤ness in the x-direction
The total energy is hence
1 2 1 2 1 2 1 1 1
E = mv + mvy + mvz + sx x 2 + sy y 2 + sz z 2
2 x 2 2 2 2 2

For SHM, we have

p. E + k. E = const
with
mean p. E = mean k. E
From Maxwell’s principle of equipartition of energy, an atom in a solid
hence has total average energy of 6 (kT /2)
The total internal energy in a solid is hence
kT
E = NA 6 = 3RT
2
Thus
1 1
Cm = 3R 25 JK mol
known as the Dulong-Petit rule

Distribution of molecular velocities
We assume particles in a monatomic gas are perfectly elastic spheres

so that in collisions, only transfer of k. E occurs
We assume also that their motion is truly random so that laws of
probability apply in calculating average velocities and energies

Consider a collision between two particles in an ensemble of N

particles moving with velocities v1 and v2 resp.
After collisions, these particles move o¤ from each other with
veloicties v3 and v4 resp.
For perfectly elastic collisions, k. E is conserved so that
1 2 1 2 1 1
mv + mv2 = mv32 + mv42
2 1 2 2 2
or
v12 + v22 = v32 + v42

Probability that a collision occurs between the two particles is

proportional to the fractions α (v1 ) and α (v2 ) of particles in the
ensemble with velocities v1 and v2 resp.
The rate at which such collisions occur is then Aα (v1 ) α (v2 ), where
A is a constant of proportionality

Suppose the opposite occurs, i.e. particles with velocities v3 and v4

colliding and moving o¤ with v1 and v2 resp.
For a gas in thermal equilibrium, we expect the rate at which such
collisions occur to be equal to that of the forward event, i.e.
A0 α (v3 ) α (v4 ) = Aα (v1 ) α (v2 )

Since the particles trace the same paths, then A0 = A and
α (v3 ) α (v4 ) = α (v1 ) α (v2 )
or
ln Aα (v3 ) + ln α (v3 ) = ln α (v1 ) + ln α (v2 )
Comparing this with the expression from the conservation of energy,
we conclude that
ln α (v ) ∝ v 2
or
α (v ) = A exp βv 2
where A and β are positive constants with the negative exponent
chosen to re‡ect the rapidly decreasing number of particles with
higher velocities

We de…ne a velocity space in which particle speed v is the radius of a

spherical surface described by the tip of the velocity vector !
v
This is justi…ed for an isotropic gas in which as many particles move
with speed v = j ! v j in one direction as in another
The number of particles per unit volume per unit velocity having v in
a given direction is nv (v )
Thus
nv (v ) = 4πv 2 α (v )
where 4πv 2 is the area of a spherical surface with radius v in the
velocity space

Now nv (v ) dv must be the number density of particles with velocities

in the interval [v , v + dv ]
These are contained in a shell of radius v and thickness dv
The total number of particles in the ensemble is hence
Z∞
N= nv (v ) dv
0
or
Z∞
N = 4πA v 2 exp βv 2 dv
0

Let
x = v ) dx = dv
and
1
dy = v exp βv 2 dv ) y = exp βv 2
2β
Thus
Z∞ Z∞
N = 4πA v exp 2
βv 2
dv = xy j0∞ ydx
0 0
Z∞
1 1
= 4πAv exp βv 2
j0∞ + 4πA exp βv 2 dv
2β 2β
0

The …rst term is zero since we can expect the exponential factor to go
to zero much more rapidly than the linear factor as v ! 0
Hence
Z∞
1
N = 4πA exp βv 2 dv
2β
0
Let
Z∞
Iv = exp βv 2 dv
0

We rede…ne this as
0 10 1
Z∞ Z∞
Iv2 = @ exp βv 2 dv A @ exp βu 2 du A
0 0
Z∞Z∞
= exp β u2 + v 2 dudv
0 0
Now let
∂u ∂u
u = r cos θ, ) = cos θ, = r sin θ
∂r ∂θ
and
∂v ∂v
v = r sin θ, ) = sin θ, = r cos θ
∂r ∂θ

We then have
∂u ∂u
cos θ r sin θ
dudv = ∂r ∂θ drd θ = drd θ
∂v
∂r
∂v
∂θ
sin θ r cos θ
or
dudv = rdrd θ
Thus
Z∞ π/2
Z Z∞
π
Iv2 = exp βr 2
rdrd θ = r exp βr 2 dr
2
0 0 0
" #∞
π exp βr 2
=
2 2β
0
or r
π 1 π
Iv2 = ) Iv =
4β 2 β
Hence r r
1 1 π π π
N= 4πA = A
2β 2 β β β
A particle of mass m moving with velocity v has a kinetic energy
1 2
Ek = mv
2
The total k. E of the ensemble is hence
Z∞ Z∞
1 2
E = mv nv (v ) dv = 2πmA v 4 exp βv 2 dv
2
0 0
r
3 π
= 2πmA
8β2 β

From Maxwell’s principle of equipartition of energy, we have

3
E = NkT
2
Thus r
3 3 π
NkT = 2πmA
2 8β2 β
or r r
3 π π 3 π
A kT = 2πmA
2 β β 8β2 β

From which
m 3/2
A=N
2πkT
and
m
β=
2kT
We therefore have
m 3/2 mv 2
nv (v ) = 4πN v 2 exp
2πkT 2kT
known as the Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution function for particle

velocities

Distribution of molecular energy
For a monatomic gas, the total energy is purely translational kinetic

energy
Hence for such a particle
1 2
E = Ek = mv ) dE = mvdv
2

Let nE (E ) be the number density of particles per unit energy having

energy E
Thus, nE (E ) dE is the number density of particles having energies in
the interval [E , E + dE ]
This will be equal to the number density of particles with velocities in
the range [v , v + dv ] since a particle having energy E must be
moving with velocity v

Hence
nE (E ) dE = nv (v ) dv
or
dv
nE ( E ) = nv ( v )
dE
We can therefore write
m 3/2 mv 2 1
nE (E ) = 4πN v 2 exp
2πkT 2kT mv
or
m 3/2 v E
nE (E ) = 4πN exp
2πkT m kT

But r
2E
v=
m
Thus
r
m 3/2 1 2E E
nE (E ) = 4πN exp
2πkT m m kT
3/2 p
2 1 E
= p N E exp
π kT kT
which is Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution function for particle energies

The total internal energy distribution in a monatomic gas therefore
follows a Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution function

Real gas particles will have an average energy of 3kT /2 but

individual energies will vary widely
For N particles, the probability that a particle has energy in the range
[E , E + dE ] is
nE ( E )
P (E ) = dE
N
This means that
Z∞
nE ( E )
dE = 1
N
0

When total energy includes vibrational and rotational k. E as well as

interaction energy, number density of particles per unit energy will
di¤er from the Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution
The distribution will however contain the Boltzmann factor so that we
can write
nE ( E ) E
= C exp
N kT
where in this case,
E = Ek + Ep
and C is a constant of proportionality
C depends on the particular system and is a weak function of the
total energy in general

Example: di¤erent velocities in a gas
Example: Derive expressions for the average speed, vave , the most
probable speed, v and the rms speed, vrms for the molecules in a gas
given that the velocity distribution follows Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution
function for velocities. Hence determine the numerical values of these
speeds for a gas of non-interacting electrons at 300 K .
Solution:
Number of molecules with speeds in the range [v , v + dv ] is
m 3/2 mv 2
dN = nv (v ) dv = 4πN v 2 exp dv
2πkT 2kT
By de…nition, the mean speed is given by
Z∞ Z∞
vdN vnv (v ) dv r
0 0 8kT
vave = = =
Z∞ Z∞ mπ
dN nv (v ) dv
0 0
Solution:
The mean-square speed is given by
Z∞ Z∞
v 2 dN v 2 nv (v ) dv
0 0 3kT
v2 = = =
N Z∞ Z∞ m
dN nv (v ) dv
0 0
Thus r
3kT
vrms =
m

Solution:
Since the probability that a molecule has speed in the range [v , v + dv ] is
nv (v ) dv /N, we di¤erentiate nv (v ) w.r.t. v and equate to zero to
determine where nv (v ) is maximum. Thus
r
2kT
v =
m
For electrons, m = 9, 1 10 31 kg so that
vave = 1, 08 105 ms 1
vrms = 9, 53 104 ms 1
v = 1, 17 105 ms 1

Heat, thermal ‡uctuations and noise
We have seen that temperature is a measure of the average k. E of

molecules
Thermal equilibrium between two objects therefore implies that the
two objects are at the same temperature, in general
Consider a solid immersed in a monatomic gas and under equilibrium
with the gas

Gas molecules move randomly with a mean k. E given by

1 2 3
Ek ,gas = mgas vgas = kT
2 2
Atoms in the solid vibrate with a mean vibrational k. E
1 2 3
Ek ,solid = msolid vsolid = kT
2 2
The gas molecules collide with the atoms in the surface region of the
solid and exchange k. E with these

With the system in thermal equilibrium, gas molecules and atoms in

the solid have the same average k. E
Over a long time, the net transfer of k. E between the two objects is
zero - the meaning of thermal equilibrium

Suppose the solid is at a higher temperature than the gas, hence

atoms in the solid have higher average k. E
On collision, an atom in the solid will transfer k. E to a gas molecule
This transfer of energy will continue until the two objects attain the
same temperature
They are then said to have equilibriated

The amount of energy transferred from the atoms in the solid to the
gas molecules is known as heat
Heat represents energy transfer from the hotter solid to the cooler gas
through the random collisions between atoms and molecules

Even under thermal equilibrium, the instantaneous energy transfer is

non-zero since some atoms and molecules have energy either above or
below the average value
Instantaneous energy transfer therefore varies randomly about zero

Consider a conductor of resistance R with a capacitor of capacitance
C connected across it as shown
R
2 C
Vn
Thermal noise in a resistor

The average energy stored in the capacitor is given by
1 D E
Eave = C V (t )2
2 t
D E
2
where V (t ) is the time-average square voltage or mean-square
t
voltage
The mean energy stored in a system under thermal equilibrium is

from Maxwell’s principle of equipartition of energy
1
Eave = kT
2
Hence
1 D E 1
C V (t )2 = kT
2 t 2
or D E kT
V (t )2 = Vn2 =
t C

For an RC circuit, only the frequency components below ω c = 1/RC

contribute signi…cantly to Vn2
If we de…ne
1
B=
2πRC
as the bandwidth of this circuit
Then
1
C =
2πRB
and
Vn2 = 2πkTRB

For random voltages, it is usual to de…ne a bandwidth Bn and call it

the noise bandwidth as
2 Z∞
∆ 1
Bn = jA (jf )j2 df
A0
0
where A0 is the value of the DC gain and A (jf ) the frequency

response of the system
For the RC circuit, we therefore have
Z∞ Z∞
1 1 dω
Bn = 2
df = 2
1 + ω2 (RC ) 1 + ω2 (RC ) 2π
0 0
We put
sec2 x
ωRC = tan x ) d ω = dx
RC
Thus
Z
π/2
1 sec2 x 1
Bn = 2
dx =
1 + tan x 2πRC 4RC
0
Therefore
C = 4RBn
and
Vn2 = 4kTRBn
Johnson or thermal noise in a conductor

Thermally activated processes
Many physical and chemical processes depend strongly on

temperature
For these processes, the rate of change is proportional to a factor
exp ( EA /kT ) where EA is a characteristic energy parameter for the
process
Such temperature dependence is known as Arrhenius-type
temperature dependence
Examples may include the rate of decay of food in a fridge and
di¤usion of impurities in a solid
Processes with this type of temperature dependence are referred to as
thermally activated processes

Consider impurity atom di¤usion through a solid

An impurity atom in an interstitial site will move to a new
neighbouring site if it has su¢ cient energy to push the host atoms
apart
There is hence a potential energy barrier EA to this motion

Both impurity and host atoms vibrate about their equilibrium

positions with a distribution of energy and a continuous exchange of
energy
In thermal equilibrium, energy distribution can be expected to obey a
Boltzmann distribution function
The average k. E is vibrational and equal to 3kT /2
Usually,
3
EA >> kT
2
On average therefore, an impurity atom will not overcome this
potential energy barrier

The rate of jumps an impurity atom makes from one interstitial site
to another is referred to as di¤usion
This depends on
Number of times a jump in the given direction is attempted -
vibrational frequency in the given direction
Probability that an atom has su¢ cient energy to accomplish the jump

Let U be the potential energy of the impurity atom in an excited or

activated state
Let also, Uave be its mean potential energy
Then to surmount the potential energy barrier and move to a new
site, we must have
EA U Uave

EA is thus an activation energy as shown below
U*
EA
Uave
x
A B
displacement
Potential energy barrier to a di¤using impurity atom

For N impurity atoms, then at any instant, nE (E ) dE have kinetic

energy in the range [E , E + dE ]
The Probability that E > EA is given by
number of impurity atoms with E > EA
P (E > EA ) =
total number of impurity atoms
or
Z∞
nE (E ) dE
EA EA
P (E > EA ) = = A exp
N kT
where A is a dimensionless constant but may depend weakly on
temperature

The frequency at which the impurity atoms surmount the energy
barrier is hence
EA
ϑ = frequency of attempts P (E > EA ) = ϑ0 A exp
kT
U Uave
= ϑ0 A exp
kT
the Arrhenius rate equation
An interstitial impurity atom in a 2-D structure has four possible
voids it can jump to as shown in the two-dimensional solid
host atom
y
x
impurity atom interstitial void
Impurity di¤usion through a solid host

These voids are in the directions given by the direction angles

φ : 0, π2 , π, 3π
2 measured w.r.t. the x-axis
Each jump is in a random direction along one of the direction angles
As an impurity atom jumps from one void to another, it leaves behind
a vacant void
Thus, after N jumps over a time interval t, the impurity atom will
have accomplished a displacement
p
l = x2 + y2

Let a be the separation of the closest pair of voids

Then each jump constitutes a displacement along x of
x = a cos φ
Thus, x can be any distance
fa, 0, a, 0g

After the N jumps, the average displacement is close to zero

The total square displacement in the x-direction is however
x 2 = a2 ∑ cos2 φi
i
Of these N jumps, only those in the direction φ = 0 and φ = π

contribute to x 2

For N su¢ ciently large, this is N/2 and

N 2
x2 = a
2
Similar arguments yield
N 2
y2 = a
2
so that
l 2 = Na2

The time between two adjacent jumps is 1/ϑ so that

N
t=
ϑ
or
N = ϑt
Hence
l 2 = a2 ϑt = 2Dt
where
1 2
D= a ϑ
2
is the di¤usion coe¢ cient

Thus
1 2 EA EA
D= a ϑ0 A exp = D0 exp
2 kT kT
We can therefore write p
l= 2Dt
the root mean-square displacement

Lecture 02 Kinetic Theory of Gases

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Lecture 02 Kinetic Theory of Gases

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Physical Electronics I

Kinetic theory of gases

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 1 / 68

Kinetic molecular theory is a classical theory useful in explaining

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 2 / 68

We consider an ensemble of N monatomic gas particles in a vessel

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 3 / 68

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 4 / 68

Let v 2 N be the mean-square speed of a gas particle in the ensemble

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 5 / 68

∆px = mvx ( mvx ) = 2mvx

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 6 / 68

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 7 / 68

total force on the wall

is the mean-square x-component of particle velocity and V = a3 , the

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 8 / 68

With particles in random motion and colliding with each other, we

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 9 / 68

We can re-write this expression as

and recognise that

where R = 8, 314 Jmol 1K 1 is the universal gas constant

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 10 / 68

Comparing, we note that the mean particle k. E is given by

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 11 / 68

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 12 / 68

Total internal energy E of a mole of a non-interacting monatomic gas

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 13 / 68

Maxwell’s principle of the equipartition of energy assigns an average

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 14 / 68

A rigid diatomic molecule such as O2 can acquire energy as

Degrees of freedom for diatomic molecule

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 15 / 68

Assuming inertia about the molecular axis is negligible, moment of

This molecule hence has …ve degrees of freedom and average

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 16 / 68

In practice, atoms in a molecule will vibrate by stretching or bending

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 17 / 68

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 18 / 68

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 19 / 68

For SHM, we have

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 20 / 68

We assume particles in a monatomic gas are perfectly elastic spheres

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 21 / 68

Consider a collision between two particles in an ensemble of N

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 22 / 68

Probability that a collision occurs between the two particles is

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 23 / 68

Suppose the opposite occurs, i.e. particles with velocities v3 and v4

A0 α (v3 ) α (v4 ) = Aα (v1 ) α (v2 )

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 24 / 68

Since the particles trace the same paths, then A0 = A and

α (v3 ) α (v4 ) = α (v1 ) α (v2 )

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 25 / 68

We de…ne a velocity space in which particle speed v is the radius of a

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 26 / 68

Now nv (v ) dv must be the number density of particles with velocities

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 27 / 68

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 28 / 68

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 29 / 68

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 30 / 68

Dr.-Ing. Wilfred Mwema (UoN) Kinetic theory of gases 05/16 32 / 68

From Maxwell’s principle of equipartition of energy, we have