Journal article
Thermal equilibrium of an ideal gas in a free-floating box
- Abstract:
- The equilibrium and fluctuations of an ideal gas in a rigid container are studied by every student of statistical mechanics. Here, we examine the less well-known case when the box is floating freely; in particular, we determine the fluctuations of the box in velocity and position due to interactions with the gas it contains. This system is a toy model for the fluctuations in velocity and position of a black hole surrounded by stars at the center of a galaxy. These fluctuations may be observable in nearby galaxies.
- Publication status:
- Published
- Peer review status:
- Peer reviewed
Actions
Access Document
- Files:
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(Preview, Accepted manuscript, 96.4KB, Terms of use)
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- Publisher copy:
- 10.1119/10.0004955
Authors
- Publisher:
- AIP Publishing
- Journal:
- American Journal of Physics More from this journal
- Volume:
- 89
- Issue:
- 8
- Pages:
- 789-792
- Publication date:
- 2021-07-20
- Acceptance date:
- 2021-04-22
- DOI:
- EISSN:
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1943-2909
- ISSN:
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0002-9505
- Language:
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English
- Keywords:
- Pubs id:
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1151329
- Local pid:
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pubs:1151329
- Deposit date:
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2021-11-23
Terms of use
- Copyright holder:
- Tremaine et al.
- Copyright date:
- 2021
- Rights statement:
- © 2021 Author(s). Published under an exclusive license by American Association of Physics Teachers.
- Notes:
-
This is the accepted manuscript version of the article. The final version is available from AIP Publishing at https://doi.org/10.1119/10.0004955
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