Caveats
and Extensions
The Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution
does not always govern the distribution of energy in all systems.
How can this be?
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If energy
is flowing into or out of the system, this moves the system out of equilibrium.
For example, a flask of gas exposed to a flame will not have a Maxwell-Boltzmann
distribution of velocities. Note that both the MB and MBS distributions
include temperature as an input. Therefore, systems whose temperature
isn't well-defined can't have MB or MBS distributions. A gas exposed
to a heat source achieves different temperatures in different parts of
the gas, and the temperature changes rapidly with time. This is how we
know that MB and MBS distributions aren't applicable here.
-
If heat
was formerly flowing in or out of a system, then it will take a finite
amount of time to return to equilibrium. For example, if the
flame is removed from the flask of gas described above, the system is not
immediately describable by MB and MBS distributions. If the system
is left alone for a while (amount of time varies from one system to another),
its parts will exchange energy and the MB/MBS distributions will be reestablished.
-
If parts
of the system cannot communicate, then they cannot achieve equilibrium.
If we have two closed flasks of gas at different temperatures, gas
molecules from the two flasks cannot exchange energy with each other.
Therefore, each flask will come to equilibrium, but the two flasks will
not equilibrate with each other. As an extension of this, if the components
only communicate weakly, then equilibrium can take a long time to establish.
Consider a thermos bottle. The molecules of air outside can exchange
heat with the casing, which in turn can exchange heat with the hot beverage
inside. However, the insulation of the bottle makes this a VERY weak
connection between inside and outside, and the beverage can take hours
or days to approach room temperature.
-
The Maxwell-Boltzmann
probability distribution assumes that the particles are heavy enough that
quantum-mechanical effects can be disregarded. Systems with
very light particles (gases of electrons or helium atoms, for example)
equilibrate to other distributions because of quantum mechanical effects.
These distributions are called the Fermi-Dirac and Bose-Einstein distributions,
and they are covered in statistical mechanics courses. For most gases
of molecules (heavier than helium), these effects can be disregarded.
© Andrew M. Rappe
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