Ludwig Boltzmann

Ludwig Boltzmann
Ludwig Boltzmann
	Boltzmann in 1902
Born	Ludwig Eduard Boltzmann; 20 February 1844; Vienna, Austrian Empire, German Confederation
Died	5 September 1906 (aged 62); Tybein, Princely County of Gorizia and Gradisca, ; Austria-Hungary
Resting place	Vienna Central Cemetery
Alma mater	University of Vienna ; (PhD, 1866; Dr. habil., 1869)
Known for	Boltzmann distribution (1868); Boltzmann equation (1872); Introducing the H-theorem (1872); Boltzmann's entropy formula (1875); Expanding the equipartition theorem (1876); Describing canonical ensemble (1884); Stefan–Boltzmann law (1884);
Spouse	Henriette von Aigentler (m. 1876)
Children	4
Awards	ForMemRS (1899)
	Scientific career
Fields	Statistical physics
Institutions	University of Graz ; (1869–1873, 1876–1890); University of Vienna ; (1873–1876, 1894–1900, 1902–1906); University of Munich ; (1890–1894); University of Leipzig ; (1900–1902);
Thesis	Über die mechanische Bedeutung des zweiten Hauptsatzes der mechanischen Wärmetheorie (1866)
Doctoral advisor	Josef Stefan
Doctoral students	Franc Hočevar (1875); Paul Ehrenfest (1904); Philipp Frank (1907);
Other notable students	Gustav Herglotz; Lise Meitner; Stefan Meyer;
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Ludwig Eduard Boltzmann (/ˈbɒltsmən/,^[1] US: /ˈboʊl-, ˈbɔːl-/;^[1]^[2] German: [ˈluːtvɪç ˈeːduaʁt ˈbɔltsman]; 20 February 1844 – 5 September 1906) was an Austrian mathematician and theoretical physicist. His greatest achievements were the development of statistical mechanics and the statistical explanation of the second law of thermodynamics. In 1877 he provided the current definition of entropy, $S=k_{\rm {B}}\ln \Omega$ , where Ω is the number of microstates whose energy equals the system's energy, interpreted as a measure of the statistical disorder of a system.^[3] Max Planck named the constant $k B$ the Boltzmann constant.^[4]

Statistical mechanics is one of the pillars of modern physics. It describes how macroscopic observations (such as temperature and pressure) are related to microscopic parameters that fluctuate around an average. It connects thermodynamic quantities (such as heat capacity) to microscopic behavior, whereas, in classical thermodynamics, the only available option would be to measure and tabulate such quantities for various materials.^[5]

^ ^a ^b "Boltzmann". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/OED/6830903157. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
^ "Boltzmann constant". Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary. Merriam-Webster.
^ Klein, Martin (1970) [1768]. "Boltzmann, Ludwig". In Preece, Warren E. (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica (hard cover). Vol. 3 (Commemorative Edition for Expo 70 ed.). Chicago: William Benton. p. 893a. ISBN 0-85229-135-3.
^ Partington, J.R. (1949), An Advanced Treatise on Physical Chemistry, vol. 1, Fundamental Principles, The Properties of Gases, London: Longmans, Green and Co., p. 300
^ Gibbs, Josiah Willard (1902). Elementary Principles in Statistical Mechanics. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons.

[OED-1] "Boltzmann". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/OED/6830903157. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)

[2] "Boltzmann constant". Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary. Merriam-Webster.

[EncycloBritan-3] Klein, Martin (1970) [1768]. "Boltzmann, Ludwig". In Preece, Warren E. (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica (hard cover). Vol. 3 (Commemorative Edition for Expo 70 ed.). Chicago: William Benton. p. 893a. ISBN 0-85229-135-3.

[4] Partington, J.R. (1949), An Advanced Treatise on Physical Chemistry, vol. 1, Fundamental Principles, The Properties of Gases, London: Longmans, Green and Co., p. 300

[gibbs-5] Gibbs, Josiah Willard (1902). Elementary Principles in Statistical Mechanics. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons.

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Ludwig Boltzmann
Boltzmann in 1902
Born	Ludwig Eduard Boltzmann (1844-02-20)20 February 1844 Vienna, Austrian Empire, German Confederation
Died	5 September 1906(1906-09-05) (aged 62) Tybein, Princely County of Gorizia and Gradisca, Austria-Hungary
Resting place	Vienna Central Cemetery
Alma mater	University of Vienna (PhD, 1866; Dr. habil., 1869)
Known for	Boltzmann distribution (1868) Boltzmann equation (1872) Introducing the H-theorem (1872) Boltzmann's entropy formula (1875) Expanding the equipartition theorem (1876) Describing canonical ensemble (1884) Stefan–Boltzmann law (1884)
Spouse	Henriette von Aigentler (m. 1876)
Children	4
Awards	ForMemRS (1899)
Scientific career
Fields	Statistical physics
Institutions	University of Graz (1869–1873, 1876–1890) University of Vienna (1873–1876, 1894–1900, 1902–1906) University of Munich (1890–1894) University of Leipzig (1900–1902)
Thesis	Über die mechanische Bedeutung des zweiten Hauptsatzes der mechanischen Wärmetheorie (1866)
Doctoral advisor	Josef Stefan
Doctoral students	Franc Hočevar (1875) Paul Ehrenfest (1904) Philipp Frank (1907)
Other notable students	Gustav Herglotz Lise Meitner Stefan Meyer

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