| The quantum casino: simulations |
The distribution of energy
We have seen that the number of ways of arranging particles contributes to the entropy of a physical system. The distribution of energy quanta contributes also. A simple example is to consider quanta of energy distributed between the vibrational energy levels of a set of diatomic molecules. Such energy levels are evenly spaced and can be represented like the rungs of ladders. How many ways are there of distributing x quanta of energy between y molecules?
Here you can vary the number of molecules and the number of quanta available to be distributed between them and the simulation will allow the energy to be exchanged between the molecules in all possible ways at random.
Conclusion
The more quanta of energy there are to be shared between a given number of molecules, the more ways there are of arranging them. Also, the more molecules there are, the more ways there are of sharing.
