Welcome.  This site hosts materials developed as part of several NSF collaborative projects, focused on intermediate-level courses in thermal physics. 

These materials were developed through a series of NSF grants at the University of Maine, California State University Fullerton (CSUF), and Iowa State University.  The materials focus on an intermediate-level thermal physics course or course sequence.  At CSUF, the materials were developed and tested in the context of a one-semester hybrid Thermal Physics course using the text by Schroeder.  At UMaine, the context included a two-semester course sequence, a classical thermodynamics course using Carter, followed by a statistical mechanics course 

The CSUF work by Michael Loverude includes some materials developed during prior work at the University of Washington, and many of the tutorials reflect and build upon the results of the collaboration with Christian Kautz, who should be considered lead or co-author on some of these tutorials (Ideal Gas Law, Particulate Model, First Law). 

At UMaine, major contributions were made by graduate students including Brandon Bucy and Trevor Smith. 

The materials hosted here include a set of tutorials intended for small group work. The tutorial approach is inspired by the Tutorials in Introductory Physics from the University of Washington. Most tutorials are four pages, though some are up to eight pages. When appropriate, each tutorial is accompanied by an ungraded quiz that can be used as a pretest as well as a qualitatively focused tutorial homework worksheet.

As we update this page, we will include a less-complete set of in-class 'clicker' type questions.

Currently available: Tutorials for course using Schroeder text

Tutorials and accompanying homework developed at California State University Fullerton (CSUF) for a hybrid 'thermal physics' course using the Schroeder text. The Schroeder approach brings in statistical considerations beginning in chapter 2. In this approach, the second law emerges from the statistical behavior of large systems. Research suggests that the hybrid course is the more common approach [Loverude 2023, Rainey, Vignal, & Wilcox 2020]. Some of these materials would be suitable for either type of course.

Coming soon: Tutorials for course using Carter text

Tutorials developed at the University of Maine (UMaine) for a more traditional classical thermodynamics course (which is then followed by a separate course in statistical physics) using the Carter text, which focuses on bulk matter and classical thermodynamics.