So far, we have thought about systems where the number of particles (N) and the total system energy (E) were fixed. This would be a reasonably good description of e.g. a closed container of Ar that is thermally insulated from the environment. Now consider a closed container of Ar with thin (but impermeable), thermally conducting walls in a water bath with fixed temperature. What are the “fixed” properties of the system now? (A) N,V and E, but not T (B) N, V and T, but not E (C) T and V, but not N and E (D) E and V, but not N and T
So far, we have thought about systems where the number of particles (N) and the total system energy (E) were fixed. This would be a reasonably good description of e.g. a closed container of Ar that is thermally insulated from the environment. Now consider a closed container of Ar with thin (but impermeable), thermally conducting walls in a water bath with fixed temperature. What are the “fixed” properties of the system now? (A) N,V and E, but not T Wrong, T is fixed by the water bath (B) N, V and T, but not E Correct. E can fluctuate thermally (C) T and V, but not N and E Wrong, N is conserved the walls are impermeable (D) E and V, but not N and T Wrong, both N and T are fixed