From molecule to mole: the canonical partition function

Abstract

This chapter discusses the canonical partition function (Q). It notes that the molecular partition function contains all the thermodynamic information about a system of independent particles at equilibrium. Additionally, the chapter highlights the molecular partition function as being the number of energy states accessible to the system at a given temperature. The chapter notes the system wherein energy states are no longer constant and fluctuate over time. The canonical partition function Q does not rely on the premise of individual particles interacting with each other. Additionally, Q provides a major tool that can be used when looking at increasingly complex situations such as understanding the relationship between the molecular partition function and the canonical partition function.