ABSTRACT
At first sight, the kinetic theory of gases has very little to do with quantum physics, but it was Max Planck’s use of kinetic theory which explained the hitherto unexplained phenomena of the black body radiation emission spectrum. This in turn led to the beginning of quantum theory. To understand exactly what Planck did, we need to have a knowledge of the field of statistical mechanics – a subject often presented in difficult and abstruse terms. In this chapter, statistical mechanics is introduced from the basic notions using a simple model system and the required equations developed that can be understood at an intermediate level.
