ABSTRACT
Assuming that f of the coefficients are nonvanishing and substituting Eq.(26.3), Eq.(26.5) gives
andia ib
1 1 2 2
HH x f x=
∂= =∂∑ Bk T (26.6) This is called the theorem of equipartition of energy which states that each harmonic term in the Hamiltonian contributes the average energy of the system. Therefore, we can say that energy is equally distributed among the degrees of freedom contributing the kinetic energy and those contributing a quadratic term the potential energy of the system.
