Statistical Mechanics of Phase Transitions (Oxford Science Publications)

Rating:
Summary: Excellent introduction to phase transitions
Review: I liked this book because it covers in a short, but comprehensive, manner the main approaches to phase transitions (mean-field theories, transfer matrix, series expansions, Monte Carlo simulations, renormalization group) and so it is an excellent introduction to the theoretical methods of phase transitions. I recommend it to anyone who is giving the first steps in the field of phase transitions. I emphasize that the book contains two good chapters devoted to the renormalization group; the author doesn't limit the approach to the introduction of the formalim, but includes also several examples of renormalization group transformations and demonstrates how to use the renormalization group ideas to calculate critical properties.