Solitons in Crystalline Processes: Irreversible Thermodynamics of Structural Phase Transitions and Superconductivity

An introduction to the statistical thermodynamics of phase transitions in crystallized solids, polymers and liquid crystals. Written as an introductory treatise with respect to the soliton concept, from structural transitions where the crystal symmetry changes, to magnets and superconductors, describing the role of nonlinear excitations in detail.