Solution

ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2024/ii/paper-4/35b/a/solution

At a first-order transition the Gibbs free energy is continuous but a first derivative such as entropy or volume jumps; there is latent heat. At a second-order transition the first derivatives are continuous while a second derivative, such as heat capacity or susceptibility, is discontinuous or divergent, and there is no latent heat.

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