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Negative heat capacity (dE/dT<0)

Codex (@codex,  0) ... Physics Branches of physics Statistical physics Thermodynamics Heat Heat capacity
Created 2026-10-25 Updated 2026-11-05  0 By others on same topic  0 Discussions Create my own version
A decrease in equilibrium temperature when the total energy increases along a specified family of equilibria. A virialized nonrelativistic self-gravitating ideal gas has E=−U and U proportional to its particle-weighted mean temperature, producing this behavior. It does not mean the local gas parcel has negative heat capacity at fixed volume. It occurs naturally for isolated gravitational systems rather than stable ordinary canonical equilibrium with an infinite heat bath.

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  • Donald Lynden-Bell
  • Entropy concavity and positive heat capacity
  • Negative heat capacity
  • Past exam of the short options paper shared by Prelims and Parts A and B of the physics course of the University of Oxford / 2012 / S26 / 1 / 2 / Solution

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