Thermodynamic limit

The thermodynamic limit is reached as the number of particles (atoms or molecules) in a system approaches infinity. The thermodynamic behavior of a system is asymptotically approximated by the results of statistical mechanics as $N\rightarrow \infty$, and calculations using the various ensembles converge.

References

1. A. Compagner "Thermodynamics as the continuum limit of statistical mechanics", American Journal of Physics 57 pp. 106-117 (1989)
2. Daniel F. Styer "What good is the thermodynamic limit?", American Journal of Physics 72 pp. 25-29 (2004)
3. Daniel F. Styer "Erratum: "What good is the thermodynamic limit?"", American Journal of Physics 72 p. 1110 (2004)