Number of Formations

[Fernell_Orellana_3C]

Hello,

When calculating entropy from Boltzmann's formula, how would one know how many ways a molecule can be arranged in order find out what W is?

[mikaela 3F]

W is equal to the number of possible states raised to the power of the number of particles. Thus, to calculate W, you would need to know how many orientations a molecule has, as well as the number of particles.

[Lexi Brownsberger 2E]

W is equal to the number of orientations^# of molecules. Thus the amount of ways it can be oriented depends on what you are dealing with. For instance, a coin has two sides and thus would have two orientations. To find W of 3 coins, you would do 2^3 = 8 since there are two orientations and 3 "particles".

[Stephanie_manasyan]

Hi! "W' is equal to the number of positions/orientations possible for the situation, raised to the power of molecules or moles. You would be given that value, or would have to figure out how many orientations there are. You would then plug into S= Kb ln(W) to solve for entropy. Hope this helps!