Related papers: Relaxation of Multitime Statistics in Quantum Syst…
Nonequilibrium states of closed quantum many-body systems defy a thermodynamic description. As a consequence, constraints such as the principle of equal a priori probabilities in the microcanonical ensemble can be relaxed, which can lead to…
I give a highly selective overview of the way statistical mechanics explains the microscopic origins of the time asymmetric evolution of macroscopic systems towards equilibrium and of first order phase transitions in equilibrium. These…
The relaxation of isolated quantum many-body systems is a major unsolved problem connecting statistical and quantum physics. Studying such relaxation processes remains a challenge despite considerable efforts. Experimentally, it requires…
An experimental study of the applicability of mechanics equations to describing the process of equilibrium establishing in an isolated spin system was performed. The time-reversion effects were used at the experiments. It was demonstrated,…
The capabilities of a new approach towards the foundations of Statistical Mechanics are explored. The approach is genuine quantum in the sense that statistical behavior is a consequence of objective quantum uncertainties due to entanglement…
Descriptions of molecular systems usually refer to two distinct theoretical frameworks. On the one hand the quantum pure state, i.e. the wavefunction, of an isolated system which is determined to calculate molecular properties and to…
Multi-time quantum processes are endowed with the same richness as multipartite states, including temporal entanglement and exotic causal structures. However, experimentally probing these rich phenomena leans heavily on fast and clean…
An analytical prediction is established of how an isolated many-body quantum system relaxes towards its thermal long-time limit under the action of a time-independent perturbation, but still remaining sufficiently close to a reference case…
The theory of large deviations has been applied successfully in the last 30 years or so to study the properties of equilibrium systems and to put the foundations of equilibrium statistical mechanics on a clearer and more rigorous footing. A…
We relate progress in statistical mechanics, both at and far from equilibrium, to advances in the theory of dynamical systems. We consider computer simulations of time-reversible deterministic chaos in small systems with three- and…
Although quantum coherence is a basic trait of quantum mechanics, the presence of coherences in the quantum description of a certain phenomenon does not rule out the possibility to give an alternative description of the same phenomenon in…
There is a renewed interest in the derivation of statistical mechanics from the dynamics of closed quantum systems. A central part of this program is to understand how far-from-equilibrium closed quantum system can behave as if relaxing to…
A quantum microcanonical postulate is proposed as a basis for the equilibrium properties of small quantum systems. Expressions for the corresponding density of states are derived, and are used to establish the existence of phase transitions…
The evolution of observable quantities of finite quantum systems is analyzed when the latter are subject to nondestructive measurements. The type and number of measurements characterize the level of decoherence produced in the system. A…
Specific nonequilibrium states of the quantum harmonic oscillator described by the Lindblad equation have been hereby suggested. This equation makes it possible to determine time-varying effects produced by statistical operator or…
There are multiple ways in which a stochastic system can be out of statistical equilibrium. It might be subject to time-varying forcing; or be in a transient phase on its way towards equilibrium; it might even be in equilibrium without us…
The circumstances under which a system reaches thermal equilibrium, and how to derive this from basic dynamical laws, has been a major question from the very beginning of thermodynamics and statistical mechanics. Despite considerable…
In self-gravitating stars, two dimensional or geophysical flows and in plasmas, long range interactions imply a lack of additivity for the energy; as a consequence, the usual thermodynamic limit is not appropriate. However, by contrast with…
We unify two recent results concerning equilibration in quantum theory. We first generalise a proof of Reimann [PRL 101,190403 (2008)], that the expectation value of 'realistic' quantum observables will equilibrate under very general…
We consider nonequilibrium systems with complex dynamics in stationary states with large fluctuations of intensive quantities (e.g. the temperature, chemical potential, or energy dissipation) on long time scales. Depending on the…