From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Tendency of bodies towards thermal equilibrium
In
physics , thermalisation (or thermalization ) is the process of physical bodies reaching
thermal equilibrium through mutual interaction. In general, the natural tendency of a system is towards a state of
equipartition of energy and uniform
temperature that maximizes the system's
entropy . Thermalisation, thermal equilibrium, and temperature are therefore important fundamental concepts within
statistical physics ,
statistical mechanics , and
thermodynamics ; all of which are a basis for many other specific fields of
scientific understanding and
engineering application .
Examples of thermalisation include:
The hypothesis, foundational to most introductory textbooks treating
quantum statistical mechanics ,
[4] assumes that systems go to thermal equilibrium (thermalisation). The process of thermalisation erases local memory of the initial conditions. The
eigenstate thermalisation hypothesis is a hypothesis about when quantum states will undergo thermalisation and why.
Not all quantum states undergo thermalisation. Some states have been discovered which do not (see below), and their reasons for not reaching thermal equilibrium are unclear as of March 2019
[update] .
Theoretical description
The process of equilibration can be described using the
H-theorem or the
relaxation theorem ,
[5] see also
entropy production .
Systems resisting thermalisation
Some such phenomena resisting the tendency to thermalize include (see, e.g., a
quantum scar ):
[6]
Conventional quantum scars,
[7]
[8]
[9]
[10] which refer to eigenstates with enhanced probability density along unstable periodic orbits much higher than one would intuitively predict from classical mechanics.
Perturbation-induced quantum scarring:
[11]
[12]
[13]
[14]
[15] despite the similarity in appearance to conventional scarring, these scars have a novel underlying mechanism stemming from the combined effect of nearly-degenerate states and spatially localized perturbations,
[11]
[15] and they can be employed to propagate quantum wave packets in a disordered quantum dot with high fidelity.
[12]
Many-body quantum scars.
Many-body localisation (MBL),
[16] quantum many-body systems retaining memory of their initial condition in local observables for arbitrary amounts of time.
[17]
[18]
Other systems that resist thermalisation and are better understood are quantum
integrable systems
[19] and systems with
dynamical symmetries .
[20]
References
^
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^
"NRC: Glossary -- Thermalization" . www.nrc.gov . Retrieved 2018-05-14 .
^ Andersson, Olof; Kemerink, Martijn (December 2020).
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doi :
10.1002/solr.202000400 .
ISSN
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S2CID
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^ Sakurai JJ. 1985.
Modern Quantum Mechanics . Menlo Park, CA: Benjamin/Cummings
^ Reid, James C.; Evans, Denis J.; Searles, Debra J. (2012-01-11).
"Communication: Beyond Boltzmann's H-theorem: Demonstration of the relaxation theorem for a non-monotonic approach to equilibrium" (PDF) . The Journal of Chemical Physics . 136 (2): 021101.
doi :
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hdl :
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ISSN
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PMID
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^
"Quantum Scarring Appears to Defy Universe's Push for Disorder" . Quanta Magazine . March 20, 2019. Retrieved March 24, 2019 .
^ Heller, Eric J. (1984-10-15).
"Bound-State Eigenfunctions of Classically Chaotic Hamiltonian Systems: Scars of Periodic Orbits" . Physical Review Letters . 53 (16): 1515–1518.
Bibcode :
1984PhRvL..53.1515H .
doi :
10.1103/PhysRevLett.53.1515 .
^ Kaplan, L (1999-01-01).
"Scars in quantum chaotic wavefunctions" . Nonlinearity . 12 (2): R1–R40.
doi :
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ISSN
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^ Kaplan, L.; Heller, E. J. (1998-04-10).
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arXiv :
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^ Heller, Eric (5 June 2018).
The Semiclassical Way to Dynamics and Spectroscopy . Princeton University Press.
ISBN
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^
a
b Keski-Rahkonen, J.; Ruhanen, A.; Heller, E. J.; Räsänen, E. (2019-11-21).
"Quantum Lissajous Scars" . Physical Review Letters . 123 (21): 214101.
arXiv :
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^
a
b Luukko, Perttu J. J.; Drury, Byron; Klales, Anna; Kaplan, Lev; Heller, Eric J.; Räsänen, Esa (2016-11-28).
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arXiv :
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^ Keski-Rahkonen, J.; Luukko, P. J. J.; Kaplan, L.; Heller, E. J.; Räsänen, E. (2017-09-20).
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^
a
b Keski-Rahkonen, Joonas (2020).
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^ Nandkishore, Rahul; Huse, David A.; Abanin, D. A.; Serbyn, M.; Papić, Z. (2015). "Many-Body Localization and Thermalization in Quantum Statistical Mechanics". Annual Review of Condensed Matter Physics . 6 : 15–38.
arXiv :
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^ Choi, J.-y.; Hild, S.; Zeiher, J.; Schauss, P.; Rubio-Abadal, A.; Yefsah, T.; Khemani, V.; Huse, D. A.; Bloch, I.; Gross, C. (2016). "Exploring the many-body localization transition in two dimensions". Science . 352 (6293): 1547–1552.
arXiv :
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^ Wei, Ken Xuan; Ramanathan, Chandrasekhar; Cappellaro, Paola (2018). "Exploring Localization in Nuclear Spin Chains". Physical Review Letters . 120 (7): 070501.
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^ Caux, Jean-Sébastien; Essler, Fabian H. L. (2013-06-18).
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