Dresden 2011 – scientific programme
Parts | Days | Selection | Search | Updates | Downloads | Help
DY: Fachverband Dynamik und Statistische Physik
DY 12: Quantum Dynamics, Decoherence, and Quantum Information II
DY 12.10: Topical Talk
Tuesday, March 15, 2011, 12:45–13:15, ZEU 255
Non-equilibrium quantum relaxation, thermalization and boundary effects — •Heiko Rieger1 and Ferenc Iglói2 — 1Theoretical Physics, Saarland University, D-66041 Saarbrücken, Germany — 2Research Institute for Solid State Physics and Optics, H-1525 Budapest, Hungary
The quantum dynamical evolution of an interacting many-body system prepared in a specific state that is not an eigenstate of the Hamiltonian is an interesting and theoretically challenging problem. Experimentally achieved for instance by fast quenches of external parameters fundamental questions concern the nature of the stationary (i.e. time-translational invariant) state of this non-equilibrium quantum relaxation including the issue of thermalization and potential descriptions by Gibbs ensembles. In this talk we focus on two issues that we address within the context of an integrable model, the transverse Ising chain. The first concerns the characterization of the non-stationary quantum relaxation following a quench: How is thermalization achieved during the time-evolution? How do correlations develop in time towards the stationary state, is there a time dependent correlation length, etc.? The second addresses quantum relaxation and potential thermalization in the presence of boundaries. Obviously an interesting question is whether the time and length scales characterizing the stationary relaxation in the bulk is altered in the vicinity of the boundary, and whether thermalization is achieved there and if yes, how?