Nonequilibrium dynamics of scalar fields in a thermal bath
(2009) Annals of Physics — Vol. 324, n° 6, p. 1234-1260 (2009)
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- Abstract
- We study the approach to equilibrium for a scalar field which is coupled to a large thermal bath. Our analysis of the initial value problem is based on Kadanoff-Baym equations which are shown to be equivalent to a stochastic Langevin equation. The interaction with the thermal bath generates a temperature-dependent spectral density, either through decay and inverse decay processes or via Landau damping. In equilibrium, energy density and pressure are determined by the Bose-Einstein distribution function evaluated at a complex quasi-particle pole. The time evolution of the statistical propagator is compared with solutions of the Boltzmann equations for particles as well as quasi-particles. The dependence on initial conditions and the range of validity of the Boltzmann approximation are determined.
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Anisimov, A., Buchmüller, W., Drewes, M., & Mendizabal, S. (2009). Nonequilibrium dynamics of scalar fields in a thermal bath. Annals of Physics, 324(6), 1234-1260. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aop.2009.01.001 (Original work published 2009)