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 Physics at Virginia
ABSTRACT:

The formation of traffic jams on highways, the clustering of particles in shaken granular gases, and the emergence of macroscopically-linked hubs in complex networks are all examples of real-space condensation. This real-space analogue of Bose-Einstein condensation is rather ubiquitous in nonequilibrium systems. In this talk, I shall present some of the insights into this phenomenon garnered from the study of prototypical toy models. After reviewing static properties of the condensation phase transition, I shall focus on two unexpected features recently discovered: (1) Spatial correlations, which generically exist in driven systems, may give rise to a collective motion of the condensate through the system. Using simplified models, the mechanism behind this motion is explained and shown to be rather robust. (2) Rare fluctuations with extremely atypical currents may lead to condensate formation in systems that otherwise do not condense. I will present microscopic and macroscopic approaches to analyze this novel scenario of condensation.

Condensed Matter Seminar
Thursday, November 2, 2017
11:00 AM
Physics Building, Room 313
Note special time.
Note special room.

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