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Quasinormal Modes of Nonthermal Fixed Points
Matisse De Lescluze1, Michal P Heller1
1Ghent University, Department of Physics and Astronomy, 9000 Ghent, Belgium.
Physical Review Letters
|September 15, 2025
Summary
A new type of quasinormal mode governs the approach to self-similar time evolution in nonthermal fixed points. These modes reveal power-law contributions, enhancing our understanding of systems from high-energy physics to cold atom gases.
Area of Science:
- Theoretical Physics
- High-Energy Physics
- Statistical Mechanics
Background:
- Quasinormal modes are crucial for system relaxation to equilibrium in various physical systems.
- Existing research focuses on equilibrium states, leaving far-from-equilibrium dynamics less explored.
Purpose of the Study:
- To propose and investigate a novel class of quasinormal modes governing nonthermal fixed points.
- To explore the relevance of these modes in systems ranging from astrophysics to particle accelerators and cold atom gases.
Main Methods:
- Utilizing black hole perturbation theory techniques.
- Computing the spectrum of far-from-equilibrium quasinormal modes for kinetic theory with a Fokker-Planck collision kernel.
- Analyzing isotropic and homogeneous states.
Main Results:
- Identified novel quasinormal modes governing the direct approach to self-similar time evolution of nonthermal fixed points.
- Demonstrated that these modes lead to a tower of progressively more decaying power-law contributions.
- Precisely determined the distribution function characterizing nonthermal fixed points.
Conclusions:
- Quasinormal modes of nonthermal fixed points offer a new framework for understanding far-from-equilibrium dynamics.
- The findings provide improved insights into the behavior of systems relevant to high-energy physics and condensed matter.
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