Stochastic Thermodynamics II

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May 17-21, 2021

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Meeting Description: Stochastic thermodynamics has revolutionized our understanding of far-from equilibrium statistical physics over the last few decades, producing deep, powerful results ranging from fluctuation theorems to speed-limit theorems to thermodynamic uncertainty relations. To give a simple example, we now fully understand the transition from the time-symmetric “microscopic” laws of the universe to the time-asymmetric, “macroscopic laws” of the universe. In particular, we now understand that the expected value of entropy always increases, in any system, at any scale. However, there is non-zero probability of it decreasing – and that probability rises as the system shrinks, eventually falling to ½ for microscopic systems. This resolves what had been an open question, central to the foundation of statistical physics, concerning the nature of the second law of thermodynamics.

We feel that the time is ripe for an annual workshop focusing on this fast-developing field, both its theoretical and experimental aspects, and its application to other fields of research. We held the first such workshop recently at the Complexity Science Hub in Vienna, and it was a great success: https://www.csh.ac.at/event/csh-workshop-stochastic-thermodynamics-complex-systems/

Building on that success, the second Workshop on Stochastic Thermodynamics (WOST II) will begin with a day of tutorials next May 13, to be followed by presentations May 17 - May 21. This workshop will be held entirely online, as was the recent WOST I.