Symmetry Breaking Far from Equilibrium.

Abstract

An examination of the Rayleigh-Benard convection experiment shows that the defining features of long-range order and spontaneous symmetry breaking as they occur in equilibrium transitions, are also observed far from equilibrium. The broken symmetry is not, as has been suggested, translational invariance, but rather a discrete symmetry under velocity reversal. Some experimental consequences of these observations are outlined. (Author)

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jan 21, 1981
Accession Number
ADA094972

Entities

People

  • L. Sneddon

Organizations

  • Princeton University

Tags

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Boundaries
  • Convection
  • Equations
  • Equations Of Motion
  • Flow
  • Fluid Flow
  • Heat Energy
  • Heat Transmission
  • Instability
  • Invariance
  • Magnetization
  • Motion
  • Phase Transformations
  • Physics
  • Symmetry
  • Thermal Diffusivity
  • Transitions

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Control Systems Engineering.
  • Ocean-Atmosphere Mesoscale Modeling, Data Assimilation, and Flux Boundary Layers