title: Anomalous thermalization of nonlinear wave systems.
abstract: We report theoretically and experimentally in an optical system a process of anomalous thermalization of one-dimensional nonlinear Hamiltonian waves. It is characterized by an irreversible evolution of the waves towards a specific equilibrium state of a fundamental different nature than the expected thermodynamic equilibrium state. A kinetic approach of the problem reveals that this phenomenon is due to the existence of a local invariant in frequency space. A novel family of equilibrium distributions is discovered, which is found in quantitative agreement with the numerical simulations.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Physique des Lasers, Atomes et Molecules, UMR-CNRS 8523, Université de Lille, France.
authors.forename: Pierre
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Suret
authors.forename: Stéphane
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Randoux
authors.forename: Hans R
authors.initials: HR
authors.lastname: Jauslin
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Picozzi