Classical Time Crystals
We consider the possibility that classical dynamical systems display motion in their lowest-energy state, forming a time analogue of crystalline spatial order. Challenges facing that idea are identified and overcome. We display arbitrary orbits of an angular variable as lowest-energy trajectories fo...
Main Authors: | , |
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Other Authors: | |
Format: | Article |
Language: | en_US |
Published: |
American Physical Society
2013
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Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/76210 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6489-6155 |
Summary: | We consider the possibility that classical dynamical systems display motion in their lowest-energy state, forming a time analogue of crystalline spatial order. Challenges facing that idea are identified and overcome. We display arbitrary orbits of an angular variable as lowest-energy trajectories for nonsingular Lagrangian systems. Dynamics within orbits of broken symmetry provide a natural arena for formation of time crystals. We exhibit models of that kind, including a model with traveling density waves. |
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