Out-of-equilibrium dynamics in systems with long-range interactions: characterizing quasi-stationary states

Abstract: Systems with long-range interactions (LRI) display unusual thermodynamical and dynamical properties that stem from the non-additive character of the interaction potential. We focus in this work on the lack of relaxation to thermal equilibrium when a LRI system is started out-of-equilibrium. Several attempts have been made at predicting the so-called quasi-stationary state (QSS) reached by the dynamics and at characterizing the resulting transition between magnetized and non-magnetized states. We review in this work recent theories and interpretations about the QSS. Several theories exist but none of them has provided yet a full account of the dynamics found in numerical simulations.