Eigenstate thermalisation hypothesis

Let AA be a few-body observable, and let Ek|E_k\rangle be an eigenvector of the Hamiltonian of a large interacting many-body system with energy EkE_k. Eigenstate thermalisation hypothesis. The expectation value of AA in this eigenvector equals the thermal average of AA at the mean energy EkE_k:

EkAEk=Athermal,Ek.\langle E_k|A|E_k\rangle = \langle A\rangle_{\mathrm{thermal},E_k}.

The ETH is a central proposed explanation for why closed interacting quantum systems can exhibit thermal behaviour, asserting that individual energy eigenstates reproduce thermal expectation values for few-body observables. The source states the hypothesis but gives no resolution status.

Sources & referencesView supporting material

Primary source

C. Gogolin and J. Eisert, “Equilibration, thermalisation, and the emergence of statistical mechanics in closed quantum systems”, arXiv:1503.07538 (2018).

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