3rd International Workshop on Matter Out of Equilibrium

Welcome

The aim of this workshop is to identify well-defined scientific challenges involving non-equilibrium states of matter, such as amorphous solids (glasses, gels, etc.), living and active matter, and many other soft materials, with the purpose of articulating and developing a strong scientific collaboration among groups in different parts of the world investigating systems out of thermodynamic equilibrium and their interdisciplinary applications.

Scope

Nowadays, most aspects of the physics of systems in thermodynamic equilibrium are well understood, thanks to a powerful mathematical and physical framework provided by the statistical thermodynamics. The situation for systems out of equilibrium, however, is far less cheerful, and in some instances, there is a complete lack of any fundamental understanding. As the number and relevance of issues involving non-equilibrium conditions become more and more apparent in many research areas, particularly in soft condensed matter, there is an urgent demand to bring forward new tools and concepts to fully tackle them. In order to face the fundamental challenges of the study of out-of-equilibrium systems, the Mexican Soft Matter community has launched an initiative to articulate its strengths in the experimental, theoretical and numerical approaches to the study of non-equilibrium matter. An important aspect of this initiative is the celebration of this 2nd. International Workshop of Matter out of Equilibrium, in which we shall focus our efforts in understanding two of the best characterized and most paradigmatic examples of not-yet-understood categories of non-equilibrium materials: glasses and gels.

Glasses and gels can be defined as amorphous solids formed by cooling a glass (or gel)-forming liquid below its glass (or gel) transition temperature. Despite the abundant literature with experimental and theoretical work aimed at explaining the properties of these systems, there is still not a fundamental interpretation that is generally accepted. As such, glasses and gels are systems that offer a playground for the convergence of several disciplines of research, such as non-linear science, soft matter physics, statistical mechanics, chemistry and biology. We have assembled a program with experts in fields of glasses, gels, soft, active and granular matter.

An important and relevant aspect of the Workshop is the possibility of having an open and friendly atmosphere in which all the participants are encouraged to organize rounds or groups of discussions to identify those problems and fundamental questions that will allow us to establish new collaborations and, most important, to reach a deeper understanding of the physical mechanisms that lead to the arrested states of matter. We invite you to join us in San Luis Potosí for what promises to be a highly stimulating scientific program.

Acknowledgments

The organizers really appreciate the support of the Autonomous University of San Luis Potosí and the University of Guanajuato, as well to the Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología for the financial support through the grant No. 299263.