9512798 Boyanovsky This U.S.-Brazil collaborative research effort will study dynamic properties of certain systems out of equilibrium; in particular, the non-equilibrium dynamics of phase transitions and transport phenomena of solitons and vortices. The collaboration between Daniel Boyanovsky of the University of Pittsburgh and Carlos Aragao de Carvalho of Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro will focus on real-time descriptions of the systems, including the dynamics of reheating and thermalization. The work will also extend to tunneling and thermal activation, developing methods that can be applied to nucleation and quantum tunneling in condensed matter, particle physics, and cosmology. The proposed work is timely and innovative, addressing issues of concern in several overlapping fields. The collaboration is supported in Brazil by CNPq, and both sides will include graduate students and post-docs in the research and travel. The visiting senior scientists will interact with graduate students to provide special educational experiences. ****
