Interdisciplinary Workshop on Fluctuations and Coherence: from Superfluids to Living Systems

我们建议举办一个跨学科的研讨会，汇集来自不同领域的专家，讨论与复杂系统中波动和非线性相互作用相关的广泛现象。对于一些看似不同的现象，如超流体中量子化漩涡的产生和超导体中的通量线，生物细胞和冷原子系统中随机棘轮的质量传递，激光中的模式切换，纳米机械谐振器和量子测量中使用的约瑟夫森分岔放大器中的州际切换，心脏-呼吸同步状态之间的转换，He II中的湍流，海洋上的巨浪，以及种群动态的灭绝。然而，来自相应学科的专家很少（如果有的话）聚在一起研究实际上是共同感兴趣的问题，而他们的专业知识可能是互补的。拟议的会议旨在解决这一不足，并承诺在学科之间进行有效的知识转移。要讨论的主题将包括隐藏在经典和量子系统中罕见随机事件背后的动力学，重点是远离热平衡的系统。将讨论速率缩放等通用特性。将考虑在不同类型的系统中控制罕见事件的方法，例如增加/减少事件的发生率。远离热平衡的量子涨落的不寻常作用，在平衡系统中没有类似的，将被探索。将讨论罕见事件的机制，从纳米尺度（如超流体中的涡流、冷原子和纳米机械谐振器），到介观（如约瑟夫森结），再到宏观（如心肺相互作用和海洋上的异常波浪）。这些相同的机制也常常导致非线性系统中相干性的丧失。其他类型的非高斯波动将被讨论，包括全计数统计，这与从介观导体到生物系统的学科有关。因此，研讨会的目标是通过揭示不同类别系统行为的共同和特定方面，促进理解和开发控制远离热平衡的波动非线性系统的新方法。要把这些不同领域的最佳专家聚集在一起，需要仔细的计划和说服，因为他们需要解释他们的工作如何适应研讨会的广泛背景。它还需要旅行和生活的财政支持，因为我们希望吸引的许多科学家已经习惯了大部分或全部费用都由我们承担的邀请。我们设想在总共多达60名与会者的会议中，有15名主题演讲嘉宾，其中大部分是受邀的，但资历范围很广，包括一些选定的博士生。没有平行会议。除了讲座之外，还将有超越学科的特定主题的圆桌讨论，以确定类比和区别，并促进知识转移。兰开斯特大学在很多方面都是举办这样一个研讨会的天然场所，因为它的低温和非线性与生物医学物理研究小组已经涵盖了几个要研究的主题，包括超流体、波动理论和心血管动力学。主办该活动的物理系在国内和国际上享有盛誉（例如，在2008年英国国家研究评估活动中获得最佳研究成果）。该大学的会议设施非常适合举办此类研讨会，高质量的会议、饮食和睡眠设施都在紧凑宜人的校园内。

We propose an interdisciplinary workshop bringing together experts from diverse fields to discuss a broad range of phenomena associated with the interplay of fluctuations and nonlinearity in complex systems. The underlying physics and concepts have much in common for such seemingly different phenomena as creation of quantized vortices in superfluids and flux lines in superconductors, mass transport in stochastic ratchets in biological cells and cold atom systems, mode switching in lasers, interstate switching in nano-mechanical resonators and in the Josephson bifurcation amplifiers used in quantum measurements, transitions between cardio-respiratory synchronization states, turbulence in He II, rogue waves on the ocean, and extinctions in population dynamics. Yet experts from the corresponding disciplines seldom, if ever, get together to study what in reality are problems of mutual interest where their expertise is likely to be complementary. The proposed conference seeks to address this deficiency and promises effective knowledge transfer between the disciplines.The topics to be addressed will include the hidden dynamics that underlies rare random events in both classical and quantum systems, with emphasis on systems far from thermal equilibrium. Generic features like rate-scaling will be discussed. Ways of controlling rare events in different types of system, e.g. increasing/decreasing the rates of the events, will be considered. The unusual role of quantum fluctuations far from thermal equilibrium, which has no analogue in equilibrium systems, will be explored. The mechanisms responsible for rare events will be discussed, ranging from the nano-scale (e.g. vortices in superfluids, cold atoms, and nano-mechanical resonators), through the mesoscopic (e.g. Josephson junctions), to the macroscopic (e.g. cardio-respiratory interaction and rogue waves on the ocean). These same mechanisms are also often responsible for loss of coherence in nonlinear systems. Other types of non-Gaussian fluctuations will be discussed, including full counting statistics, which is relevant to disciplines ranging from mesoscopic conductors to biosystems. The goal of the workshop is thus to advance understanding and develop new means of controlling fluctuating nonlinear systems far from thermal equilibrium by revealing the common and specific aspects of the behavior of different classes of system. To bring together the best experts in such different areas will involve careful planning and persuasion, as they will need to have it explained how their work fits into the broad context of the workshop. It will also require financial support for travel and subsistence, as many of the scientists we wish to attract are accustomed to invitations where most or all of their costs are covered. We envisage 15 keynote invited speakers in this category within a meeting of up to 60 participants in total, mostly invited, but with a wide range of seniority including some selected PhD students. There will be no parallel sessions. In addition to lectures, there will be round-table discussions of particular topics that transcend the disciplines, in order to identify the analogies and distinctions, and to promote knowledge transfer. Lancaster is in many ways a natural venue for such a workshop, as its Low Temperature and Nonlinear & Biomedical Physics research groups already encompass several of the topics to be studied including superfluidity, fluctuation theory, and cardiovascular dynamics. The Physics Department which will host the event has an excellent national and international reputation (e.g. best research profile in the 2008 UK national Research Assessment Exercise). The University's conference facilities are ideal for a workshop of this kind, with high quality meeting, eating and sleeping facilities all in close proximity on a compact and pleasant campus.