Thermalization in SU(3) gauge theory after a deconfining quench

Understand

We determine the time evolution of fluctuations of the Polyakov loop after a quench into the deconfined phase of SU(3) gauge theory from a simple classical relativistic Lagrangian.

• We compare the structure factors, which indicate spinodal decomposition followed by relaxation, to those obtained via Markov Chain Monte Carlo techniques in SU(3) lattice gauge theory.
• We find that the time when the structure factor peaks diverges like $\sim 1/k^2$ in the long-wavelength limit.
• This is due to formation of competing Z(3) domains for configurations where the Polyakov loop exhibits non-perturbatively large variations in space, which delay thermalization of long wavelength modes.