Non-local probes for a relaxing non-Abelian plasma

TL;DR

This paper investigates how non-local observables like two-point functions and Wilson loops thermalize in a strongly coupled non-Abelian plasma, revealing size-dependent relaxation times and a hierarchy in thermalization processes.

Contribution

It introduces a holographic analysis of non-local probes to understand the size-dependent thermalization hierarchy in a non-Abelian plasma.

Findings

Short-distance probes thermalize faster.

Hierarchy observed: energy density, pressures, large probes.

Thermalization depends on probe size.

Abstract

The thermalization of a strongly coupled plasma is examined in the holographic framework through non-local observables: the equal-time two-point correlation function of a large dimension boundary operator, and Wilson loops of different shapes. The evolution of the probes from an initial far-from-equilibrium state to a hydrodynamic regime is found to depend on their size. A hierarchy among the thermalization times of the energy density, the pressures and the large size probes, is identified: the relaxation process is faster at short distances.