Irreversibility in a Reversible Lattice Gas

Abstract

A simple lattice gas model, a microscopically reversible cellular automaton, is described and shown to exhibit thermodynamic irreversibility in processes similar to those in real gases. The model, which has no random elements, develops a long-lasting equilibrium state within a Poincare cycle. This state is an attractor resulting from the nonlinear nature of the collective particle collisions and motions. The results illustrate how the Second Law of Thermodynamics applies to real systems governed by reversible microscopic dynamics.