On the thermalization of one-dimensional lattices. I. Microcanonical ensemble

In numerical simulation of biomacromolecule, the issues of thermalization, i.e., equal distribution of energy over the degrees of freedom, occupy an important place. In this paper we consider some mechanisms of lattice thermalization: Chirikov resonances, wave turbulence and some others. We consider thermalization in a microcanonical ensemble when the system is isolated from external fields and the total energy is conserved. Although microcanonical ensembles are rarely used in practical calculations, however, the basic ideas about the thermalization mechanisms are obtained for these systems. The main attention is paid to the consideration of the lattices thermalization with Fermi–Pasta–Ulam–Tsingou potentials, since the main efforts to understand the basis of thermalization have been made precisely for lattices of this type. The role of solitons and breathers in thermalization is discussed.