Dynamical chaos and nonequilibrium statistical mechanics

Chaos in the motion of atoms and molecules composing fluids is a new topic in nonequilibrium physics. Relationships have been established between the characteristic quantities of chaos and the transport coefficients thanks to the concept of fractal repeller and the escape-rate formalism. Moreover, t he hydrodynamic modes of relaxation to the thermodynamic equilibrium as wel l as the nonequilibrium stationary states have turned out to be described b y fractal-like singular distributions. This singular character explains the second law of thermodynamics as an emergent property of large chaotic syst ems. These and other results show the growing importance of ephemeral pheno mena in modern physics.