Transition from mechanical equilibrium to thermal equilibrium in a chain of unstable springs

A mathematical model is studied numerically for a chain of unstable springs with a non-monotone force function. When the chain contracts slowly, the state of the chain changes abruptly. This change is shown to be a transition from mechanical equilibrium to thermal equilibrium by comparing the theoretical force-elongation and temperature-force relations with corresponding relations determined by numerical experiment. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.