Microscopic diagonal entropy and its connection to basic thermodynamic relations (Q627662)

From the summary: ``We define a diagonal entropy (d-entropy) for an arbitrary Hamiltonian system as \(S_d = - \sum_n \rho_{nn} \ln \rho_{nn}\) with the sum taken over the basis of instantaneous energy states. In equilibrium this entropy coincides with the conventional von Neumann entropy \(S_n = - \text{Tr}\rho\ln\rho\). However, in contrast to \(S_n\) the d-entropy is not conserved in time in closed Hamiltonian systems. If the system is initially in stationary state, then in accord with the second law of thermodynamics the d-entropy can only increase or stay the same. We also show that the d-entropy can be expressed through the energy distribution function and thus it is measurable, at least in principle. Under very generic assumptions of the locality of the Hamiltonian and non-integrability the d-entropy becomes a unique function of the average energy in large systems and automatically satisfies the fundamental thermodynamic relation. This relation reduces to the first law of thermodynamics for quasi-static processes. The d-entropy is also automatically conserved for adiabatic processes. We illustrate our results with explicit examples and show that \(S_d\) behaves consistently with expectations from thermodynamics.'' The paper is written by a physicist and might become a source of inspiration for mathematicians.