A thermodynamic approach to slowly sheared granular matter

Recent theories postulate that the non-equilibrium behaviour of systems experiencing jamming or structural arrest could be described by equilibrium thermodynamic concepts. If a thermodynamic framework can describe the behaviour of systems far from equilibrium, then an effective temperature with a true thermodynamic meaning exists as a key parameter in characterizing the material's properties. In order to examine the validity of the thermodynamics for jammed systems, we perform a numerical experiment with a realistic granular matter model specially conceived to be reproducible in the laboratory. The results support the thermodynamic picture.