Based on the works [R1] - [R10], this thesis tackles various aspects of the dynamics of interacting quantum many-body systems. Particular emphasis is given to the understanding of transport and thermalization phenomena in isolated (quasi) one-dimensional quantum spin models. Employing a variety of methods, these phenomena are studied both, close to equilibrium where linear response theory (LRT) is valid, as well as in far-from-equilibrium situations where LRT is supposed to break down. The main results of this thesis can be summarized as follows. First, it is shown that conventional hydrodynamic transport, i.e., diffusion, occurs in a number of (integrable and nonintegrable) quantum models and can be detected by looking at different signatures in position and momentum space as well as in the time and the frequency domain. Furthermore, the out-of-equilibrium dynamics resulting from a realistic class of initial states is explored. These states are thermal states of the model in the presence of an additional static force, but become nonequilibrium states when this force is eventually removed. Remarkably, it is shown that in some cases, the full time-dependent relaxation process can become independent of whether the initial state is prepared close to or far away from equilibrium. In this context, a new connection between the eigenstate thermalization hypothesis and linear response theory is unveiled. Finally, this thesis also reports progress on the development and improvement of numerical and (semi-)analytical techniques to access the dynamics of quantum many-body systems. Specifically, a novel combination of dynamical quantum typicality and numerical linked cluster expansions is employed to study current-current correlation functions in chain and ladder geometries in the thermodynamic limit.

No description available.

Thermalization is ubiquitous to all physical systems and is an essential assumption for the postulates of statistical mechanics. Generally, every system evolves under its own dynamics and reaches thermal equilibrium. In the quantum realm, thermal equilibrium is described by the Eigenstate Thermalization Hypothesis (ETH); hence every system that thermalizes is expected to follow ETH. Moreover, the thermalization process is always manifested as transport of matter and quantum information across the system. Thermalizing quantum systems with local interactions are expected to show diffusive transport of global conserved quantities and ballistic information spreading. The vast majority of many-body systems show the typical behavior described above. In this thesis, we study two mechanisms that break the standard picture of quantum thermalization. On the one hand, information spreading may be faster in the presence of long-range interactions. By simulating the Lieb-Robinson bounds in a spin chain with power-law decaying interactions, we distinguish the regime where the long-range character of the interactions becomes irrelevant for information spreading. On the other hand, the interplay of disorder and interactions can slow down transport, entering a sub-diffusive regime. We study this dynamical regime in an Anderson model on random regular graphs, where the emergence of a sub-diffusive regime before the localization transition is highly debated. Looking at long-range spectral correlations, we found that the sub-diffusive regime may be extended over the whole thermal phase of the model. Moreover, when disorder is strong enough, quantum many-body systems can undergo an ergodicity breaking transition to a many-body localized (MBL) phase. These systems do not follow ETH, so they present a challenge for conventional statistical mechanics. In particular, we study how the structure of local operator eigenstate matrix elements (central assumption of ETH) change between the thermal and MBL phase. A complete characterization of matrix elements of correlation functions is achieved via strong disorder quasi-degenerate perturbation theory. Furthermore, we study the MBL transition mechanism, which is still an open question due to the limitations of the available techniques for addressing that regime. Focusing on the avalanche mechanism, we simulate MBL spin chains coupled to a finite and infinite thermal bath. We could estimate the thermalization rate, which behaves as an order parameter and provide bounds for the actual critical disorder in the thermodynamic limit. We propose the existence of an intermediate MBL ``regime' where the system is slowly de-localizing, but relevant time scales are out-of-reach for current experiments and numerical simulations.

付記する学位プログラム名: 京都大学卓越大学院プログラム「先端光・電子デバイス創成学」 / 京都大学 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(理学) / 甲第23694号 / 理博第4784号 / 新制||理||1685(附属図書館) / 京都大学大学院理学研究科物理学・宇宙物理学専攻 / (主査)教授 川上 則雄, 教授 柳瀬 陽一, 教授 高橋 義朗 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Science / Kyoto University / DFAM

Random matrix theory (RMT) is a mathematical framework that has found profound applications in physics, particularly in the study of many-body systems. Its success lies in its ability to predict universal statistical properties of complex systems, independent of the specific details. This thesis explores the application of RMT to two classes of many-body systems: quantum and stochastic many-body systems. Within the quantum framework, this work focuses on the Bose-Hubbard system, which is paradigmatic for modeling ultracold atoms in optical traps. According to RMT and the Eigenstate Thermalization Hypothesis (ETH), eigenstate-to-eigenstate fluctuations of expectation values of local observables decay rapidly with the system size in the thermodynamic limit at sufficiently large temperatures. Here, we study these fluctuations in the classical limit of fixed lattice size and increasing boson number. We find that the fluctuations follow the RMT prediction for large system sizes but deviate substantially for small lattices. Partly motivated by these results, the Bose-Hubbard model on three sites is studied in more detail. On few sites, the Bose-Hubbard model is known to be a mixed system, being neither fully chaotic nor integrable. We compare energy-resolved classical and quantum measures of chaos, which show a strong agreement. Deviations from RMT predictions are attributed to the mixed nature of the few-site model. In the context of stochastic systems, generators of Markov processes are studied. The focus is on the spectrum. We present results from two investigations of Markov spectra. First, we investigate the effect of sparsity on the spectrum of random generators. Dense random matrices previously used as a model for generic generators led to very large spectral gaps and therefore to unphysically short relaxation times. In this work, a model of random generators with adjustable sparsity — number of zero matrix elements — is presented, extending the dense framework. It is shown that sparsity leads to longer, more physically realistic relaxation times. Second, the generator spectrum of the Asymmetric Simple Exclusion Process (ASEP), a quintessential model in non-equilibrium statistical mechanics, is analyzed. We investigate the spectral boundary, which is characterized by pronounced spikes. The emergence of these spikes is analyzed from several points of view, including RMT. The results presented in this thesis contribute to the understanding of the applicability of RMT to many-body systems. This thesis highlights successes such as the explanation of “ETH fluctuations” in Bose-Hubbard models, the improvement of random matrix descriptions by introducing sparsity, and the emergence of spikes in the spectral boundary of the ASEP. The latter is a notable case where RMT provides insights even though the ASEP is a Bethe-integrable system. Furthermore, this thesis shows examples of the limits of RMT, exemplified by the results presented for the Bose-Hubbard model with a few sites.

This thesis is devoted to study far-from-equilibrium aspects of quantum systems at strong coupling using the holographic duality as a tool. The duality, originated from string theory and further generalized to broader scenarios, relates certain strongly coupled gauge theories to classical gravity theories in higher dimensions. Over the last years, it has proved itself useful as a calculational tool to map difficult questions of interest in the gauge theory into a dual (i.e., equivalent) problem in a higher-dimensional gravity language where the solution may become feasible. The interest in strongly coupled quantum field theories, in particular non-Abelian gauge theories, is motivated by a number of nuclear and condensed matter physics phenomena which are known to take place at a non-perturbative regime, such as the quark-gluon plasma phase of quantum chromodynamics or high-Tc superconducting materials. While dealing with strong coupling is typically a very hard task even at equilibrium, the situation becomes yet more dramatic when non-equilibrium setups are concerned since the main non-perturbative tool available nowadays lattice field theory suffers from serious problems when it comes to real-time dynamics. This is the reason why unconventional techniques such as the ones provided by holography are welcome. Of particular interest here are the problems of thermalization of strongly coupled plasmas as well as the quench dynamics of quantum systems, both of which admit a dual gravitational description involving time-dependent solutions to the corresponding classical equations of motion in the bulk of Anti de Sitter (AdS) spacetimes, such as collapsing solutions describing AdS black hole formation. Specifically, and always from a holographic point of view, in this thesis we deal with three classes of problems: the thermalization properties of a charged non-Abelian plasma after a sudden injection of energy (such as a heavy ion collision); the dynamics of a symmetry breaking quench process from a relativistic to a non-relativistic setup of the Lifshitz type with dynamical exponent z; and, finally, a new analytical approach to the non- equilibrium properties of conformal field theory plasmas placed in an expanding background. Apart from the specific problems, we also provide a self-contained but concise introduction to the holographic duality with a view towards newcomers with an elementary general relativity and quantum field theory background. / Esta tese designa-se ao estudo de sistemas quânticos fortemente acoplados e fora do equilíbrio utilizando como ferramenta a dualidade holográfica. A dualidade, originária da teoria de cordas e posteriormente generalizada a cenários mais abrangentes, relaciona certas teorias de calibre fortemente acopladas e teorias de gravidade clássica em dimensões mais altas. Nos últimos anos, ela tem se mostrado útil como uma ferramenta de cálculo para mapear questões complicadas na teoria de gauge em um problema \\q{dual} (isto é, equivalente) formulado na linguagem completamente diferente de gravidade em dimensões extras, onde obter uma solução pode ser viável. O interesse em teorias quânticas de campo fortemente acopladas, em particular teorias de calibre não-Abelianas, motiva-se por uma variedade de fenômenos das físicas nuclear e da matéria condensada que, reconhecidamente, ocorrem em um regime não-perturbativo, tais como o plasma de quarks e glúons da cromodinâmica quântica ou certos materiais supercondutores com temperatura crítica alta. Em geral, lidar com acoplamentos fortes é uma tarefa bastante complicada mesmo em configurações de equilíbrio, mas a situação se torna ainda mais dramática quando configurações longe do equilíbrio são tratadas, visto que a principal ferramenta não-perturbativa disponível atualmente (teoria de campos na rede) enfrenta sérios problemas em situações dinâmicas. Esta é a principal razão pela qual técnicas alternativas tais como as fornecidas pela dualidade holográfica são bem vindas. De particular interesse aqui são os problemas da termalização de plasmas fortemente acoplados bem como a dinâmica pós-\\emph{quench} de sistemas quânticos, ambos os quais admitem uma descrição gravitacional dual envolvendo soluções dependentes do tempo às correspondentes equações gravitacionais em espaços-tempo de Anti de Sitter (AdS), tais como soluções de colapso descrevendo a formação de buracos negros assintoticamente AdS. Especificamente, e sempre sob um ponto de vista holográfico, nesta tese lidamos com três tipos diferentes de problemas: a termalização de um plasma não-Abeliano carregado como resultado de uma injeção repentina de energia (tal como uma colisão de íons pesados); a dinâmica durante um processo de quebra da simetria relativística para uma simetria não-relativística do tipo Lifshitz com expoente dinâmico $z$; e, finalmente, uma nova abordagem analítica para tratar propriedades fora do equílibrio de plasmas conformes colocados em um fundo que se expande. Além de tais problemas específicos, este texto fornece também uma introdução sucinta e auto-contida à dualidade holográfica direcionada a um leitor com conhecimento elementar de relatividade geral e teoria quântica de campos.

This thesis is devoted to study far-from-equilibrium aspects of quantum systems at strong coupling using the holographic duality as a tool. The duality, originated from string theory and further generalized to broader scenarios, relates certain strongly coupled gauge theories to classical gravity theories in higher dimensions. Over the last years, it has proved itself useful as a calculational tool to map difficult questions of interest in the gauge theory into a dual (i.e., equivalent) problem in a higher-dimensional gravity language where the solution may become feasible. The interest in strongly coupled quantum field theories, in particular non-Abelian gauge theories, is motivated by a number of nuclear and condensed matter physics phenomena which are known to take place at a non-perturbative regime, such as the quark-gluon plasma phase of quantum chromodynamics or high-Tc superconducting materials. While dealing with strong coupling is typically a very hard task even at equilibrium, the situation becomes yet more dramatic when non-equilibrium setups are concerned since the main non-perturbative tool available nowadays lattice field theory suffers from serious problems when it comes to real-time dynamics. This is the reason why unconventional techniques such as the ones provided by holography are welcome. Of particular interest here are the problems of thermalization of strongly coupled plasmas as well as the quench dynamics of quantum systems, both of which admit a dual gravitational description involving time-dependent solutions to the corresponding classical equations of motion in the bulk of Anti de Sitter (AdS) spacetimes, such as collapsing solutions describing AdS black hole formation. Specifically, and always from a holographic point of view, in this thesis we deal with three classes of problems: the thermalization properties of a charged non-Abelian plasma after a sudden injection of energy (such as a heavy ion collision); the dynamics of a symmetry breaking quench process from a relativistic to a non-relativistic setup of the Lifshitz type with dynamical exponent z; and, finally, a new analytical approach to the non- equilibrium properties of conformal field theory plasmas placed in an expanding background. Apart from the specific problems, we also provide a self-contained but concise introduction to the holographic duality with a view towards newcomers with an elementary general relativity and quantum field theory background. / Esta tese designa-se ao estudo de sistemas quânticos fortemente acoplados e fora do equilíbrio utilizando como ferramenta a dualidade holográfica. A dualidade, originária da teoria de cordas e posteriormente generalizada a cenários mais abrangentes, relaciona certas teorias de calibre fortemente acopladas e teorias de gravidade clássica em dimensões mais altas. Nos últimos anos, ela tem se mostrado útil como uma ferramenta de cálculo para mapear questões complicadas na teoria de gauge em um problema \\q{dual} (isto é, equivalente) formulado na linguagem completamente diferente de gravidade em dimensões extras, onde obter uma solução pode ser viável. O interesse em teorias quânticas de campo fortemente acopladas, em particular teorias de calibre não-Abelianas, motiva-se por uma variedade de fenômenos das físicas nuclear e da matéria condensada que, reconhecidamente, ocorrem em um regime não-perturbativo, tais como o plasma de quarks e glúons da cromodinâmica quântica ou certos materiais supercondutores com temperatura crítica alta. Em geral, lidar com acoplamentos fortes é uma tarefa bastante complicada mesmo em configurações de equilíbrio, mas a situação se torna ainda mais dramática quando configurações longe do equilíbrio são tratadas, visto que a principal ferramenta não-perturbativa disponível atualmente (teoria de campos na rede) enfrenta sérios problemas em situações dinâmicas. Esta é a principal razão pela qual técnicas alternativas tais como as fornecidas pela dualidade holográfica são bem vindas. De particular interesse aqui são os problemas da termalização de plasmas fortemente acoplados bem como a dinâmica pós-\\emph{quench} de sistemas quânticos, ambos os quais admitem uma descrição gravitacional dual envolvendo soluções dependentes do tempo às correspondentes equações gravitacionais em espaços-tempo de Anti de Sitter (AdS), tais como soluções de colapso descrevendo a formação de buracos negros assintoticamente AdS. Especificamente, e sempre sob um ponto de vista holográfico, nesta tese lidamos com três tipos diferentes de problemas: a termalização de um plasma não-Abeliano carregado como resultado de uma injeção repentina de energia (tal como uma colisão de íons pesados); a dinâmica durante um processo de quebra da simetria relativística para uma simetria não-relativística do tipo Lifshitz com expoente dinâmico $z$; e, finalmente, uma nova abordagem analítica para tratar propriedades fora do equílibrio de plasmas conformes colocados em um fundo que se expande. Além de tais problemas específicos, este texto fornece também uma introdução sucinta e auto-contida à dualidade holográfica direcionada a um leitor com conhecimento elementar de relatividade geral e teoria quântica de campos.

In this thesis, we have explored the commonalities and connections between different classes of quantum systems that do not thermalize. Specifically, we have (1) shown that localized systems possess conservation laws like integrable systems, which can be constructed in a systematic way and used to detect localization-delocalization transitions , (2) studied the phenomenon of many-body localization in a model with a single particle mobility edge, (3) shown that interesting finite-size scaling emerges, with universal exponents, when athermal quantum systems are forced to thermalize through the application of perturbations and (4) shown that these scaling laws also arise when a perturbation causes a crossover between quantum systems described by different random matrix ensembles. We conclude with a brief summary of each chapter. In Chapter 2, we have investigated the effects of finite size on the crossover between quantum integrable systems and non-integrable systems. Using exact diagonalization of finite-sized systems, we have studied this crossover by obtaining the energy level statistics and Drude weight associated with transport. Our results reinforce the idea that for system size L → ∞, non-integrability sets in for an arbitrarily small integrabilitybreaking perturbation. The crossover value of the perturbation scales as a power law ∼ L−3 when the integrable system is gapless and the scaling appears to be robust to microscopic details and the precise form of the perturbation. In Chapter 3, we have studied the crossover among different random matrix ensembles CHAPTER 6. CONCLUSION 127 [Poissonian, Gaussian Orthogonal Ensemble (GOE), Gaussian Unitary Ensemble (GUE) and Gaussian Symplectic Ensemble (GSE)] realized in different microscopic models. We have found that the perturbation causing the crossover among the different ensembles scales to zero with system size as a power law with an exponent that depends on the ensembles between which the crossover takes place. This exponent is independent of microscopic details of the perturbation. We have also found that the crossover from the Poissonian ensemble to the other three is dominated by the Poissonian to GOE crossover which introduces level repulsion while the crossover from GOE to GUE or GOE to GSE associated with symmetry breaking introduces a subdominant contribution. Finally,we have conjectured that the exponent is dependent on whether the system contains interactions among the elementary degrees of freedom or not and is independent of the dimensionality of the system. In Chapter 4, we have outlined a procedure to construct conservation laws for Anderson localized systems. These conservation laws are found as power series in the hopping parameters. We have also obtained the conservation laws for the disorder free Aubry-Andre model, where the states are either localized or extended depending on the strength of a coupling constant. We have formulated a specific procedure for averaging over disorder, in order to examine the convergence of the power series. Using this procedure for the Aubry-Andre model, we show that integrals of motion given by our construction are well-defined in the localized phase but not so in the extended phase. Finally, we also obtain the integrals of motion for a model with interactions to lowest order in the interaction. In Chapter 5, we have studied many body localization and investigated its nature in the presence of a single particle mobility edge. Employing the technique of exact diagonalization for finite-sized systems, we have calculated the level spacing distribution, time evolution of entanglement entropy, optical conductivity and return probability to characterize the nature of localization. The localization that develops in the presence of interactions in these systems appears to be different from regular Many-Body Localization (MBL) in that the growth of entanglement entropy with time is linear (like in CHAPTER 6. CONCLUSION 128 a thermal phase) instead of logarithmic but saturates to a value much smaller than the thermal value (like for MBL). All other diagnostics seem consistent with regular MBL

We investigate thermalization in finite quantum systems using coherent state-based approaches to solve the time-dependent Schr\'odinger equation. Earlier, a lot of work has been done in the quantum realm, to study thermalization in spin systems, but not for the case of continuous systems. Here, we focus on continuous systems. We study the zero temperature thermalization i.e., we consider the ground states of the bath oscillators (environment). In order to study the quantum dynamics of a system under investigation, we require numerical methods to solve the time-dependent Schr\'odinger equation. We describe different numerical methods like the split-operator fast fourier transform, coupled coherent states, static grid of coherent states, semiclassical Herman-Kluk propagator and the linearized semiclassical initial value representation to study the quantum dynamics. We also give a comprehensive comparison of the most widely used coherent state based methods. Starting from the fully variational coherent states method, after a first approximation, the coupled coherent states method can be derived, whereas an additional approximation leads to the semiclassical Herman-Kluk method. We numerically compare the different methods with another one, based on a static rectangular grid of coherent states, by applying all of them to the revival dynamics in a one-dimensional Morse oscillator, with a special focus on the number of basis states (for the coupled coherent states and Herman-Kluk methods the number of classical trajectories) needed for convergence. We also extend the Husimi (coherent state) based version of linearized semiclassical theories for the calculation of correlation functions to the case of survival probabilities. This is a case that could be dealt with before only by use of the Wigner version of linearized semiclassical theory. Numerical comparisons of the Husimi and the Wigner case with full quantum results as well as with full semiclassical ones is given for the revival dynamics in a Morse oscillator with and without coupling to an additional harmonic degree of freedom. From this, we see the quantum to classical transition of the system dynamics due to the coupling to the environment (bath harmonic oscillator), which then can lead ultimately to our final goal of thermalization for long-time dynamics. In regard to thermalization in quantum systems, we address the following questions--- is it enough to increase the interaction strength between the different degrees of freedom in order to fully develop chaos which is the classical prerequisite for thermalization, or if, in addition, the number of those degrees of freedom has to be increased (possibly all the way to the thermodynamic limit) in order to observe thermalization. We study the ``toppling pencil'' model, i.e., an excited initial state on top of the barrier of a symmetric quartic double well to investigate thermalization. We apply the method of coupled coherent states to study the long-time dynamics of this system. We investigate if the coupling of the central quartic double well to a finite, environmental bath of harmonic oscillators in their ground states will let the central system evolve towards its uncoupled ground state. This amounts to thermalization i.e., a cooling down to the bath ``temperature'' (strictly only defined in the thermodynamic limit) of the central system. It is shown that thermalization can be achieved in finite quantum system with continuous variables using coherent state-based methods to solve the time-dependent Schr\'odinger equation. Also, here we witness thermalization by coupling the system to a bath of only few oscillators (less than ten), which until now has been seen for more than ten to twenty bath oscillators.

Thermalization, the evolution of an interacting many-body system towards a thermal Gibbs ensemble after initialization in an arbitrary non-equilibrium state, is currently a phenomenon of great interest, both in theory and experiment. As the time evolution of a quantum system is unitary, the proposed mechanism of thermalization in quantum many-body systems corresponds to the so-called eigenstate thermalization hypothesis (ETH) and the typicality of eigenstates. Although this formally solves the contradiction of thermalizing but unitary dynamics in a closed quantum many-body system, it does neither make any statement on the dynamical process of thermalization itself nor in which way the coupling of the system to an environment can hinder or modify the relaxation dynamics. In this thesis, we address both the question whether or not a quantum system driven away from equilibrium is able to relax to a thermal state, which fulfills detailed balance, and if one can identify universal behavior in the non-equilibrium relaxation dynamics. As a first realization of driven quantum systems out of equilibrium, we investigate a system of Ising spins, interacting with the quantized radiation field in an optical cavity. For multiple cavity modes, this system forms a highly entangled and frustrated state with infinite correlation times, known as a quantum spin glass. In the presence of drive and dissipation, introduced by coupling the intra-cavity radiation field to the photon vacuum outside the cavity via lossy mirrors, the quantum glass state is modified in a universal manner. For frequencies below the photon loss rate, the dissipation takes over and the system shows the universal behavior of a dissipative spin glass, with a characteristic spectral density $\\mathcal{A}(\\omega)\\sim\\sqrt{\\omega}$. On the other hand, for frequencies above the loss rate, the system retains the universal behavior of a zero temperature, quantum spin glass. Remarkably, at the glass transition, the two subsystems of spins and photons thermalize to a joint effective temperature, even in the presence of photon loss. This thermalization is a consequence of the strong spin-photon interactions, which favor detailed balance in the system and detain photons from escaping the cavity. In the thermalized system, the features of the spin glass are mirrored onto the photon degrees of freedom, leading to an emergent photon glass phase. Exploiting the inherent photon loss of the cavity, we make predictions of possible measurements on the escaping photons, which contain detailed information of the state inside the cavity and allow for a precise, non-destructive measurement of the glass state. As a further set of non-equilibrium systems, we consider one-dimensional quantum fluids driven out of equilibrium, whose universal low energy theory is formed by the so-called Luttinger Liquid description, which, due to its large degree of universality, is of intense theoretical and experimental interest. A set of recent experiments in research groups in Vienna, Innsbruck and Munich have probed the non-equilibrium time-evolution of one-dimensional quantum fluids for different experimental realizations and are pushing into a time regime, where thermalization is expected. From a theoretical point of view, one-dimensional quantum fluids are particular interesting, as Luttinger Liquids are integrable and therefore, due to an infinite number of constants of motion, do not thermalize. The leading order correction to the quadratic theory is irrelevant in the sense of the renormalization group and does therefore not modify static correlation functions, however, it breaks integrability and will therefore, even if irrelevant, induce a completely different non-equilibrium dynamics as the quadratic Luttinger theory alone. In this thesis, we derive for the first time a kinetic equation for interacting Luttinger Liquids, which describes the time evolution of the excitation densities for arbitrary initial states. The resonant character of the interaction makes a straightforward derivation of the kinetic equation, using Fermi\'s golden rule, impossible and we have to develop non-perturbative techniques in the Keldysh framework. We derive a closed expression for the time evolution of the excitation densities in terms of self-energies and vertex corrections. Close to equilibrium, the kinetic equation describes the exponential decay of excitations, with a decay rate $\\sigma^R=\\mbox\\Sigma^R$, determined by the self-energy at equilibrium. However, for long times $\\tau$, it also reveals the presence of dynamical slow modes, which are the consequence of exactly energy conserving dynamics and lead to an algebraic decay $\\sim\\tau^$ with $\\eta_D=0.58$. The presence of these dynamical slow modes is not contained in the equilibrium Matsubara formalism, while they emerge naturally in the non-equilibrium formalism developed in this thesis. In order to initialize a one-dimensional quantum fluid out of equilibrium, we consider an interaction quench in a model of interacting, dispersive fermions in Chap.~\\ref. In this scenario, the fermionic interaction is suddenly changed at time $t=0$, such that for $t>0$ the system is not in an eigenstate and therefore undergoes a non-trivial time evolution. For the quadratic theory, the stationary state in the limit $t\\rightarrow\\infty$ is a non-thermal, or prethermal, state, described by a generalized Gibbs ensemble (GGE). The GGE takes into account for the conservation of all integrals of motion, formed by the eigenmodes of the Hamiltonian. On the other hand, in the presence of non-linearities, the final state for $t\\rightarrow\\infty$ is a thermal state with a finite temperature $T>0$. . The spatio-temporal, dynamical thermalization process can be decomposed into three regimes: A prequench regime on the largest distances, which is determined by the initial state, a prethermal plateau for intermediate distances, which is determined by the metastable fixed point of the quadratic theory and a thermal region on the shortest distances. The latter spreads sub-ballistically $\\sim t^$ in space with $0<\\alpha<1$ depending on the quench. Until complete thermalization (i.e. for times $t<\\infty$), the thermal region contains more energy than the prethermal and prequench region, which is expressed in a larger temperature $T_{t}>T_$, decreasing towards its final value $T_$. As the system has achieved local detailed balance in the thermalized region, energy transport to the non-thermal region can only be performed by the macroscopic dynamical slow modes and the decay of the temperature $T_{t}-T_\\sim t^$ again witnesses the presence of these slow modes. The very slow spreading of thermalization is consistent with recent experiments performed in Vienna, which observe a metastable, prethermal state after a quench and only observe the onset of thermalization on much larger time scales. As an immediate indication of thermalization, we determine the time evolution of the fermionic momentum distribution after a quench from non-interacting to interacting fermions. For this quench scenario, the step in the Fermi distribution at the Fermi momentum $k\\sub$ decays to zero algebraically in the absence of a non-linearity but as a stretched exponential (the exponent being proportional to the non-linearity) in the presence of a finite non-linearity. This can serve as a proof for the presence or absence of the non-linearity even on time-scales for which thermalization can not yet be observed. Finally, we consider a bosonic quantum fluid, which is driven away from equilibrium by permanent heating. The origin of the heating is atomic spontaneous emission of laser photons, which are used to create a coherent lattice potential in optical lattice experiments. This process preserves the system\'s $U(1)$-invariance, i.e. conserves the global particle number, and the corresponding long-wavelength description is a heated, interacting Luttinger Liquid, for which phonon modes are continuously populated with a momentum dependent rate $\\partial_tn_q\\sim\\gamma |q|$. In the dynamics, we identify a quasi-thermal regime for large momenta, featuring an increasing time-dependent effective temperature. In this regime, due to fast phonon-phonon scattering, detailed balance has been achieved and is expressed by a time-local, increasing temperature. The thermal region emerges locally and spreads in space sub-ballistically according to $x_t\\sim t^{4/5}$. For larger distances, the system is described by an non-equilibrium phonon distribution $n_q\\sim |q|$, which leads to a new, non-equilibrium behavior of large distance observables. For instance, the phonon decay rate scales universally as $\\gamma_q\\sim |q|^{5/3}$, with a new non-equilibrium exponent $\\eta=5/3$, which differs from equilibrium. This new, universal behavior is guaranteed by the $U(1)$ invariant dynamics of the system and is insensitive to further subleading perturbations. The non-equilibrium long-distance behavior can be determined experimentally by measuring the static and dynamic structure factor, both of which clearly indicate the exponents for phonon decay, $\\eta=5/3$ and for the spreading of thermalization $\\eta_T=4/5$. Remarkably, even in the presence of this strong external drive, the interactions and their aim to achieve detailed balance are strong enough to establish a locally emerging and spatially spreading thermal region. The physical setups in this thesis do not only reveal interesting and new dynamical features in the out-of-equilibrium time evolution of interacting systems, but they also strongly underline the high degree of universality of thermalization for the classes of models studied here. May it be a system of coupled spins and photons, where the photons are pulled away from a thermal state by Markovian photon decay caused by a leaky cavity, a one-dimensional fermionic quantum fluid, which has been initialized in an out-of-equilibrium state by a quantum quench or a one-dimensional bosonic quantum fluid, which is driven away from equilibrium by continuous, external heating, all of these systems at the end establish a local thermal equilibrium, which spreads in space and leads to global thermalization for $t\\rightarrow\\infty$. This underpins the importance of thermalizing collisions and endorses the standard approach of equilibrium statistical mechanics, describing a physical system in its steady state by a thermal Gibbs ensemble.