Relativisticlike structure of classical thermodynamics

Abstract

We analyze in the context of geometrothermodynamics a Legendre invariant metric structure in the equilibrium space of an ideal gas. We introduce the concept of thermodynamic geodesic as a succession of points, each corresponding to a state of equilibrium, so that the resulting curve represents a quasi-static process. A rigorous geometric structure is derived in which the thermodynamic geodesics at a given point split the equilibrium space into two disconnected regions separated by adiabatic geodesics. This resembles the causal structure of special relativity, which we use to introduce the concept of adiabatic cone for thermodynamic systems. This result might be interpreted as an alternative indication of the inter-relationship between relativistic physics and classical thermodynamics.