Thermodynamic Invariants of Coupled Channels: A Many-Channel Tolman-Ehrenfest Effect

Abstract

When multiple thermodynamic channels are coupled, single-channel equilibrium conditions fail. Extending the Tolman--Ehrenfest effect to the entropy manifold, we derive the unique $n$-channel invariant $ζ_i T_i = C$, where $ζ_i$ is the holonomy of the Ruppeiner connection. For the granular volume--stress ensemble, Rowe's dilatancy ratio and energy restriction emerge as geometric consequences of the off-diagonal curvature $g_{Vσ}$, and the 60-year puzzle of state-dependent $K_μ$ is resolved: the correction $ζ_V$ reaches $O(1)$ near jamming. The prediction $ζ_Vχ=\mathrm{const}$ across a shear band is experimentally testable.