Metastable states in a class of long-range Hamiltonian systems

Abstract

We numerically show that metastable states, similar to the Quasi Stationary States found in the so called Hamiltonian Mean Field Model, are also present in a generalized model in which $N$ classical spins (rotators) interact through ferromagnetic couplings decaying as $r^{-\alpha}$, where $r$ is their distance over a regular lattice. Scaling laws with $N$ are briefly discussed.