← All parts of this equation

Equation 18 · Part 4 · The Statistical Mechanics of Irreversibility at Molecular Scale

Symbol p

ssys(t)=−kBln⁡p(xt,t).s_{\mathrm{sys}}(t) = -k_{\mathrm B}\ln p(x_t,t).
pp

What this part means

p is one of the signed contributions combined to compute the quantity on the left.

Its job in the formula

p is one of the signed contributions combined to compute the quantity on the left.

The passage around this formula

The system’s stochastic entropy is defined from the ensemble density evaluated at the realized state, ssys(t)=−kBln⁡p(xt,t)s_{\mathrm{sys}}(t) = -k_{\mathrm B}\ln p(x_t,t). For a single thermal bath, the medium entropy change is related to dissipated heat, subject to sign convention, and total entropy combines system and medium contributions. This allows every observed path to receive a thermodynamic accounting while preserving the distinction between a random trajectory-level quantity and its ensemble expectation [ 4 ] .

Read this part in the article →

Learn the underlying idea

A function assigns an output to each allowed input. The expression f(x) means “apply f to x”.

Open the illustrated functions: inputs become outputs guide →

See this notation across published equations →

Sources cited in the surrounding passage

These citations provide research context; check each source for the exact claim it supports.