Transients and transition paths in non-linear dynamical systems: Theory, methods and applications training school and research workshop

Many physical systems fluctuate around a stable state yet can shift abruptly to another after a perturbation or a small change in forcing; when such transitions are rare, direct simulation becomes impractically expensive. Large deviations theory offers a framework for quantifying them: instanton methods locate transition paths, while action principles and quasipotentials reveal the underlying potential and estimate transition rates and exit times in the low-noise limit. The week connects theory and methods with applications such as climate tipping points, ecology, disease modelling, chemical physics and financial instabilities. A two-day training school for PhD students and early-career researchers (12–13 April) offers hour-long lectures, hands-on computational sessions, a panel discussion and student posters, followed by a three-day research workshop (14–16 April) of invited and contributed talks, posters and discussion.