Conclusions and Perspectives

Abstract

In the course of this meeting we have been led, successively, to such captivating areas of research as Irreversible thermodynamics, bifurcation analysis of reaction-diffusion equations, fluctuation theory, quantum optics, oscillating reactions, solid state chemistry, electrochemical process, and fluid dynamics. One might be tempted to wonder, by looking on this long list, how such diverse subjects could all fit together. One of the principal results of the meeting was to show that, despite this diversity, there is a profound unity between the basic concepts underlying these subjects as well as between the techniques used to analyze them. Indeed, the main theme that was continuously recurring throughout the different sessions has been the occurence of nonequilibrium phase transitions, and the concomitant emergence of order and cooperativity through the formation of dissipative structures.