An introduction to relativistic spin hydrodynamics

Abstract

Spin polarization and spin transport are common phenomena in many quantum systems. Relativistic spin hydrodynamics provides an effective low-energy framework to describe these processes in quantum many-body systems. The fundamental symmetry underlying relativistic spin hydrodynamics is angular momentum conservation, which naturally leads to inter-conversion between spin and orbital angular momenta. This inter-conversion is a key feature of relativistic spin hydrodynamics, closely related to entropy production and introducing ambiguity in the construction of constitutive relations. In this article, we present a pedagogical introduction to relativistic spin hydrodynamics. We demonstrate how to derive the constitutive relations by applying local thermodynamic laws and explore several distinctive aspects of spin hydrodynamics. These include the pseudo-gauge ambiguity, the behavior of the system in the presence of strong vorticity, and the challenges of modeling the freeze-out of spin in heavy-ion collisions. We also outline some future prospects for spin hydrodynamics.