We present an introductory review of the early time dynamics of high-energy heavy-ion collisions and the kinetics of high temperature QCD. The equilibration mechanisms in the quark-gluon plasma uniquely reflect the non-abelian and ultra-relativistic character of the many body system. Starting with a brief expose of the key theoretical and experimental questions, we provide an overview of the theoretical tools employed in weak coupling studies of the early time non-equilibrium dynamics. We highlight theoretical progress in understanding different thermalization mechanisms in weakly coupled non-abelian plasmas, and discuss their relevance in describing the approach to local thermal equilibrium during the first ${\rm fm}/c$ of a heavy-ion collision. Some important connections to the phenomenology of heavy-ion collisions are also briefly discussed.

中文翻译：

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重离子碰撞的第一次 fm/c

我们对高能重离子碰撞的早期动力学和高温 QCD 的动力学进行了介绍性回顾。夸克-胶子等离子体中的平衡机制独特地反映了多体系统的非阿贝尔和超相对论特征。首先简要介绍关键的理论和实验问题，我们概述了早期非平衡动力学的弱耦合研究中使用的理论工具。我们强调了理解弱耦合非阿贝尔等离子体中不同热化机制的理论进展，并讨论了它们在描述重离子碰撞的第一个 ${\rm fm}/c$ 期间局部热平衡方法的相关性。还简要讨论了与重离子碰撞现象学的一些重要联系。