Effective Temperature Thermodynamics and the Glass Transition:   Connecting Time-Scales
  We propose a theory based on simple physical arguments that describes a non equilibrium steady-state by a temperature-like parameter (an "effective temperature"). We show how one can predict the effective temperature as a function of the temperature of the environment for a specific case of non-equilibrium behavior: radiation amorphization. The main idea that we present is that the amorphization process is inherently connected to the dynamical arrest that a liquid undergoes when it transforms into a glass. We suggest that similar arguments may hold also for the effective temperature under plastic deformation. 
Ido Regev, Xiangdong Ding and Turab Lookman
cond-mat.stat-mech cond-mat.soft