Is there a mathematically precise definition of metastability?

Torbjorn Larsson

I believe a good (but physically vague :-) illustration is that most of
what we construct is metastable. A car is metastable and a pile of rust
is stable.

Which I believe leads to a mechanism of added stability for some
metastable states: Failure or breakdown mechanisms (for example in
semiconductor devices) may follow an Arrhenius equation due to a
potential barrier.

Torbjorn Larsson

I believe a good (but physically vague :-) illustration is that most of
what we construct is metastable. A car is metastable and a pile of rust
is stable.

Which I believe leads to a mechanism of added stability for some
metastable states: Failure or breakdown mechanisms (for example in
semiconductor devices) may follow an Arrhenius equation due to a
potential barrier.