Abstract
We discuss statics and dynamics of condensation in a zero-range process with compartments of limited sizes. For the symmetric dynamics the stationary state has a factorized form.
For the asymmetric dynamics the steady state factorizes only for special hopping rules which allow for overjumps of fully occupied compartments. In the limit of large system size the grand canonical analysis is exact also in a condensed phase, and for a broader class of hopping rates as compared to the previously studied systems with infinite compartments.
The dynamics of condensation exhibits dynamical self-blocking, which significantly prolongs relaxation times. These general features are illustrated with a concrete example: an inhomogeneous system with hopping rates that result in Bose-Einstein-like condensations.