  In this paper we propose a framework for simulating thermal particle
production in condensed matter systems. The procedure we describe can be
realized by means of a quantum quench of a parameter in the model. In order to
support this claim, we study quadratic fermionic systems in one and two
dimensions by means of analytical and numerical techniques. In particular, we
are able to show that a class of observables associated to Unruh--de Witt
detectors are very relevant for this type of setup and that exhibit approximate
thermalization.
