  Orbitally ordered states exhibit unique features which make them a promising
platform for exploring the ultrafast dynamics of long-range order in solids:
Their free energy typically has multiple discrete minima, and electric laser
fields or selectively excited phonons can exert effective forces that may be
used to steer the order parameter through these free energy landscapes.
Moreover, their free energy strongly depends on fluctuations, and in some cases
restoring forces close to a minimum are exclusively of entropic origin
(order-by-disorder mechanisms). This can open pathways to control the dynamics
of the order parameter via non-thermal fluctuations. In this work, we study the
laser-induced non-equilibrium dynamics in a $120^\circ$ compass model, using
time-dependent Ginzburg-Landau theory. We analyze protocols to switch the order
parameter between equivalent configurations, with a focus on the interplay
between the external force due to the driving field, and the non-thermal
entropic forces. In particular, we find that remanent non-thermal fluctuations
after some excitation can stabilize the high-symmetry phase even when the
homogeneous potential has retrieved its low-temperature form, which facilitates
laser-induced switching.
