We investigate the hot carrier dynamics of ZrTe$_5$ by ultrafast time-resolved optical reflectivity. Our results reveal a phonon-mediated across-gap recombination, consistent with its temperature-dependent gap nature as observed previously by photoemission. In addition, two distinct relaxations with a kink feature right after initial photoexcitation are well resolved, suggesting the complexity of electron thermalization process. Our findings indicate that correlated many-body effects play important role for the transient dynamics of ZrTe$_5$.
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