Java - Session Bean Annotation
@Asynchronous
An EJB 3.1 session bean can expose methods with asynchronous client invocation semantics.
Using the @Asynchronous annotation in an EJB class or specific method will direct the EJB container to return control immediately to the client when the method is invoked.
The method may return a future object to allow the client to check on the status of the method invocation, and retrieve result values that are asynchronously produced.