Defect formation in inhomogeneous 2-nd order phase transition: theory and experiment

Abstract

The status quo in our understanding of defect formation during a rapid transition into the broken symmetry state in condensed matter and cosmology is discussed. An observation of vortex nucleation in neutron absorption experiments in superfluid 3He-B is interpreted in terms of defect formation during inhomogeneous cooling through T_c. Due to the temperature gradient in the locally heated region the superfluid phase transition occurs as a propagating front. The theoretical considerations of vortex formation at the propagating front are based on work by Kibble-Volovik, Kopnin-Thuneberg, and Aranson-Kopnin-Vinokur.

6 pages, 5 figures (modified), invited talk at LT-22 (August 1999), modified after referee report, references are added

References in corpus (4)

• Symmetry Breaking with a Slant: Topological Defects after an Inhomogeneous Quench
• Pion Production from Baked-Alaska Disoriented Chiral Condensate
• Nucleation of vortices by rapid thermal quench
• ``Cosmological'' scenario for A-B phase transition in superfluid 3He

Cited by in corpus (9)

• Formation of topological defects in gauge field theories
• Composite defect extends cosmology - 3He analogy
• Global formation of topological defects in the multiferroic hexagonal manganites
• All-optical generation of Abrikosov vortices by the Inverse Faraday Effect
• Real time measurement of the emergence of superconducting order in a high temperature superconductor
• Nucleation of domain walls by $Z_2$ symmetry breaking transition in $p_x+i{p}_y$ superconductors
• A-B transition in superfluid ${}^3$He and cosmological phase transitions
• Josephson Current Flowing in Cyclically Coupled Bose-Einstein Condensates
• Laser pulse probe of chirality of Cooper pairs