Suppressing the Kibble-Zurek mechanism by a symmetry-violating bias

The formation of topological defects in continuous phase transitions is driven by the Kibble-Zurek mechanism. Here we study the formation of single- and half-quantum vortices during transition to the polar phase of \(^3\)He in the presence of a symmetry-breaking bias provided by the applied magnetic...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:arXiv.org 2021-06
Main Authors: Rysti, J, Mäkinen, J T, Autti, S, Kamppinen, T, Volovik, G E, Eltsov, V B
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aerodynamics
Aerogels
Bias
Broken symmetry
Defects
Fluids
Phase transitions
Solitary waves
Spin-orbit interactions
Strings
Superfluidity
Symmetry
Topology
Vortices
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:The formation of topological defects in continuous phase transitions is driven by the Kibble-Zurek mechanism. Here we study the formation of single- and half-quantum vortices during transition to the polar phase of \(^3\)He in the presence of a symmetry-breaking bias provided by the applied magnetic field. We find that vortex formation is suppressed exponentially when the length scale associated with the bias field becomes smaller than the Kibble-Zurek length. We thus demontrate an experimentally feasible shortcut to adiabaticity -- an important aspect for further understanding of phase transitions as well as for engineering applications such as quantum computers or simulators.
ISSN:2331-8422