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arXiv · 2501.01064

Is there Kibble-Zurek scaling of topological defects in first-order phase transitions?

Fan Zhong
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Abstract

Kibble-Zurek scaling is the scaling of the density of the topological defects formed via the Kibble-Zurek mechanism with respect to the rate at which a system is cooled across a continuous phase transition. Recently, the density of the topological defects formed via the Kibble-Zurek mechanism was computed for a system cooled through a first-order phase transition instead of the usual continuous transitions. Here we address the problem of whether such defects generated across a first-order phase transition exhibit Kibble-Zurek scaling similar to the case in continuous phase transitions. We show that any possible Kibble-Zurek scaling for the topological defects can only be a very rough approximation due to an intrinsic field for the scaling. However, complete universal scaling for other properties does exist.

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Fan Zhong. 2025-01-02. Is there Kibble-Zurek scaling of topological defects in first-order phase transitions?. https://doi.org/10.1088/0256-307x%2F42%2F3%2F030203

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