Relevance and limitations of scaling laws in the theory of phase transitions: Field-theoretic approach

1971 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 199-226 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Di Castro
Keyword(s):  
Phase Transitions ◽  
Scaling Laws ◽  
Theoretic Approach

Phase Transitions Near Surfaces Studied By Grazing Incidence Diffraction of X-Rays

1990 ◽  
Vol 208 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Mailander ◽  
H. Dosch ◽  
J. Peisl ◽  
R. L. Johnson
Keyword(s):  
Phase Transitions ◽  
Transition Temperature ◽  
Single Crystal ◽  
Critical Behavior ◽  
Scaling Laws ◽  
Grazing Incidence ◽  
Critical Surface ◽  
X Rays ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Grazing Incidence Diffraction

ABSTRACTWe review two different experiments in order to demonstrate the power of grazing incidence diffraction of x-rays in studying phase transitions near surfaces and to show that it is well suited to get information on structural details even from subsurface layers: We have measured the near surface critical scattering at the continuous order disorder transition of an Fe3Al single crystal which provides information on modifications of critical behavior of a bulk transition near a surface. These modifications are detectable to a considerable depth due to the diverging range of correlations. We determined three different critical surface exponents which allow, for the first time, to confirm scaling laws for near surface critical behavior.- The experiment at a (100) surface of a discontinuous ordering Cu3Au single crystal shows that the surface is wetted by a disordered layer below the transition temperature. By means of the adjustable depth sensitivity of grazing incidence scattering we were able to demonstrate that the thickness of this layer increases logarithmically when approaching the transition temperature.

scholarly journals Observation of generalized Kibble-Zurek mechanism across a first-order quantum phase transition in a spinor condensate

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (21) ◽  
pp. eaba7292
Author(s):  
L.-Y. Qiu ◽  
H.-Y. Liang ◽  
Y.-B. Yang ◽  
H.-X. Yang ◽  
T. Tian ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Phase Transition ◽  
Phase Transitions ◽  
Power Law ◽  
Quantum Phase Transition ◽  
Scaling Laws ◽  
Quantum Phase Transitions ◽  
Quantum Phase ◽  
Polar Phase ◽  
First Order ◽  
Spin Excitations

The Kibble-Zurek mechanism provides a unified theory to describe the universal scaling laws in the dynamics when a system is driven through a second-order quantum phase transition. However, for first-order quantum phase transitions, the Kibble-Zurek mechanism is usually not applicable. Here, we experimentally demonstrate and theoretically analyze a power-law scaling in the dynamics of a spin-1 condensate across a first-order quantum phase transition when a system is slowly driven from a polar phase to an antiferromagnetic phase. We show that this power-law scaling can be described by a generalized Kibble-Zurek mechanism. Furthermore, by experimentally measuring the spin population, we show the power-law scaling of the temporal onset of spin excitations with respect to the quench rate, which agrees well with our numerical simulation results. Our results open the door for further exploring the generalized Kibble-Zurek mechanism to understand the dynamics across first-order quantum phase transitions.

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