Using Langevin dynamics, we have investigated the dynamics of vortices in a disordered two dimensional superconductor subjected to a uniform driving current. The results provide direct numerical evidence for a dynamical phase transition between a plastic flow regime and a moving “hexatic glass.” The simulated current-voltage characteristics are in excellent agreement with recent transport measu...

The ferromagnetic phase of an Ising model in d=3 , with any amount of quenched antiferromagnetic bond randomness, is shown to undergo a transition to a spin-glass phase under sufficient quenched bond dilution. This result, demonstrated here with the numerically exact global renormalization-group solution of a d=3 hierarchical lattice, is expected to hold true generally, for the cubic lattice an...

We consider the 4d compact U(1) gauge theory with extended action

Finite topological quantum systems can undergo continuous metastable quantum phase transitions to change their topological nature. Here we show how to nucleate the transition between ring currents and dark soliton states in a toroidally trapped Bose-Einstein condensate. An adiabatic passage to wind and unwind its phase is achieved by explicit global breaking of the rotational symmetry. This cou...

We show that a Dicke-type non-Hermitian Hamiltonian admits entirely real spectra by mapping it to the "dressed Dicke model" through a similarity transformation. We find a positive-definite metric in the Hilbert space of the non-Hermitian Hamiltonian so that the time evolution is unitary and allows a consistent quantum description. We then show that this non-Hermitian Hamiltonian describing nond...

We study the coupled-map lattice model with both local and global couplings. We find necessary conditions for observing synchronous chaos and investigate the transition to synchronization as a dynamic phase transition. We discover that this transition, if continuous, shows scaling and universal behavior with the dynamic exponent z = 2. We also define and illustrate an interesting quantity simil...

The role of symmetry in the folding of proteins is discussed using energy landscape theory. An analytical argument shows it is much easier to find sequences with funneled energy landscape capable of fast folding if the structure is symmetric. The analogy with phase transitions of small clusters with magic numbers is discussed.

The consecutive integration over the distinct mass scales O(T), O(gT) leads to a hierarchy of effective models for the electroweak phase transition. Different techniques for the realisation of such strategy are reviewed. Advantages and difficulties resulting from the use of reduced models are discussed.