Critical dynamics of gauge systems: spontaneous vortex formation in 2D superconductors

We examine the formation of vortices during the nonequilibrium relaxation of a high-temperature initial state of an Abelian-Higgs system. We equilibrate the scalar and gauge fields using gauge-invariant Langevin equations and relax the system by instantaneously removing thermal fluctuations. For couplings near critical, kappa(c) = square root[lambda]/e = 1, we observe the formation of large clusters of like-sign magnetic vortices. Their appearance has implications for the dynamics of the phase transition, for the distribution of topological defects, and for late-time phase ordering kinetics. We offer explanations for both the observed vortex densities and vortex configurations.     

Vortex configurations in regular arrays of pinning sites

The vortex states interacting with a triangular lattice of pinning sites in a two-dimensional (2D) superconducting sample have been investigated by using a molecular dynamics approach. The Nordborg–Vinokur potential is used to model the interaction between the vortices and the pinning sites. We have found several ordered vortex configurations, such as pentagons, hexagons, and shells depending on two critical parameters of the system, namely pinning radius and vorticity. Our results are in good agreement with the results of Bitter decoration experiments performed on type-II superconductors with blind hole and pillar arrays.     

Stability of giant vortices in quantum liquids

We show how giant vortices can be stabilized for strong external potentials in Bose-Einstein condensates. We illustrate the formation of these vortices thanks to the Ginzburg-Landau dissipative dynamics for two typical potentials in two spatial dimensions. The giant vortex stability is studied for the particular case of a rotating cylindrical hard wall. Due to axial symmetry the minimization of the perturbed energy is simplified into a one dimensional relaxation dynamics. Solving this 1D minimization problem, we observe that giant vortices are either never stable, or only stable in a finite frequency range. Finally we obtain the marginal curve for the minimum frequency needed to observe a giant vortex.     

Towards a Landau–Ginzburg-Type Theory for Granular Fluids

In this paper we show how, under certain restrictions, the hydrodynamic equations for the freely evolving granular fluid fit within the framework of the time dependent Landau–Ginzburg (LG) models for critical and unstable fluids. The granular fluid, which is usually modeled as a fluid of inelastic hard spheres (IHS), exhibits two instabilities: the spontaneous formation of vortices and of high density clusters. We suppress the clustering instability by imposing constraints on the system sizes, in order to illustrate how LG-equations can be derived for the order parameter, being the rate of deformation or shear rate tensor, which controls the formation of vortex patterns. From the shape of the energy functional we obtain the stationary patterns in the flow field. Quantitative predictions of this theory for the stationary states agree well with molecular dynamics simulations of a fluid of inelastic hard disks.     

Nonlinear vortex dynamics in open nonequilibrium systems with bulk mass loss and a generation mechanism for tornadoes and typhoons

Based on a general model of nonlinear vortex dynamics in open thermodynamically nonequilibrium systems with bulk or surface mass losses, an analysis is presented of the mechanism of generation of violent atmospheric vortices (tornadoes, typhoons, cyclones) associated with the formation of deep cloud systems by intense condensation of water vapor from moist air cooled below the dew point. Simple particular solutions to the Navier-Stokes equations are found that describe both axisymmetric and nonaxisymmetric incompressible vortex motions involving radial and vertical flows with viscous dissipation vanishing identically everywhere except for a thin shear layer at the boundary of the condensation region. It is shown that the nonlinear convective and local Coriolis forces generated by radial inflow in the presence of a background vorticity due to a global Coriolis force (the Earth’s rotation) accelerate the solid-body rotation in the vortex core either exponentially or in a nonlinear regime of finite-time blow-up. Due to updrafts, such a vortex is characterized by a strong helicity. This mechanism explains a number of observed properties and characteristics of the structure and evolution of tornadoes and typhoons. Upper estimates are found for the kinetic energies of violent atmospheric vortices. It is shown that increase in rotational kinetic energy of atmospheric vortices with constant vortex-core radii is consistent with energy and momentum conservation, because radial inflow continually supplies the required amount of rotational kinetic energy drawn from the ambient atmosphere to an open system.     

Discrete multivortex solitons

We introduce discrete multivortex solitons in a ring of nonlinear oscillators coupled to a central site. Regular clusters of discrete vortices appear as a result of mode collisions, and we show that their stability is determined by global symmetries rather than the stability of constituent vortices. Stable multivortex solitons support complex vortex dynamics including charge flipping and spiraling.     

Dynamics of two-sign point vortices in positive and negative temperature states

Dynamics of two-sign point vortices in two-dimensional circular boundary is examined by numerical simulations with MDGRAPE-2. The vortex system is characterized by the inverse temperature beta as determined from the density of states of the microcanonical ensemble of numerically generated 10(7) states. The massive simulation shows that different configurations appear in the time-asymptotic state depending on the sign of beta. Condensation of the same-sign vortices is observed when beta<0, while the both-sign vortices tend to be uniformly neutralized when beta>0. During the condensation, a part of the vortices gains energy to form clumps (patches), and the other part of the vortices loses energy to keep the total energy constant and mixes with vortices of the other sign. This observation demonstrates a characteristic feature of negative beta states that the system energy concentrates into the clumps of the same-sign vortices.     

偶极-偶极相互作用下玻色-爱因斯坦凝聚体中涡旋的非线性动力学研究

基于平均场理论和分裂算符谱算法, 研究了偶极-偶极相互作用下玻色爱因斯坦凝聚体中涡旋的非线性动力学. 研究发现外势运动速度小于临界值时,偶极-偶极相互作用对系统涡旋的非线性动力学影响较小,而外势运动速度超过临界速度时,偶极-偶极相互作用对涡旋的非线性动力学影响很大,可使系统产生涡旋对、涡旋偶极子和简单涡旋,并使它们形成涡街.     

偶极-偶极相互作用下玻色-爱因斯坦凝聚体中涡旋的非线性动力学研究

基于平均场理论和分裂算符谱算法,研究了偶极-偶极相互作用下玻色爱因斯坦凝聚体中涡旋的非线性动力学.研究发现外势运动速度小于临界值时,偶极-偶极相互作用对系统涡旋的非线性动力学影响较小,而外势运动速度超过临界速度时,偶极-偶极相互作用对涡旋的非线性动力学影响很大,可使系统产生涡旋对、涡旋偶极子和简单涡旋,并使它们形成涡街.     

Commensurability effects in the critical forces of a superconducting film with Kagomé pinning array at submatching fields

Using molecular dynamics simulations, we find the commensurability force peaks in a two-dimensional superconducting thin-film with a Kagomé pinning array. A transport force is applied in two mutually perpendicular directions, and the magnetic field is increased up to the first matching field. Usually the condition to have pronounced force peaks in systems with periodic pinning is associated to the rate between the applied magnetic field and the first matching field, it must be an integer or a rational fraction. Here, we show that another condition must be satisfied, the vortex ground state must be ordered. Our calculations show that the pinning size and strength may dramatically change the vortex ground state. Small pinning radius and high values of pinning strength may lead to disordered vortex configurations, which fade the critical force peaks. The critical forces show anisotropic behavior, but the same dependence on pinning strength and radius is observed for both driven force directions. Different to cases where the applied magnetic field is higher than the first matching field, here the depinning process begins with vortices weakly trapped on top of a pinning site and not with interstitial vortices. Our results are in good agreement with recent experimental results.     

Emergence and stability of vortex clusters in Bose-Einstein condensates: A bifurcation approach near the linear limit

We study the existence and stability properties of clusters of alternating charge vortices in repulsive Bose-Einstein condensates. It is illustrated that such states emerge from cascades of symmetry-breaking bifurcations that can be analytically tracked near the linear limit of the system via weakly nonlinear few-mode expansions. We present the resulting states that emerge near the first few eigenvalues of the linear limit, and illustrate how the nature of the bifurcations can be used to understand their stability. Rectilinear, polygonal and diagonal vortex clusters are only some of the obtained states while mixed states, consisting of dark solitons and vortex clusters, are identified as well. We also explore the evolution of unstable states and their transient dynamics exploring configurations of nearby bifurcation branches.     

Vortices in Bose-Einstein condensates: A review of the experimental results

Rotating dilute Bose-Einstein condensates (BEC) of alkali atoms offer a testing ground for theories of vortices in weakly interacting superfluids. In a rotating super-fluid, quantised vortices, with a vorticity h/m, form above a critical velocity. Such vortices have been generated in BEC of alkali atoms by different techniques such as (a) wave function engineering of a two-component BEC, (b) decay of solitons, (c) rotation of a thermal cloud before cooling it below the condensation temperature, (d) stirring with an ‘optical’ spoon, (e) rotating a deformation in the anisotropic trap in which the condensate is trapped and (f) by creating Berry phase by adiabatically reversing the axial magnetic field. Since the core of a vortex is a fraction of a micrometer in diameter, it cannot be directly imaged optically. The condensate with vortices is allowed to ballistically expand till the size increases by one order before the vortices are imaged. Surface wave spectroscopy and the change in aspect ratio of a rotating cloud are the other techniques used. Studies have been made on the creation and dynamics of single vortex and on systems with more than a hundred vortices. Results have been obtained on vortex nucleation, stability of vortex structures, nature of the vortex lattice and defects in such a lattice. Important results are: (a) evidence exists that vortex nucleation takes place by a surface mode instability; but this is not the only mechanism; (b) the vortex lattice is perfectly triangular right up to the edge; (c) in the initial stages of rotation of the cloud a tangled web of vortices is seen; it takes a few hundred milliseconds before the vortices arrange themselves in a lattice; this time appears to be independent of temperature; (d) the decay of vortices appears to arise from the transfer of energy to the rotating thermal component and is dependent on temperature; (e) defects in the lattices such as dislocations and grain boundaries are seen; (f) transverse oscillations (Tkachenko modes) of the vortex lattice have been observed; and (g) giant vortices have been produced. These will be discussed.     

弱相互作用玻色-爱因斯坦凝聚体中涡旋动力学与量子混沌轨道简

利用变分法和数值模拟方法,我们分别从解析上和数值上研究了弱相互作用玻色-爱因斯坦凝聚体中不同涡旋蔟的动力学性质.借助玻姆量子力学中的方法,我们定义了相应量子流体中的量子轨道,并且研究了由于不同涡旋结构的存在而导致量子轨道出现混沌的性质.当存在一单涡旋,我们发现混沌轨道出现与否和涡旋轨道的形状紧密相关.此外,玻色凝聚体原子中的两体相互作用对各向异性谐振子势下涡旋对出现时量子轨道混沌的发生也具有重要的作用.因为这一非线性相互作用会破坏相应速度场的时间周期性.最后,在涡旋极子情形下,我们还讨论了由于涡旋相互激发或淹没的作用而导致规则岛膨胀的性质.这些规则区域镶嵌在一定的混沌海中.     

Simulation of Dynamics in Two-Dimensional Vortex Systems in Random Media

Dynamics in two-dimensional vortex systems with random pinning centres is investigated using molecular dynamical simulations. The driving force and temperature dependences of vortex velocity are investigated. Below the critical depinning force Fc, a creep motion of vortex is found at low temperature. At forces slightly above Fc, a part of vortices flow in winding channels at zero temperature. In the vortex channel flow region, we observe the abnormal behaviour of vortex dynamics： the velocity is roughly independent of temperature or even decreases with temperature at low temperatures. A phase diagram that describes different dynamics of vortices is presented.     

Stable and unstable vortices in multicomponent bose-einstein condensates

We study the stability and dynamics of vortices in two-species condensates as prepared in the recent JILA experiment [Matthews et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 83, 2498 (1999)]. We find that of the two possible configurations, in which one species has vorticity m = 1 and the other one has m = 0, only one is linearly stable, which agrees with the experimental results. However, it is found that in the unstable case the vortex is not destroyed by the instability, but may be transferred from one species to the other or display complex spatiotemporal dynamics.     

Topological self-dual configurations in a Maxwell–Higgs model with a CPT-odd and Lorentz-violating nonminimal coupling

We have studied the existence of topological self-dual configurations in a nonminimal CPT-odd and Lorentz-violating (LV) Maxwell–Higgs model, where the LV interaction is introduced by modifying the minimal covariant derivative. The Bogomol’nyi–Prasad–Sommerfield formalism has been implemented, revealing that the scalar self-interaction implying self-dual equations contains a derivative coupling. The CPT-odd self-dual equations describe electrically neutral configurations with finite total energy proportional to the total magnetic flux, which differ from the charged solutions of other CPT-odd and LV models previously studied. In particular, we have investigated the axially symmetrical self-dual vortex solutions altered by the LV parameter. For large distances, the profiles possess general behavior similar to the vortices of Abrikosov–Nielsen–Olesen. However, within the vortex core, the profiles of the magnetic field and energy can differ substantially from ones of the Maxwell–Higgs model depending if the LV parameter is negative or positive.     

Vortex deformation and breaking in superconductors: a microscopic description

Vortex breaking has traditionally been studied for non-uniform critical current densities, although it may also appear due to non-uniform pinning force distributions. In this article we study the case of a high-pinning/low-pinning/high-pinning layered structure. We have developed an elastic model for describing the deformation of a vortex in these systems in the presence of a uniform transport current density J for any arbitrary orientation of the transport current and the magnetic field. If J is above a certain critical value, J_c , the vortex breaks and a finite effective resistance appears. Our model can be applied to some experimental configurations where vortex breaking naturally exists. This is the case for YBa₂Cu₃O_7?δ (YBCO) low-angle grain boundaries and films on vicinal substrates, where the breaking is experienced by Abrikosov–Josephson vortices (AJV) and Josephson string vortices (SV), respectively. With our model, we have experimentally extracted some intrinsic parameters of the AJV and SV, such as the line tension ? _l and compared it to existing predictions based on the vortex structure.     

Driving an individual vortex in the presence of a periodic pinning array

Recently it has been demonstrated experimentally that it is possible to manipulate an individual vortex in a type-II superconductor using a magnetic force microscope tip. Using numerical simulations, we investigate the dynamics of a single driven vortex in the presence of a periodic pinning array and other vortices. Remarkably, we find that the effective drag on the driven vortex is reduced at the matching fields, which is opposite from the behavior of the critical current when all the vortices are driven. We discuss this effect in the context of the type of dynamics that occur at matching and nonmatching fields.     

Statistics of two-dimensional point vortices and high-energy vortex states

Results from the theory ofU-statistics are used to characterize the microcanonical partition function of theN-vortex system in a rectangular region for largeN, under various boundary conditions, and for neutral, asymptotically neutral, and nonneutral systems. Numerical estimates show that the limiting distribution is well matched in the region of major probability forN larger than 20. Implications for the thermodynamic limit are discussed. Vortex clustering is quantitatively studied via the average interaction energy between negative and positive vortices. Vortex states for which clustering is generic (in a statistical sense) are shown to result from two modeling processes: the approximation of a continuous inviscid fluid by point vortex configurations; and the modeling of the evolution of a continuous fluid at high Reynolds number by point vortex configurations, with the viscosity represented by the annihilation of close positive-negative vortex pairs. This last process, with the vortex dynamics replaced by a random walk, reproduces quite well the late-time features seen in spectral integration of the 2d Navier-Stokes equation.