posted on 2023-06-07, 22:32authored byNuno D Antunes, Luís M A Bettencourt, Wojciech H Zurek
We report the first large scale numerical study of the dynamics of a second order phase transition caused by a gradual decrease of temperature in a U(1) ?f4 theory in three spatial dimensions. We present a detailed account of the dynamics of the fields and focus on vortex string formation as a function of the quench rate. The results are found in good agreement with the theory of defect formation proposed by Kibble and Zurek.