Vortices and magnetic bags in Abelian models with extended scalar sectors and some of their applications

TL;DR

This paper investigates vortex solutions in extended Abelian Higgs models with two scalars, revealing stable condensate-core vortices, their energetic advantages, and their potential relevance to superconducting states like liquid metallic hydrogen.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive analysis of vortex types in two-scalar Abelian models, highlighting the stability and energy properties of condensate-core vortices and their applications.

Findings

CC vortices are stable and energetically favored over ANO vortices.

Magnetic bags with up to 1000 flux quanta are likely in certain parameter regimes.

Finite energy vortices connect smoothly to fractional flux vortices.

Abstract

A detailed study of vortices is presented in Ginzburg-Landau (or Abelian Higgs) models with two complex scalars (order parameters) assuming a general U(1)$\times$U(1) symmetric potential. Particular emphasis is given to the case, when only one of the scalars obtains a vacuum expectation value (VEV). It is found that for a significantly large domain in parameter space vortices with a scalar field condensate in their core (condensate core, CC) coexist with Abrikosov-Nielsen-Olesen (ANO) vortices. Importantly CC vortices are stable and have lower energy than the ANO ones. Magnetic bags or giant vortices of the order of 1000 flux quanta are favoured to form for the range of parameters ("strong couplings") appearing for the superconducting state of liquid metallic hydrogen (LMH). Furthermore, it is argued that finite energy/unit length 1VEV vortices are smoothly connected to fractional flux 2VEV ones. Stable, finite energy CC-type vortices are also exhibited in the case when one of the scalar fields is neutral.