Quantum Pair Creation of Soliton Domain Walls

TL;DR

This paper discusses quantum pair creation of soliton domain walls in condensed matter systems, highlighting experimental evidence and theoretical models, especially in high-temperature regimes where quantum effects dominate over thermal activation.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive analysis of quantum pair creation of soliton domain walls, integrating experimental data with theoretical insights, and clarifies the role of system dimensions and temperature.

Findings

Experimental evidence supports quantum pair creation in various systems.

Quantum processes can dominate at high temperatures in large systems.

Theoretical models interpret soliton mass as line or surface density.

Abstract

A large body of experimental evidence suggests that the decay of the false vacuum, accompanied by quantum pair creation of soliton domain walls, can occur in a variety of condensed matter systems. Examples include nucleation of charge soliton pairs in density waves [eg. J. H. Miller, Jr. et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 84, 1555 (2000)] and flux soliton pairs in long Josephon junctions. Recently, Dias and Lemos [J. Math. Phys. 42, 3292 (2001)] have argued that the mass $m$ of the soliton should be interpreted as a line density and a surface density, respectively, for (2+1)-D and (3+1)-D systems in the expression for the pair production rate. As the transverse dimensions are increased and the total mass (energy) becomes large, thermal activation becomes suppressed, so quantum processes can dominate even at relatively high temperatures. This paper will discuss both experimental evidence and theoretical arguments for the existence of high-temperature collective quantum phenomena.