Density-functional theory of freezing of vortex-liquid in quasi two-dimensional superconductors

TL;DR

This paper develops a density-functional theory to describe the vortex liquid-to-solid transition in quasi-2D superconductors, accurately predicting transition properties and aligning with Monte Carlo simulation results.

Contribution

It introduces a novel density-functional approach to analyze vortex phase transitions, capturing weakly first-order behavior and density-wave characteristics.

Findings

Transition is weakly first-order and occurs below Hc2(T)

Predicted transition temperature and discontinuities match Monte Carlo results

Vortex solid phase shows weak density modulation, consistent with density-wave behavior

Abstract

We present a theory of vortex liquid-to-solid transition in homogeneous quasi 2D superconductors. The free energy is written as a functional l of density of zeroes of the fluctuating order parameter. The transition is weakly first-order and well below the Hc2(T) line. Transition temperature, discontinuities of the average Abrikosov ratio and of the average superfluid density, the Debay-Waller factor and the latent heat are in good agreement with Monte Carlo simulations. The density is only weakly modulated in the "vortex-solid" phase, consistent with the density-wave behavior.