P. Das, C. Rastovski, T. R. O'Brien, K. J. Schlesinger, C. D. Dewhurst, L. DeBeer-Schmitt, N. D. Zhigadlo, J. Karpinski, M. R. Eskildsen
The vortex lattice (VL) symmetry and orientation in clean type-II superconductors depends sensitively on the host material anisotropy, vortex density and temperature, frequently leading to rich phase diagrams. Typically, a well-ordered VL is taken to imply a ground state configuration for the vortex-vortex interaction. Using neutron scattering we studied the VL in MgB2 for a number of field-temperature histories, discovering an unprecedented degree of metastability in connection with a known, second-order rotation transition. This allows, for the first time, structural studies of a well-ordered, non-equilibrium VL. While the mechanism responsible for the longevity of the metastable states is not resolved, we speculate it is due to a jamming of VL domains, preventing a rotation to the ground state orientation.
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http://arxiv.org/abs/1202.5660
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