Hidden non-equilibrium pathways towards crystalline perfection

• DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2402.04962
• Publication Date: 2024-02-07
• Authors: Anudeep Mangu; Vladimir A. Stoica; Huai Zheng; Tian Yang; Minghui Zhang; Hui Wang; Quynh L. Nguyen; Sanghoon Song; Samir Das; Poncho Meisenheimer; Elizabeth Donoway; Matthieu Chollet; Yan Sun; Joshua J. Turner; J. W. Freeland; Huiying Wen; Lane W. Martin; Long‐Qing Chen; Venkatraman Gopalan; Diling Zhu; Yanwei Cao; A. M. Lindenberg
• Keywords: Perfection

A central paradigm of non-equilibrium physics concerns the dynamics heterogeneity and disorder, impacting processes ranging from behavior glasses1 to emergent functionality active matter. Understanding these complex mesoscopic systems requires probing microscopic trajectories associated with irreversible processes, role fluctuations entropy growth, timescales on which responses are ultimately maintained. Approaches that illuminate in model may enable a more general understanding other heterogeneous phenomena, potentially define ultimate speed energy cost limits for information processing technologies. Here, we apply ultrafast single shot x-ray photon correlation spectroscopy (XPCS) resolve non-equilibrium, heterogeneous, mesoscale during light-induced phase transition. This approach defines new way capturing nucleation induced phase, formation transient defects at boundaries nuclei, eventual disappearance defects, even polarization topologies. sub-diffusive response spanning >10 orders magnitude is observed multistep similar plateaus supercooled liquids or glasses. We show how time-dependent long-time correlations can be understood terms stochastic domain walls, encoded effective waiting-time distributions power-law tails. work possibilities disordered media.