The world of the complex Ginzburg-Landau equation

Jun 6, 2001
45 pages
Published in:
  • Rev.Mod.Phys. 74 (2002) 99-143
e-Print:

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Abstract: (APS)
The cubic complex Ginzburg-Landau equation is one of the most-studied nonlinear equations in the physics community. It describes a vast variety of phenomena from nonlinear waves to second-order phase transitions, from superconductivity, superfluidity, and Bose-Einstein condensation to liquid crystals and strings in field theory. The authors give an overview of various phenomena described by the complex Ginzburg-Landau equation in one, two, and three dimensions from the point of view of condensed-matter physicists. Their aim is to study the relevant solutions in order to gain insight into nonequilibrium phenomena in spatially extended systems.
Note:
  • Submitted to Reviews of Modern Physics, reduced resolution figures
  • review
  • Landau-Ginzburg model
  • critical phenomena
  • coherent state
  • scattering: plane wave
  • defect: topological
  • stability
  • dimension: 2
  • dimension: 3
  • vortex