phase transition

American  

[fayz-tran-zish-uhn] / ˈfeɪz trænˌzɪʃ ən /

noun

phase transitions plural

1. Physical Chemistry. the change from one phase of a substance to another, such as from solid to liquid.

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phase transition Scientific  

1. A change in a feature of a physical system that results in a discrete transition of that system to another state. For example, the melting of ice is a phase transition of water from a solid phase to a liquid phase. Phase transitions often involve the absorption or emission of energy from the system; ice, at 0 ° Celsius, must absorb a considerable amount of heat energy to become water.

2. See also state of matter thermodynamics

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Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

noun

• phase transitions
  plural

Example Sentences

While CDWs have been studied for many years, researchers have struggled to directly observe how their strength and spatial coherence change during a phase transition.

From Science Daily • Apr. 28, 2026

"For the first time, we've seen a superfluid undergo a phase transition to become what appears to be a supersolid," said Dean.

From Science Daily • Feb. 5, 2026

The material exhibits displacive-type ferroelectric behavior, where the displacement of ions during the phase transition leads to the creation of a permanent dipole moment within the material.

From Science Daily • Apr. 25, 2024

This change in motion was attributed to a phase transition in the crystal that created more space between adjacent molecules, giving the phenylene rings more room to rotate.

From Science Daily • Jan. 19, 2024

Later work has also cast doubt on whether there could be a phase transition in the very early universe of the kind required.

From "A Brief History of Time: And Other Essays" by Stephen Hawking