phase transition

American  

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

noun

plural

phase transitions

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

---

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

---

Example Sentences

These included metals such as copper, noble gases under extreme pressure such as argon in crystalline state, and the complex solid-solid phase transition of tin.

From Science Daily

Stronger interactions between neighboring chains are predicted to trigger a phase transition from semiconductor to metal as chain density increases.

From Science Daily

Thermodynamic measurements revealed a clear phase transition, showing that the system entered a magnetically ordered state.

From Science Daily

However, building on their earlier work, the team showed that fluids move through a pipe in a non-equilibrium phase transition, known as directed percolation, at the transition point between laminar and turbulent flow.

From Science Daily

The researchers also demonstrate that they can use non-Gaussian states to prepare 'critical' quantum states which correspond to a system undergoing a phase transition.

From Science Daily