2018/08/31 by Jay Armas, Akash Jain · 3 citations
Physics and Astronomy · #Classical mechanics #Conservation law #Dissipative system #Magnetohydrodynamics #Mathematical physics #Physics #Plasma #Pulsars and Gravitational Waves Research #Quantum electrodynamics #Quantum mechanics #Quantum, superfluid, helium dynamics #Scalar (mathematics) #Solar and Space Plasma Dynamics #Spontaneous symmetry breaking #Superfluidity #Symmetry breaking #Theoretical physics #astro-ph.HE #cond-mat.str-el #gr-qc #hep-th
paper · pdf · doi:10.1103/physrevlett.122.141603
published as Phys. Rev. Lett. 122, 141603 (2019) · v2: 6 pp; presentation improved; added example of magnetised star; to be published in PRL
arxiv created 2019/03/22 · openalex publication_date 2019/04/09 · arxiv updated 2019/04/17 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
We show that relativistic magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) can be recast as a novel theory of superfluidity. This new theory formulates MHD just in terms of conservation equations, including dissipative effects, by introducing appropriate variables such as a magnetic scalar potential, and providing necessary and sufficient conditions to obtain equilibrium configurations. We show that this scalar potential can be interpreted as a Goldstone mode originating from the spontaneous breaking of a one-form symmetry, and present the most generic constitutive relations at one derivative order for a parity-preserving plasma in this new superfluid formulation.