Continuous crossover between high-pressure ice phases VII and X driven by monopole screening: a model study
The study modeled proton configurations using a spin-1 Blume-Capel model to investigate ice phases VII and X. It found that thermal fluctuations cause point-like monopole excitations to screen emergent gauge fields, leading to a continuous crossover between the two phases at any finite temperature. This means the distinct topological features of these ice structures are destroyed by thermal effects.