{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,26]],"date-time":"2026-02-26T15:57:46Z","timestamp":1772121466745,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":42,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"5","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,26]],"date-time":"2026-02-26T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1772064000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Materials"],"abstract":"<jats:p>The Berezinskii\u2013Kosterlitz\u2013Thouless (BKT) transition is the prototype of a phase transition driven by the formation and interaction of topological defects in two-dimensional (2D) systems. In typical models, these are vortices: above a transition temperature TBKT, vortices are free; below this transition temperature, they get confined. In this work, we extend the concept of BKT transition to quantum systems in two dimensions. In particular, we demonstrate that a zero-temperature quantum BKT phase transition driven by a coupling constant can occur in 2D models governed by an effective gauge field theory with a diverging dielectric constant. One particular example is that of a compact U(1) gauge theory with a diverging dielectric constant, where the quantum BKT transition is induced by non-relativistic, purely 2D magnetic monopoles, which can be viewed also as electric vortices. These quantum BKT transitions have the same diverging exponent z as the quantum Griffiths transition but are not related to disorder.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/ma19050868","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,26]],"date-time":"2026-02-26T14:51:29Z","timestamp":1772117489000},"page":"868","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Berezinskii\u2013Kosterlitz\u2013Thouless Quantum Transition in Two Dimensions"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"19","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2164-6711","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"M. Cristina","family":"Diamantini","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"NiPS Laboratory, INFN and Dipartimento di Fisica e Geologia, University of Perugia, via A. Pascoli, I-06100 Perugia, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Carlo A.","family":"Trugenberger","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"SwissScientific Technologies SA, rue du Rhone 59, CH-1204 Geneva, Switzerland"},{"name":"Division of Science, New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi P.O. Box 129188, United Arab Emirates"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0977-3515","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Valerii M.","family":"Vinokur","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Terra Quantum AG, St. Gallerstrasse 16A, 9400 Rorschach, Switzerland"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,26]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","first-page":"493","article-title":"Destruction of long-range order in one-dimensional and two-dimensional systems having a continuous symmetry group I. 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