Kinetics of topological defects in systems with competing interactions

The phase separation in a quenched system with an attractive and a long-range repulsive interaction is studied through Langevin simulations. Systems with both conserved and nonconserved order parameters are considered. After the initial shape transitions, the system forms modulated patterns broken up by topological defects which anneal away as the system orders. The defect collision mechanisms for the hexagonal phase are identified and the ordering process described.