We report on the observation of two types of current driven transitions in metastable vortex lattices. The metastable states, which are missed in usual slow transport measurements, are detected with a fast transport technique in the vortex lattice of undoped $2H-{\mathrm{NbSe}}_2$. The transitions are seen by following the evolution of these states when driven by a current. At low currents we observe an equilibration transition from a metastable to a stable state, followed by a dynamic crystallization transition at high currents.

• Received 31 January 2000

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.85.3265