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{{Short description|A phase transition for the whole universe}}
A '''cosmological phase transition''' is a physical process, whereby the overall state of matter changes together across the whole universe. The success of the [[Big Bang]] model led researchers to conjecture possible cosmological phase transitions taking place in the very early universe, at a time when it was much hotter and denser than today.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Guth |first1=Alan H. |last2=Tye |first2=S.H. H. |title=Phase Transitions and Magnetic Monopole Production in the Very Early Universe |journal=Phys. Rev. Lett. |date=1980 |volume=44 |issue=10 |pages=631–635 |doi=10.1103/PhysRevLett.44.631|bibcode=1980PhRvL..44..631G |osti=1447535 }}</ref><ref name="witten-1984">{{cite journal |last1=Witten |first1=Edward |title=Cosmic Separation of Phases |journal=Phys. Rev. D |date=1984 |volume=30 |issue=3 |pages=272–285 |doi=10.1016/0550-3213(81)90182-6|bibcode=1981NuPhB.177..477W }}</ref>
Any cosmological phase transition may have left signals which are observable today, even if it took place in the first moments after the Big Bang, when the universe was [[cosmic microwave background|opaque to light]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Kibble |first1=T. W. B. |title=Some implications of a Cosmological Phase Transition |journal=Phys. Rept. |date=1980 |volume=67 |issue=1 |pages=183–199 |doi=10.1016/0370-1573(80)90091-5|bibcode=1980PhR....67..183K }}</ref>
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===Electroweak phase transition===
The electroweak phase transition marks the moment when the [[Higgs mechanism]] first activated, ending the [[electroweak epoch]].<ref name ="guth-weinberg-higgs">{{cite journal |last1=Guth |first1=Alan H. |last2=Weinberg |first2=Eric J. |title=A Cosmological Lower Bound on the Higgs Boson Mass |journal=Phys. Rev. Lett. |date=1980 |volume=45 |issue=14 |pages=1131–1134 |doi=10.1103/PhysRevLett.45.1131|bibcode=1980PhRvL..45.1131G |osti=1445632 }}</ref><ref name="witten-higgs">{{cite journal |last1=Witten |first1=Edward |title=Cosmological Consequences of a Light Higgs Boson |journal=Nucl. Phys. B |date=1981 |volume=177 |issue=3 |pages=477–488|doi=10.1016/0550-3213(81)90182-6|bibcode=1981NuPhB.177..477W }}</ref> Just as for the strong force, lattice studies of the electroweak model have found the transition to be a smooth crossover, taking place at 159.5±1.5 [[GeV]].<ref name="donofrio-rummukainen">
{{cite journal
|author1 = D'Onofrio, Michela
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