Abstract
The microcanonical ensemble of identical guiding centers in a two-dimensional, circular domain is characterized by means of a Monte Carlo simulation. For sufficiently large energies, the rotational symmetry is spontaneously broken so that a net displacement of the system accounts for a significant fraction of the angular momentum. The transition between axisymmetric and displaced statistical equilibria resembles a second-order phase transition. The description also applies to point vortices bounded by a circular equipotential surface.

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