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We propose a theoretical framework to derive thermodynamically consistent equilibrium equations and kinetic driving forces to describe the time evolution for electrically and magnetically active materials. This procedure starts from the combined statement of the first and second laws of thermodynamics, naturally incorporates Maxwell’s equations, and accommodates the description of continuous phase transformations for conserved and non-conserved order parameters. The kinetics of conserved and non-conserved ordered parameters are introduced, the adequate gradient flow is identified, thus the appropriate kinetics (e.g., Allen–Cahn, Cahn–Hilliard) are derived. Example applications of this theory include the electromechanical fields of piezoelectric materials and the wave equation in the limit of chemically homogeneous solids. Moreover, we derive a thermodynamically consistent set of partial differential equations which describe the transport of charged species in conductive, non-polarizable, magnetizable solids, and in polarizable, electrically insulating, non-magnetizable solids. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

A stability analysis of phase separation of charged species by spinodal decomposition is presented. The charge effects introduce a short wave number cutoff for linear perturbations about the homogeneous, neutral solution. Phase field calculations using a semi-implicit spectral method support this conclusion. This suggests that coarsening is limited in ionic solid systems that are unstable with respect to charged-phase separation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]