Latent heat corresponds to the change in heat at constant

Latent heat is defined as the energy absorbed or released by a substance during a change in its physical state (phase change) that occurs without any change in its temperature [1]. For instance, when water boils at 100 °C, the temperature remains constant until the entire liquid has evaporated because the added energy is consumed as latent heat of vaporization [1]. Similarly, during the melting of ice at 0 °C, the temperature stays fixed until the phase transition is complete [1]. While standard values for latent heat are often tabulated at a constant pressure of 1 atm, the fundamental characteristic that distinguishes latent heat from sensible heat is that it corresponds to a heat exchange occurring specifically at a constant temperature [1]. During this process, the thermal energy is used to overcome intermolecular forces rather than increasing the kinetic energy of the molecules.

Sources

1. [1] Physical Geography by PMF IAS, Manjunath Thamminidi, PMF IAS (1st ed.) > Chapter 22: Vertical Distribution of Temperature > Latent Heat > p. 294