Crumpling self-avoiding surfaces

Self-avoiding plaquette surfaces with a folding or bending fugacity are believed to undergo a “crumpling” transition from a flaccid phase with branched polymer characteristics (corresponding to surfaces with a high degree of folding), to a “smooth” phase (corresponding to surfaces faith a low degree of folding). I develop rigorous techniques in order to bound the free energy of this model. In particular, the limiting free energy is proven to be positive for all positive values of the folding fugacity. In addition, the existence of a nonanalyticity in the limiting free energy of a (nontrivial) subclass of surfaces is proven. This implies the existence of a phase transition in this model, which I conjecture to be from a “flaccid” to a “smooth” phase.     

A semi-flexible attracting segment model of two-dimensional polymer collapse

Recently it has been shown that a two-dimensional model of self-attracting polymers based on attracting segments displays two phase transitions, a θ-like collapse between swollen polymers and a globular state and another between the globular state and a polymer crystal. On the other hand, the canonical model based on attracting monomers on lattice sites displays only one: the standard tricritical θ collapse transition. Here we consider the attracting segment model with the addition of stiffness and show that it displays the same phases as the canonical model.     

Phase diagram of a 2D Ising model within a nonextensive approach

In this work we report Monte Carlo simulations of a 2D Ising model, in which the statistics of the Metropolis algorithm is replaced by the nonextensive one. We compute the magnetization and show that phase transitions are present for q ≠ 1. A q - phase diagram (critical temperature vs. the entropic parameter q) is built and exhibits some interesting features, such as phases which are governed by the value of the entropic index q. It is shown that such phases favors some energy levels of magnetization states. It is also shown that the contribution of the Tsallis cutoff is capital to the existence of phase transitions.     

纳米尺度下Sm-Co合金体系中相组成与相稳定性的研究

建立了纳米晶合金相的热力学模型,可定量描述纳米尺度下合金体系中化合物相的热力学性质,并预测合金相的稳定性及其转变规律.利用该模型全面计算了纳米晶Sm-Co合金体系中各化合物相在不同晶粒尺寸下的摩尔吉布斯自由能随温度的变化关系,预测了纳米尺度下Sm-Co合金体系中各物相的相对稳定性及转变规律.模型预测结果示出,在室温附近,随着纳米晶粒尺寸的减小,某些纳米晶合金相的摩尔吉布斯自由能将由负值变为正值,预示着将向其他更稳定的纳米晶合金相转变,这是与传统粗晶材料中合金相的稳定性仅依赖于温度条件而完全不同的纳米晶合金 关键词： 纳米晶材料热力学 Sm-Co合金 相稳定性 相变     

Microcanonical determination of the interface tension of flat and curved interfaces from Monte Carlo simulations

The investigation of phase coexistence in systems with multi-component order parameters in finite systems is discussed and, as a generic example, Monte Carlo simulations of the two-dimensional q-state Potts model (q?=?30) on L?×?L square lattices (40?≤?L?≤?100) are presented. It is shown that the microcanonical ensemble is well suited both to find the precise location of the first-order phase transition and to obtain an accurate estimate for the interfacial free energy between coexisting ordered and disordered phases. For this purpose, a microcanonical version of the heat bath algorithm is implemented. The finite size behaviour of the loop in the curve describing the inverse temperature versus energy density is discussed, emphasizing that the extrema do not have the meaning of van der Waals-like 'spinodal points' separating metastable from unstable states, but rather describe the onset of heterophase states: droplet/bubble evaporation/condensation transitions. Thus all parts of these loops, including the parts that correspond to a negative specific heat, describe phase coexistence in full thermal equilibrium. However, the estimates for the curvature-dependent interface tension of the droplets and bubbles suffer from unexpected and unexplained large finite size effects which need further study.     

Statics and kinetics at the nematic-isotropic interface in porous media

We extend the random anisotropy nematic spin model to study nematic-isotropic transitions in porous media. A complete phase diagram is obtained. In the limit of relative low randomness the existence of a triple point is predicted. For relatively large randomness we have found a depression in temperature at the transition, together with a first order transition which ends at a tricritical point, beyond which the transition becomes continuous. We use this model to investigate the motion of the nematic-isotropic interface. We assume the system to be isothermal and initially quenched into the metastable régime of the isotropic phase. Using an appropriate form of the free energy density we obtain the domain wall solutions of the time-dependent Ginzburg-Landau equation. We find that including a random field leads to smaller velocity of the interface and to larger interface width. Received 12 November 1998 and Received in final form 15 March 1999     

Simulation of fluid-solid coexistence via thermodynamic integration using a modified cell model

Despite recent advances, precise simulation of fluid-solid transitions still remains a challenging task. Thermodynamic integration techniques are the simplest methods to study fluid-solid coexistence. These methods are based on the calculation of the free energies of the fluid and the solid phases, starting from a state of known free energy which is usually an ideal-gas state. Despite their simplicity, the main drawback of thermodynamic integration techniques is the large number of states that must be simulated. In the present work, a thermodynamic integration technique, which reduces the number of simulated states, is proposed and tested on a system of particles interacting via an inverse twelfth-power potential energy function. The simulations are implemented at constant pressure and the solid phase is modeled according to the constrained cell model of Hoover and Ree. The fluid and the solid phases are linked together by performing constant-pressure simulations of a modified cell model. The modified cell model, which was originally proposed by Hoover and Ree, facilitates transitions between the fluid and the solid phase by tuning a homogeneous external field. This model is simulated on a constant-pressure path for a series of progressively increasing values of the field, thus allowing for direct determination of the free energy difference between the fluid and the solid phase via histogram reweighting. The size-dependent results are analyzed using histogram reweighting and finite-size scaling techniques. The scaling analysis is based on studying the size-dependent behavior of the second- and higher-order derivatives of the free energy as well as the dimensionless moment ratios of the order parameter. The results clearly demonstrate the importance of accounting for size effects in simulation studies of fluid-solid transitions.     

Lyapunov exponents of large,sparse random matrices and the problem of directed polymers with complex random weights

We present results on two different problems: the Lyapunov exponent of large, sparse random matrices and the problem of polymers on a Cayley tree with random complex weights. We give an analytic expression for the largest Lyapunov exponent of products of random sparse matrices, with random elements located at random positions in the matrix. This expression is obtained through an analogy with the problem of random directed polymers on a Cayley tree (i.e., in the mean field limit), which itself can be solved using its relationship with random energy models (REM and GREM). For the random polymer problem with complex weights we find that, in addition to the high- and the low-temperature phases which were already known in the case of positive weights, the mean field theory predicts a new phase (phase III) which is dominated by interference effects.     

The Landau model of spontaneous metamagnetism involving inequivalent sublattices

A Landau-type free energy expansion is postulated for a metamagnet possessing two inequivalent magnetic sublattices. Stability analysis of the free energy reveals a number of possible sequences of spontaneous phase transitions which involve various ordered and disordered phases. Moreover, the inter-sublattice exchange coupling is examined as to its role in the associated magnetization processes. It is concluded that relatively small changes in the sublattice magnetization are most likely to occur. These changes are usually accompanied by minor shifts in the critical temperatures. Induced first order transitions to disorder resulting from the inter-sublattice exchange are highly unlikely to take place.     

Magnetic properties of the Ashkin–Teller model on a hexagonal nanotube

A new theoretical model for nanomagnets represented by the Ashkin–Teller model on a core-shell hexagonal nanotube is proposed. The Mean Field Theory from the Bogoliubov inequality is applied to study the magnetizations, phase boundaries and tricritical points. For a positive couplings system (ferromagnetic), first order and continuous phase transitions between the stable, metastable and unstable states are observed. For a negative core-shell coupling system, only continuous phase transitions between the stable and unstable states are observed. The phase diagram is presented to illustrate the different phases and transitions exhibited by the model.     

The coexistence of TE-TM surface waves in uniaxially anisotropic left-handed materials

We investigate theoretically the characteristics of surface waves in uniaxially anisotropic left-handed materials. The constraints for the existence of TE and TM polarized surface waves in uniaxially anisotropic left-handed materials are identified. We discuss mainly whether TE and TM polarized surface modes may coexist in the same frequency domain at the interface between one isotropic regular medium and another uniaxially anisotropic left-handed medium. It is shown that the answer to the coexistence of TE and TM surface modes is really positive. The Poynting vector and the density of energy associated with surface modes are calculated. Depending on the system parameters either TE or TM surface modes has the time averaged Poynting vector directed opposite or same to the mode phase velocity. In the presence of anisotropy, negative refraction does not need to be left-handed. We show that the characteristics of surface waves in uniaxially anisotropic left-handed media are significantly different from that in isotropic left-handed media.     

Surface triple points and multiple-layer transitions observed by tuning the surface field at smectic liquid-crystal-water interfaces

We present an ellipsometric study of the interface between a smectic liquid crystal and water in the presence of a nonionic surfactant. The surfactant concentration serves as a handle to tune the surface field. For sufficiently large surfactant concentrations, a smectic phase is present at the interface in the temperature range above the smectic-A-isotropic bulk transition; when the bulk transition is approached, the thickness of this surface phase grows via a series of layer-by-layer transitions at which single smectic layers are formed. At lower surfactant concentrations, transitions appear at which the thickness of the surface phase jumps by multiple smectic layers, thereby implying the existence of triple points at which surface phases with different smectic layer numbers coexist. This is the first experimental demonstration of such surface triple points which are predicted by theoretical models.     

Free energy of the Falicov-Kimball model in large dimensions

We show how to calculate the free energy of the spinless Falicov Kimball model exactly in the limit of infinite dimensions, and do it explicitly for the homogeneous and the chessboard phase. By comparing the free energies for those two cases we study the transitions between the pure phases, and by looking for concavities in the course of the free energy as a function of the meanf-particle density we examine the possibility of phase segregation.     

Phase-field model for multiphase systems with different thermodynamic factors

A modified phase-field model for quantitative simulations of low-speed phase transitions in multiphase systems is proposed, which takes into account the difference between thermodynamic factors in all the phases. The presented model is based on the quantitative phase-field concept developed by Steinbach et al. [I. Steinbach, F. Pezolla, B. Nestler, M. Seeelberg, R. Prieler, G.J. Schmitz, J.L.L. Rezende, A phase field concept for multiphase systems, Physica D 94 (1996) 135] for multiphase systems allowing to consider the multiphase transition as a superposition of pairwise interactions between two phases. We complete this approach and develop a model, which uses parameters derived from chemical free energy functions of individual phases evaluated from experimental data by the CALPHAD method Lukas et al. (2007) [17]. Because the thermodynamic factors are different in various phases we need to evaluate a special form of total chemical free energy function of a multiphase mixture and use it in the phase-field model. It is shown, that for the developed model the thin-interface asymptotic and the anti-trapping term developed previously for the solidification of pure substances can be applied. The model is verified by an example of the Al-Ni system whose peritectic structural morphology during the directional solidification is investigated. The suggested model can be also extended to multicomponent systems.     

On the definition of phase transition

It is shown that there exists a phase transition associated with a singularity of the free energy for a model such that for all temperatures the equilibrium state is unique and thus stable with respect to boundary perturbations. It is also shown on this model that there exist phase transitions without symmetry breakdown, which can be related to a phase transition with symmetry breakdown on an equivalent model.     

Statistical mechanics of quasi-one-dimensional systems

A definition of a quasi-one-dimensional system as a generalized Cayley or Husimi tree with a nonzero surface to bulk ratio in the thermodynamic limit is given. Sufficient conditions for the existence of the thermodynamic limit of the free energy for such a system are derived and a thorough discussion of the thermodynamic limit properties of the one-particle distribution functions is given. These results are made more precise for the case of systems with Hamiltonians which are invariant under a special type of measure-preserving group of transformations, in particular for the d-dimensional rotation group. For this latter case, the phase transitions which can occur in quasi-one-dimensional systems upon application of small external fields are studied in some detail. A number of completely solved examples is given to illustrate the general theory. These include the classical Heisenberg model on a Cayley tree and generalizations thereof.     

On the kinetics of the first order phase transitions

An attempt is made to analyse the kinetics of the first order structural phase transitions on the basis of the Landau-Ginzburg equation. Two simple solutions are proposed: One in the form of one-dimensional solitary wave which can be considered as a planar interface separating two phases and travelling along direction normal to the interface. Any direction of propagation is possible. The other solution has a form of a onedimensional kink-antikink couple which under supercooling conditions reveals properties of a critical nucleus. A short discussion of the free energy density form for one- and multidimensional order parameters, and of the symmetry of the quadratic gradient term is included.     

Theory of the successive phase transitions in KNbO3

The microscopic mechanism of the successive cubic-tetragonal-orthorhombic-rhombohedral phase transitions in KNbO₃ is discussed quantitatively from the microscopic free energy based upon the mean field approximation where the Nb ions are displaced to create spontaneous deformations. From the calculation of the microscopic free energy, it is shown that the order of the phase transitions and the experimental values of the transition entropy in KNbO₃ are well explained by this model.     

Configurational Entropy and Newton's Law in Double Sine‐Gordon Braneworlds

The Shannon‐like entropic measure of spatially localized functions for a 5D braneworld generated by a double sine‐Gordon (DSG) potential is evaluated. The differential configurational entropy (DCE) has been shown in several recent works to be a configurational informational measure (CIM) that selects critical points and brings out phase transitions in confined energy models with arbitrary parameters. The DSG scenario is selected because it presents an energy‐degenerate spatially localized profile where the solutions to the scalar field demonstrate critical behavior that is only a result of geometrical effects. As is shown, the DCE evaluation provides a method for predicting the existence of a transition between the phases of the domain wall solutions. Moreover, the entropic measure reveals information about the model that is capable of describing the phase sector where resonance modes on the massive spectra of the graviton is obtained. The graviton resonance lifetimes are related to the existence of scales on which 4D gravity is recovered. Thus, the critical points defined by the CIMs with the existence of resonances and their lifetimes are correlated. To extend the research regarding this system, the corrections to Newton's law coming from the graviton modes are calculated.