Criticality of Epidemic Spreading in Mobile Individuals Mediated by Environment

We investigate the critical behaviour of an epidemical model in a diffusive population mediated by a static vector environment on a 2D network. It is found that this model presents a dynamical phase transition from disease-free state to endemic state with a finite population density. Finite-size and short-time dynamic scaling relations are used to determine the critical population density and the critical exponents characterizing the behaviour near the critical point. The results are compatible with the universality class of directed percolation coupled to a conserved diffusive field with equal diffusion constants.     

Criticality of Parasitic Disease Transmission in a Diffusive Population

Through using the methods of finite-size effect and short time dynamic scaling, we study the critical behavior of parasitic disease spreading process in a diffusive population mediated by a static vector environment. Through comprehensive analysis of parasitic disease spreading we find that this model presents a dynamical phase transition from disease-free state to endemic state with a finite population density. We determine the critical population density, above which the system reaches an epidemic spreading stationary state. We also perform a scaling analysis to determine the order parameter and critical relaxation exponents. The results show that the model does not belong to the usual directed percolation universality class and is compatible with the class of directed percolation with diffusive and conserved fields.     

A New Approach about Determining the Phase Transition Point in Variational-Cumulant Expansion

Based on Variational-cumulant expansion (VCE), through calculating Polyakov line in the SU(2) gauge model at finite temperature and considering the similarity of finite size interaction in VCE method with the finite volume effect in Monte Carlo (MC) simulation, a new approach is adopted to determine the critical couplings for the deconfinement phase transition. New results of VCE which are close to MC data manifest that new approach is much more effective than the traditional one and show that VCE analysis is consistent with MC simulation.     

Finite-size scaling analysis of the critical behavior of a general epidemic process in 2D

We investigate the critical behavior of a stochastic lattice model describing a General Epidemic Process. By means of a Monte Carlo procedure, we simulate the model on a regular square lattice and follow the spreading of an epidemic process with immunization. A finite size scaling analysis is employed to determine the critical point as well as some critical exponents. We show that the usual scaling analysis of the order parameter moment ratio does not provide an accurate estimate of the critical point. Precise estimates of the critical quantities are obtained from data of the order parameter variation rate and its fluctuations. Our numerical results corroborate that this model belongs to the dynamic isotropic percolation universality class. We also check the validity of the hyperscaling relation and present data collapse curves which reinforce the accuracy of the estimated critical parameters.     

变分累积展开方法中确定相变点的新方法

在计算有限温度SU(2)格点规范模型Polyakov线的过程中,考虑到变分累积展开法中有限距离相互作用效应与Monte Carlo中的有限体积效应的相似性,采用了新的方法来确定相变点.与已有的方法以及Monte Carlo模拟给出的结果比较,新方法给出的结果更接近Monte Carlo结果.     

Localization length exponent,critical conductance distribution and multifractality in hierarchical network models for the quantum Hall effect

We study hierarchical network models which have recently been introduced to approximate the Chalker-Coddington model for the integer quantum Hall effect (A.G. Galstyan and M.E. Raikh, PRB 5 (1997) 1422; Arovas et al., PRB 56 (1997) 4751). The hierarchical structure is due to a recursive method starting from a finite elementary cell. The localization-delocalization transition occurring in these models is displayed in the flow of the conductance distribution under increasing system size. We numerically determine this flow, calculate the critical conductance distribution, the critical exponent of the localization length, and the multifractal exponents of critical eigenstates.     

The equation of state of quarks and mesons in a renormalization group flow picture

Non-perturbative flow equations within an effective linear sigma model coupled to constituent quarks for two quark flavours are derived and solved. A heat kernel regularization is employed for a renormalization group improved effective potential. We determine the initial values of the coupling constants in the effective potential at zero temperature. Solving the evolution equations with the same initial values at finite temperature in the chiral limit, we find a second-order phase transition at T_c≈150 MeV. Due to the smooth decoupling of massive modes, we can directly link the low-temperature four-dimensional theory to the three-dimensional high-temperature theory. We calculate the equation of state in the chiral limit and for finite pion masses and determine universal critical exponents.     

Dynamics of antiferromagnetic Ising model with fixed magnetization

The dynamical critical exponent z of the Ising antiferromagnet under the constraint of a fixed zero magnetization is verified by Monte Carlo simulations to be compatible with that of the usual Glauber dynamics of model A, while for positive magnetization the exponent seems different. We also determine the diffusivity of the magnetization and finite size effects. Received: 18 June 1997 / Revised: 28 July 1997 / Accepted: 13 October 1997     

The fully finite spherical model

A lattice sum technique is applied to the constraint equation of the finite size mean spherical model. It is shown that this allows the investigation of the model over a wide range of temperatures, for a wide range of system sizes. Correlation lengths and susceptibilities are shown to obey crossover scaling aroundT=0 below the lower critical dimension, and finite size scaling between the lower and upper critical dimensions. Universal scaling forms are suggested for the lower critical dimension. At and above the upper critical dimension, the behavior is identical to that of finite sized mean field theory. The scaling at and above the upper critical dimension is shown to be modified by the existence of a dangerous irrelevant variable which also governs the failure of hyperscaling. Implications for phenomenological renormalization experiments are discussed. Numerical results of scaling are displayed.     

Transverse thermal depinning and nonlinear sliding friction of an adsorbed monolayer

We study the response of an adsorbed monolayer under a driving force as a model of sliding friction phenomena between two crystalline surfaces with a boundary lubrication layer. Using Langevin-dynamics simulation, we determine the nonlinear response in the direction transverse to a high symmetry direction along which the layer is already sliding. We find that below a finite transition temperature there exist a critical depinning force and hysteresis effects in the transverse response in the dynamical state when the adlayer is sliding smoothly along the longitudinal direction.     

Phase Transition for the Maki–Thompson Rumour Model on a Small-World Network

We consider the Maki–Thompson model for the stochastic propagation of a rumour within a population. In this model the population is made up of “spreaders”, “ignorants” and “stiflers”; any spreader attempts to pass the rumour to the other individuals via pair-wise interactions and in case the other individual is an ignorant, it becomes a spreader, while in the other two cases the initiating spreader turns into a stifler. In a finite population the process will eventually reach an equilibrium situation where individuals are either stiflers or ignorants. We extend the original hypothesis of homogenously mixed population by allowing for a small-world network embedding the model, in such a way that interactions occur only between nearest-neighbours. This structure is realized starting from a k-regular ring and by inserting, in the average, c additional links in such a way that k and c are tuneable parameters for the population architecture. We prove that this system exhibits a transition between regimes of localization (where the final number of stiflers is at most logarithmic in the population size) and propagation (where the final number of stiflers grows algebraically with the population size) at a finite value of the network parameter c. A quantitative estimate for the critical value of c is obtained via extensive numerical simulations.     

Hyperbolic heat conduction effects caused by temporally modulated laser pulses

In non-destructive testing (NDT), the intensity of laser pulses may be temporally modulated to improve the signal-to-noise ratio of ultrasonic signals. The purpose of this work is to determine the time scale on which hyperbolic heat conduction effects are significant in ultrasonic displacements and stresses for temporally modulated laser pulses, under the assumption that the heat wave speed equals the longitudinal wave speed. A one-dimensional model with a finite train of heat flux pulses is investigated. Using the Green and Lindsay model, it is found that the critical modulation frequency in steel, above which hyperbolic heat conduction effects will become signficant, is 2.26 GHz. A dimensionless factor is given to calculate critical modulation frequencies in other isotropic materials. The signal enhancement potential of temporal intensity modulation is apparent in the numerical results.     

Charged Vortices in an Abelian Higgs Model with Chern-Simons Term at Finite Temperature

Charged vortex solutions are found iri a (2+1)-dimensional Abelian Higgs model with Chern- Simons term at finite temperature. It is shown that there exists a finite critical temperature at which vortices disappear and it implies that the system changes fiom superconducting state to normal state at this critical temperature.     

Dynamic critical behavior of semi-infinite systems: the study of the model C

The dynamic critical behavior of semi-infinite model C near the special and ordinary transitions is investigated using field theoretic renormalization-group approach. It is shown that the dynamic surface quantities have different critical behavior aginst their bulk analogues and their scaling laws can be expressed entirely in terms of static (bulk and surface) exponents and dynamic exponents. It is found that at the critical point the surface transport coefficient reaches a finite value via a cusplike singularity and the surface-bulk transport coefficient diverges, but the bulk transport coefficient remains finite as that of the infinite model C.     

Instabilities in population dynamics

Biologists have long known that the smaller the population, the more susceptible it is to extinction from various causes. Biologists define minimum viable population size (MVP), which is the critical population size, below which the population has a very small chance to survive. There are several theoretical models for predicting the probability that a small population will become extinct. But these models either embody unrealistic assumptions or lead to currently unresolved mathematical problems. In other popular models of population dynamics, like the logistic model, MVP does not exist. In this paper we find the existence of such a critical concentration in a simple model of evolution. We solve this model by a mean field theory and show, in one and two dimensions, the existence of the critical adaptation and concentration below which a population dies out. We also show that, like in the logistic model, above the critical value a population reaches its carrying capacity. Moreover, in the two-dimensional case we find - the so common in biological models - periodic solutions and their biffurcations. Received 15 February 2000     

On the structure of competitive societies

We model the dynamics of social structure by a simple interacting particle system. The social standing of an individual agent is represented by an integer-valued fitness that changes via two offsetting processes. When two agents interact one advances: the fitter with probability p and the less fit with probability 1-p. The fitness of an agent may also decline with rate r. From a scaling analysis of the underlying master equations for the fitness distribution of the population, we find four distinct social structures as a function of the governing parameters p and r. These include: (i) a static lower-class society where all agents have finite fitness; (ii) an upwardly-mobile middle-class society; (iii) a hierarchical society where a finite fraction of the population belongs to a middle class and a complementary fraction to the lower class; (iv) an egalitarian society where all agents are upwardly mobile and have nearly the same fitness. We determine the basic features of the fitness distributions in these four phases.     

The critical line of an asymmetric eight vertex model

Phenomenological renormalization of finite lattice data is used to locate the critical line of an asymmetric eight-vertex model. This model reduces at a special point to a loop gas on the square lattice. The critical fugacity of the loop gas is estimated to be 2.373±0.001, whereas the correlation exponent appears to be Ising-like.     

On the identification of finite operator algebras in two-dimensional conformally invariant field theories

We investigate the structure of the linear differential operators whose solutions determine the four-point correlations of primary operators in the d = 2 conformally invariant SU(2) α-model with Wess-Sumino term and the d = 2 critical statistical systems with central Virasoro charge smaller than one. Factorisation properties of the differential operators are related to a finite closure of the operator algebras. We recover the selection and fusion rules of Fateev, Zamolodchikov and Gepner, Witten for the SU(2) α-model. It is outlined how the results of the SU(2) model can be used for the identification of closed operator algebras in the statistical model.     

Universality Class in Abelian Sandpile Models with Stochastic Toppling Rules

We present a stochastic critical slope sandpile model, where the amount of grains that fall in an overturning event is stochastic variable. The model is local, conservative, and Abelian. We apply the moment analysis to evaluate critical exponents and finite size scaling method to consistently test the obtained results. Numerical results show that this model, Oslo model, and one-dimensional Abelian Manna model have the same critical behavior although the three models have different stochastic toppling rules, which provides evidences suggesting that Abelian sandpile models with different stochastic toppling rules are in the same universality class.