Phase transitions in three-dimensional three-state Potts model

We have performed a Monte Carlo investigation of the nature of the phase transition in the three-state, three-dimensional Potts model with nearest and next nearest neighbour coupling. We find strong evidence for a first-order phase transition in the case of ferromagnetic coupling. In the case of a first neighbour ferromagnetic coupling and second neighbour antiferromagnetic, there is evidence for a second-order transition. This result supports the idea that a second-order transition can be present in systems which, according to the Landau criterium, should only undergo a first-order transition.     

Cooperative Jahn-Teller phase transition in LaMnO3 studied by X-ray absorption spectroscopy

The local structure of LaMnO3 across the Jahn-Teller (JT) transition at T(JT)=750 K was studied by means of x-ray absorption near edge structure and extended x-ray absorption fine structure at the Mn K-edge. Our results indicate a similar electronic local structure for Mn atoms above and below T(JT) and a dynamical tetragonal JT distortion of MnO6 octahedra above T(JT). The structural transition is originated by the ordering of tetragonally distorted octahedra. The entropy content of the transition is analyzed within the framework of the three-state Potts model with nearest neighbor antiferrodistortive coupling.     

Potts Model on Maple Leaf Lattice with Pure Three-Site Interaction

We use Monte Carlo method to study three-state Potts model on maple leaf lattice with pure three-site interaction. The critical behavior of both ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic cases is studied. Our results confirm that the critical behavior of the ferromagnetic model is independent of the lattice details and lies in the universality class of the three-state ferromagnetic Potts model. For the antiferromagnetic case the transition is of the first order. We have calculated the energy jump and critical temperature in this area. We find there is a tricritical point separating the first order and second order phases for this system.     

Athermal dynamics of strongly coupled stochastic three-state oscillators

We study the behavior of globally coupled ensembles of cyclic stochastic three-state units with transition rates from i-1 to i proportional to the number of units in state i. Contrary to mean-field theory predictions, numerical simulations show significant stochastic oscillations for sufficiently large coupling strength. The order parameter characterizing units synchrony increases monotonically with coupling while the coherence of oscillations has a maximum at a certain coupling strength. We find the exact formulas for the stationary probability distribution and the order parameter.     

不同耦合下混沌神经元网络的同步

采用Hindmarsh-Rose神经元动力学模型, 对二维点阵上的神经元网络的同步进行了研究. 为了解不同耦合对网络同步的影响, 提出了一般反馈耦合、分层反馈耦合和分层局域平均场反馈耦合三种方案.研究表明:在耦合强度较小的近邻耦合下, 一般反馈耦合不能使网络达到完全同步, 而分层反馈耦合和分层局域平均场反馈耦合可以使网络出现局部同步和全局同步. 不同形式的耦合会导致网络出现不同的斑图, 随着耦合强度的增大, 网络从不同步到同步的过程也不相同, 一般反馈耦合和分层反馈耦合网络是突然出现全局同步, 同步之前网络出现非周期性的相干斑图; 对于分层局域平均场反馈耦合网络, 同层神经元之间先出现从簇放电同步到同步的转变, 形成靶波, 然后同步区由中心向外逐渐扩大, 最终达到网络的全局同步. 这些结果表明, 只有适当的耦合才能实现信号的无损耗的传递. 此外我们发现分层局域平均场反馈耦合可以促进网络的同步.     

An Analytical Study of Three-State Potts Model on Lattice

We investigate the phase structure of the three-state Potts model by the variational cumulant expansion approach. It is shown that there is a weak first-order phase transition in three and four dimensions. The critical coupling given by this method is in good agreement with MC data.     

Finite-size effects and phase transition in the three-dimensional three-state Potts model

The three-state Potts model in three dimensions is studied by Monte Carlo and finite-size scaling techniques. Using a histogram method recently proposed by Ferrenberg and Swendsen, the finite-size dependence for the maximum of the specific heat is found to scale with the volume of the system, indicating that the phase transition is of first order. The value of the latent heat per spin and the correlation length at the transition are estimated.     

On the first order valence transition in SmS

The valence transition in SmS is investigated on the basis of a model which incorporates the Falicov-Kimball (F-K) interaction, f-d hybridization and electron-phonon interaction. We find that the transition is of first order even in the absence of electron-phonon interaction if the F-K interaction is sufficiently strong. Electron-phonon interaction makes the first order transition possible for a weaker F-K interaction. The effect is further enhanced if phonon-induced f-f and f-d coupling are simultaneously present. All calculations are done for finite temperature and the temperature dependence of the transition is found to be in agreement with the phase diagram of SmS.     

Self-Trapping in Discrete Nonlinear Schrdinger Equation with Next-Nearest Neighbor Interaction

The dynamical self-trapping of an excitation propagating on one-dimensional of different sizes with nextnearest neighbor (NNN) interaction is studied by means of an explicit fourth order symplectic integrator. Using localized initial conditions, the time-averaged occupation probability of the initial site is investigated which is a function of the degree of nonlinearity and the linear coupling strengths. The self-trapping transition occurs at larger values of the nonlinearity parameter as the NNN coupling strength of the lattice increases for fixed size. Furthermore, given NNN coupling strength, the self-trapping properties for different sizes are considered which are some different from the case with general nearest neighbor (NN) interaction.     

Simple Model Study of Phase Transition Properties of Isolated and Aggregated Protein

We investigate the phase transition properties of isolated and aggregated protein by exhaustive numerical study in the confined conformation space with maximally compact lattice model. The study within the confined conformation space shows some general folding properties. Various sequences show different folding properties: two-state folding, three-state folding and prion-like folding behavior. We find that the aggregated protein holds a more evident transition than isolated one and the transition temperature is generally lower than that in isolated case.     

Thermodynamic properties of LiCu2O2 multiferroic compound

A spin model of quasi-one-dimensional LiCu₂O₂ compound with ground state of ellipsoidal helical structure has been adopted. The helical axis is along the diagonal of CuO₄ squares. By taking into account the interchain coupling and exchange anisotropy, the exotic magnetic properties and ferroelectricity induced by spiral spin order have been studied by performing Monte Carlo simulation. The simulation results qualitatively reproduce the main characters of ferroelectric and magnetic behaviors of LiCu₂O₂ compound and confirm the low-temperature noncollinear spiral ordering. Furthermore, by performing the calculations of spin structure factor, we systematically investigate the effects of different exchange couplings on the lower-temperature magnetic transition, and find that the spiral spin order depends not only on the ratio of nearest and next-nearest neighbor inchain spin coupling but also strongly on the exchange anisotropy.     

Orbital nature of ferromagnetic magnons in manganites

Magnon excitation in a ferromagnetic state of Sm(0.55)Sr(0.45)MnO(3) located on the verge of the metal-insulator transition has been studied in terms of the neutron scattering experiment. The anomalous magnon dispersion with the zone-boundary softening is well described by the Heisenberg model with extended exchange coupling constants J(s). In particular the fourth neighbor coupling J(4) is as large as 0.6 times the nearest neighbor one J(1). Theoretical analysis based on the local density approximation + Hubbard U band calculation reveals that this one-dimensional exchange path is due to the (3z(2)-r(2))-type orbital correlation, in sharp contrast to previous proposals.     

Escape for System with Non-Fluctuating Potential Barrier Only Driven by Three-State Noise

We study the escape for the mean first passage time （MFPT） over a potential barrier for a system with non- fluctuating potential barrier and only driven by a three-state noise. It is shown that in some circumstances, the three-state noise can induce the resonant activation for the MFPT over the potential barrier; but in other circumstances, it can not. There are three resonant activations for the MFPT over the potential barrier, which are respectively as the functions of the transition rates of the three-state noise.     

Phase transition in the n > 2 honeycomb O(n) model

We determine the phase diagram of the O(n) loop model on the honeycomb lattice, in particular, in the range n>2, by means of a transfer-matrix method. We find that, contrary to the prevailing expectation, there is a line of critical points in the range between n = 2 and infinity. This phase transition, which belongs to the three-state Potts universality class, is unphysical in terms of the O(n) spin model, but falls inside the physical region of the n-component corner-cubic model. It can also be interpreted in terms of the ordering of a system of soft particles with hexagonal symmetry.     

Phase transitions in superionics as an example of a modified Pott's model

We proposed a theory of superionic conductors based on the properties of theq-state Pott's model. The strong first order transition of this model for largeq gives an explanation for the sudden release of the cations at the superionic transition. Using modified versions of the model, in which we destroy its symmetry, we find that depending on the parameters, we can have no transition, one first order transition or a first order transition followed (if the temperature increases) by a second order transition.     

Phase Diagram of the Antiferromagnetic Heisenberg Model on a Cubic Lattice

Phase transitions in the antiferromagnetic Heisenberg model on a cubic lattice with intralayer next-nearest neighbor interactions are studied using the replica Monte Carlo algorithm. The magnitude of next-nearest neighbor interactions varies in the range of 0.0 ≤ r ≤ 1.0. The characteristics of the phase transitions are analyzed by the histogram and Binder cumulant techniques. The phase diagram relating the transition temperature and the magnitude of next-nearest neighbor interactions is constructed. It is shown that a second order phase transition occurs in the r range under study. In this model, it is found that the intralayer next-nearest neighbor interactions do not change the order of the phase transition.

     

Spin freezing in geometrically frustrated antiferromagnets with weak disorder

We investigate the consequences for geometrically frustrated antiferromagnets of weak disorder in the strength of exchange interactions. Taking as a model the classical Heisenberg antiferromagnet with nearest neighbor exchange on the pyrochlore lattice, we examine low-temperature behavior. We show that spatial modulation of exchange generates long-range effective interactions within the extensively degenerate ground states of the clean system. Using Monte Carlo simulations, we find a spin glass transition at a temperature set by the disorder strength. Disorder of this type, which is generated by random strains in the presence of magnetoelastic coupling, may account for the spin freezing observed in many geometrically frustrated magnets.     

Ground-state long-range order in quasi-one-dimensional Heisenberg quantum antiferromagnets: high-order coupled-cluster calculations

We investigate the ground-state magnetic long-range order of quasi-one-dimensional quantum Heisenberg antiferromagnets for spin quantum numbers s = 1/2 and s = 1. We use the coupled cluster method to calculate the sublattice magnetization and its dependence on the inter-chain coupling J_⊥. We find that for the unfrustrated spin-1/2 system, an infinitesimal inter-chain coupling is sufficient to stabilize magnetic long-range order, in agreement with results obtained by other methods. For s = 1, we find that a finite inter-chain coupling is necessary to stabilize magnetic long-range order. Furthermore, we consider a quasi one-dimensional spin-1/2 system, where a frustrating next-nearest neighbor in-chain coupling is included. We find that for stronger frustration as well, a finite inter-chain coupling is necessary to have magnetic long-range order in the ground state, and that the strength of the inter-chain coupling necessary to establish magnetic long-range order is related to the size of the spin gap of the isolated chain.     

A study of the bulk phase transitions of the SU(2) lattice gauge theory with mixed action

Using the finite size scaling theory, we reexamine the nature of the bulk phase transition in the fundamental-adjoint coupling plane of the SU(2) lattice gauge theory at β_A = 1.25 where previous finite size scaling investigations of the deconfinement phase transition showed it to be of first order for temporal lattices with four sites. Our simulations on N⁴ lattices with N = 6, 8, 10, 12 and 16 show an absence of a first order bulk phase transition. We find the discontinuity in the average plaquette to decrease approximately linearly with N. Correspondingly, the plaquette susceptibility grows a lot slower with the 4-volume of the lattice than expected from a first order bulk phase transition.     

Continuous phase transition in a disordered eight-states Potts model

We investigate the two-dimensional eight-states ferromagnetic Potts model in the Voronoi-Delaunay tessellation. In this study, we assume that the coupling factor J varies with the distance r between the first neighbors as , with . The disordered system is simulated applying the single-cluster Monte-Carlo update algorithm and the reweighting technique. We find that this model displays a first-order phase transition if , in agreement with previous recent studies. For and 1.0, a typical second order transition is observed and the critical exponents for magnetization and susceptibility are calculated. Received 19 May 1999 and Received in final form 2 June 1999