Renormalization group operators for maps and universal scaling of universal scaling exponents

Renormalization group (RG) methods provide a unifying framework for understanding critical behaviour, such as transition to chaos in area-preserving maps and other dynamical systems, which have associated with them universal scaling exponents. Recently, de la Llave et al. (2007) [10] have formulated the Principle of Approximate Combination of Scaling Exponents (PACSE for short), which relates exponents for different criticalities via their combinatorial properties. The main objective of this paper is to show that certain integrable fixed points of RG operators for area-preserving maps do indeed follow the PACSE.     

Decimation transformations in lattice systems of continuous spins

Decimation renormalization transformations are investigated for systems of continuous spins. The usual arguments against decimation can be avoided by considering products of decimation and spin scaling transformations. With the simple local types of spin scaling normally used for continuous spins, even these product transformations will have no fixed points for lattice dimension greater than one. A Gaussian fixed point for one-dimensional models with short range (but not only nearest neighbor) interactions is exhibited. A series of scaling transformations of increasing generality is investigated. It is found that a product of a nonlocal spin scaling transformation and a decimation will produce the usual fixed points, but that this type of product transformation is effectively much more a block-type transformation than a pure decimation.     

The phase diagram of the Flory-Huggins-de Gennes model of a binary polymer blend

We undertake a numerical study of the Flory-Huggins-de Gennes functional ind=3 dimensions describing a polymer blend. By discretising the functional on a three-dimensional lattice and employing the hybrid Monte Carlo simulation algorithm, we investigate to what extent the inclusion of the term describing fluctuations in local polymer concentration alters the phase diagram of the model. We find that, despite the relatively small weight of the fluctuation term, the coexistence curve is shifted by an appreciable amount from that predicted by naive mean-field theory, which ignores such spatial fluctuations. The direction of the shift is consistent with that already observed in experiment and in simulations of microscopic models of polymer blends. A finite-size scaling analysis indicates that the critical behavior of the model seems to belong to the 3D Ising universality class rather than being mean-field in nature.It is a pleasure to dedicate this paper to Oliver Penrose on the occasion of his 65th birthday.     

The Finite-Size Scaling Functions of the Four-Dimensional Ising Model

A finite-size scaling function of the Privman–Fisher form is proposed for the singular part of the free-energy density of the four-dimensional Ising model. It leads to the finite-size scaling relations available and to the prediction of new ones.     

Exact results and open questions in first principle functional RG

Some aspects of the functional RG (FRG) approach to pinned elastic manifolds (of internal dimension d) at finite temperature T > 0 are reviewed and reexamined in this much expanded version of Le Doussal (2006) [67]. The particle limit d = 0 provides a test for the theory: there the FRG is equivalent to the decaying Burgers equation, with viscosity ν ∼ T-both being formally irrelevant. An outstanding question in FRG, i.e. how temperature regularizes the otherwise singular flow of T = 0 FRG, maps to the viscous layer regularization of inertial range Burgers turbulence (i.e. to the construction of the inviscid limit). Analogy between Kolmogorov scaling and FRG cumulant scaling is discussed. First, multi-loop FRG corrections are examined and the direct loop expansion at T > 0 is shown to fail already in d = 0, a hierarchy of ERG equations being then required (introduced in Balents and Le Doussal (2005) [36]). Next we prove that the FRG function R(u) and higher cumulants defined from the field theory can be obtained for any d from moments of a renormalized potential defined in an sliding harmonic well. This allows to measure the fixed point function R(u) in numerics and experiments. In d = 0 the beta function (of the inviscid limit) is obtained from first principles to four loop. For Sinai model (uncorrelated Burgers initial velocities) the ERG hierarchy can be solved and the exact function R(u) is obtained. Connections to exact solutions for the statistics of shocks in Burgers and to ballistic aggregation are detailed. A relation is established between the size distribution of shocks and the one for droplets. A droplet solution to the ERG functional hierarchy is found for any d, and the form of R(u) in the thermal boundary layer is related to droplet probabilities. These being known for the d = 0 Sinai model the function R(u) is obtained there at any T. Consistency of the ?=4-d expansion in one and two loop FRG is studied from first principles, and connected to shock and droplet relations which could be tested in numerics.     

Phase diagram of a random tiling quasicrystal

We study the phase diagram of a two-dimensional random tiling model for quasicrystals. At proper concentrations the model has 8-fold rotational symmetry. Landau theory correctly gives most of the qualitative features of the phase diagram, which is in turn studied in detail numerically using a transfer matrix approach. We find that the system can enter the quasicrystal phase from many other crystalline and incommensurate phases through first-order or continuous transitions. Exact solutions are given in all phases except for the quasicrystal phase, and for the phase boundaries between them. We calculate numerically the phason elastic constants and entropy density, and confirm that the entropy density reaches its maximum at the point where phason strains are zero and the system possesses 8-fold rotational symmetry. In addition to the obvious application to quasicrystals, this study generalizes certain surface roughening models to two-dimensional surfaces in four dimensions.     

The roughening transition of the three-dimensional Ising interface: A Monte Carlo study

We study the roughening transition of an interface in an Ising system on a 3D simple cubic lattice using a finite-size scaling method. The particular method has recently been proposed and successfully tested for various solid-on-solid models. The basic idea is the matching of the renormalization-groupflow of the interface with that of the exactly solvable body-centered cubic solid-on-solid model. We unambiguously confirm the Kosterlitz-Thouless nature of the roughening transition of the Ising interface. Our result for the inverse transition temperatureK _r=0.40754(5) is almost two orders of magnitude more accurate than the estimate of Mon, Landau, and Stauffer.     

Dimensional crossover in the large-N limit

We consider dimensional crossover for anO(N) Landau-Ginzburg-Wilson model on ad-dimensional film geometry of thicknessL in the large-N limit. We calculate the full universal crossover scaling forms for the free energy and the equation of state. We compare the results obtained using environmentally friendly renormalization with those found using a direct, non-renormalization-group approach. A set of effective critical exponents are calculated and scaling laws for these exponents are shown to hold exactly, thereby yielding nontrivial relations between the various thermodynamic scaling functions.     

The tensor renormalization group for pure and disordered two-dimensional lattice systems

The tensor renormalization group (TRG) is a powerful new approach for coarse-graining classical two-dimensional (2D) lattice Hamiltonians. It uses the intuitive framework of traditional position space renormalization group methods-analyzing flows in the space of Hamiltonian parameters-but can be systematically improved to yield thermodynamic properties at much higher precision. We present initial results demonstrating that the TRG can be generalized to quenched random systems, applying it to obtain the phase diagram of a bond-diluted triangular lattice Ising ferromagnet. This opens a variety of potential future applications, most prominently spin glasses.     

Quantum phase diagram of the half filled Hubbard model with bond-charge interaction

Using quantum field theory and bosonization, we determine the quantum phase diagram of the one-dimensional Hubbard model with bond-charge interaction X in addition to the usual Coulomb repulsion U at half-filling, for small values of the interactions. We show that it is essential to take into account formally irrelevant terms of order X  . They generate relevant terms proportional to X²$X^2$ in the flow of the renormalization group (RG). These terms are calculated using operator product expansions. The model shows three phases separated by a charge transition at U=Uc$U=U_c$ and a spin transition at U=Us>Uc$U=U_s>U_c$. For U<Uc$U<U_c$ singlet superconducting correlations dominate, while for U>Us$U>U_s$, the system is in the spin-density wave phase as in the usual Hubbard model. For intermediate values Uc<U<Us$U_c<U<U_s$, the system is in a spontaneously dimerized bond-ordered wave phase, which is absent in the ordinary Hubbard model with X=0$X=0$. We obtain that the charge transition remains at Uc=0$U_c=0$ for X≠0$X\ne 0$. Solving the RG equations for the spin sector, we provide an analytical expression for Us(X)$U_s(X)$. The results, with only one adjustable parameter, are in excellent agreement with numerical ones for X<t/2$X<t/2$ where t is the hopping.     

A Blume-Capel spin glass with competing crystal-field interactions on a hierarchical lattice

Renormalization-group methods are used with a hierarchical lattice to model a Blume-Capel spin glass with annealed vacancies and competing crystal-field interactions. The strength of competing cross-link interactions is progressively increased as the effects, upon the phase diagrams, are investigated. A series of phase diagrams have been produced, sinks interpreted, and critical exponents calculated for higher order transitions.     

Finite-Size Scaling in the Energy-Entropy Plane for the 2D ± Ising Spin Glass

For L × L square lattices with L ≤ 20 the 2D Ising spin glass with +1 and −1 bonds is found to have a strong correlation between the energy and the entropy of its ground states. A fit to the data gives the result that each additional broken bond in the ground state of a particular sample of random bonds increases the ground state degeneracy by approximately a factor of 10/3. For x=0.5 (where x is the fraction of negative bonds), over this range of L, the characteristic entropy defined by the energy-entropy correlation scales with size as L ^1.78(2). Anomalous scaling is not found for the characteristic energy, which essentially scales as L ². When x=0.25, a crossover to L ² scaling of the entropy is seen near L=12. The results found here suggest a natural mechanism for the unusual behavior of the low temperature specific heat of this model, and illustrate the dangers of extrapolating from small L. PACS numbers: 75.10.Nr, 75.40.Mg, 75.50.Lk     

Phase diagram of a one-dimensional model with nonconvex interactions,using the method of effective potentials

The ground states of a one-dimensional system of the Frenkel-Kontorova type, but involving piecewise parabolic potentials, including a nonconvex interatomic interaction, have been studied numerically using the method of effective potentials. Part of the phase diagram is identical to one studied earlier for a convex interaction, and part of it exhibits some new phases, first-order phase transitions, multicritical points, and an accumulation point of multicritical points, all associated with the nonconvex interaction.     

Bethe ansatz calculations for the eight-vertex model on a finite strip

Bethe ansatz equations for the eigenvalues of the transfer matrix of the eight-vertex model are solved numerically to yield mass gap data on infinitely long strips of up to 512 sites in width. The finite-size corrections, at criticality, to the free energy per site and polarization gap are found to be in agreement with recent studies of theXXZ spin chain. The leading corrections to the finite-size scaling estimates of the critical line and thermal exponent are also found, providing an explanation of the poor convergence seen in earlier studies. Away from criticality, the linear scaling fields are derived exactly in the full parameter space of the spin system, allowing a thorough test of a recently proposed method of extracting linear scaling fields and related exponents from finite lattice data.     

Computation of hierarchical renormalization-group fixed points and their ε-expansions

We compute hierarchical renormalization-group fixed points as solutions to an algebraic equation for the coupling constants. This method does not rely on an iteration of renormalization-group transformations and therefore avoids the problem of fine tuning. We solve truncated versions of the fixed-point equation numerically for different values of the dimension parameter in the range 2<d<4 and different orders of truncations. The method is well suited even for multicritical fixed points with any number of unstable directions. Precise numerical data are presented for the first three nontrivial fixed points and their critical indices. We also develop an -expansion for the hierarchical models using computer algebra. The numerical results are compared with the -expansion.     

The spin-1 Blume-Capel model with random crystal field on the Bethe lattice

The dependence of the phase diagrams on the random crystal field (RCF) is investigated for the spin-1 Blume-Capel (BC) model on the Bethe lattice. The calculations are carried out in terms of the recursion relations for the coordination number z=4 which corresponds to the square lattice. The model presents tricritical points which are observed at lower negative crystal fields and higher temperatures for higher probabilities p and which vanish at lower p’s. The effect of randomness is illustrated for p=0.5 and shown that it changes the phase diagrams drastically from random to non-random systems. The reentrant behavior is also observed for appropriate p values.     

Mesoscopic effects in the quantum Hall regime

We report results of a study of (integer) quantum Hall transitions in a single or multiple Landau levels for non-interacting electrons in disordered two-dimensional systems, obtained by projecting a tight-binding Hamiltonian to the corresponding magnetic subbands. In finite-size systems, we find that mesoscopic effects often dominate, leading to apparent non-universal scaling behavior in higher Landau levels. This is because localization length, which grows exponentially with Landau level index, exceeds the system sizes amenable to the numerical study at present. When band mixing between multiple Landau levels is present, mesoscopic effects cause a crossover from a sequence of quantum Hall transitions for weak disorder to classical behavior for strong disorder. This behavior may be of relevance to experimentally observed transitions between quantum Hall states and the insulating phase at low magnetic fields.     

Consistency of Microcanonical and Canonical Finite-Size Scaling

Typically, in order to obtain finite-size scaling laws for quantities in the microcanonical ensemble, an assumption is taken as a starting point. In this paper, consistency of such a Microcanonical Finite-Size Scaling Assumption with its commonly accepted canonical counterpart is shown, which puts Microcanonical Finite-Size Scaling on a firmer footing.