Finite-size scaling study of a first-order temperature-driven symmetry-breaking structural phase transition

We present a study of finite-size effects in a model exhibiting a first-order temperature-driven symmetry-breaking structural phase transition in theL× cylindrical geometry in theL limit. Exact studies demonstrate the applicability of our scaling ansatz even in the one-dimensional limit, making this model ideal for studying finite-size effects. The scaling ansatz, similar to the previously developed ansatz for field-driven transitions, demonstrates that latent heat is crucial in driving these transitions. This ansatz is supported by a 2×2 phenomenological transfer matrix based upon the symmetries of the system; this produces an analytic free energy which has the scaling form. Order parameter probability distributions show that the high- and low-temperature phases coexist only in a small finite-size-affected regime near the bulk transition temperature; this regime vanishes exponentially fast asL diverges.