A generalized Beraha conjecture for non-planar graphs

We study the partition function _ZG(nk,k)(Q,v)$Z_{G(nk,k)}(Q,v)$ of the Q  -state Potts model on the family of (non-planar) generalized Petersen graphs G(nk,k)$G(nk,k)$. We study its zeros in the plane (Q,v)$(Q,v)$ for 1?k?7$1?k?7$. We also consider two specializations of _ZG(nk,k)$Z_{G(nk,k)}$, namely the chromatic polynomial _PG(nk,k)(Q)$P_{G(nk,k)}(Q)$ (corresponding to v=−1$v=-1$), and the flow polynomial _ΦG(nk,k)(Q)${\Phi }_{G(nk,k)}(Q)$ (corresponding to v=−Q$v=-Q$). In these two cases, we study their zeros in the complex Q  -plane for 1?k?7$1?k?7$. We pay special attention to the accumulation loci of the corresponding zeros when n→∞$n\to \infty$. We observe that the Berker–Kadanoff phase that is present in two-dimensional Potts models, also exists for non-planar recursive graphs. Their qualitative features are the same; but the main difference is that the role played by the Beraha numbers for planar graphs is now played by the non-negative integers for non-planar graphs. At these integer values of Q, there are massive eigenvalue cancellations, in the same way as the eigenvalue cancellations that happen at the Beraha numbers for planar graphs.