Three-state Potts model on the centered triangular lattice.

We study phase transitions of the Potts model on the centered-triangular lattice with two types of couplings, namely, K between neighboring triangular sites, and J between the centered and the triangular sites. Results are obtained by means of a finite-size analysis based on numerical transfer-matrix calculations and Monte Carlo simulations. Our investigation covers the whole (K,J) phase diagram, but we find that most of the interesting physics applies to the antiferromagnetic case K<0, where the model is geometrically frustrated. In particular, we find that there are, for all finite J, two transitions when K is varied. Their critical properties are explored. In the limits J→±∞ we find algebraic phases with infinite-order transitions to the ferromagnetic phase.

Revisiting the field-driven edge transition of the tricritical two-dimensional Blume-Capel model.

We reconsider the tricritical Blume-Capel model on the square lattice with a magnetic field acting on the open boundaries in one direction. Periodic boundary conditions are applied in the other direction. We apply three types of Monte Carlo algorithms, local Metropolis updates, and cluster algorithms of the Wolff and geometric type, adapted to the symmetry properties of the model. Statistical analyses of the bulk magnetization, the bulk Binder ratio, the edge magnetization, and the connected product of the edge and bulk magnetizations lead to new results confirming the presence of a singular edge transition at H_{sc}≈0.68, as we reported earlier [Phys. Rev. E 71, 026109 (2005)PLEEE81539-375510.1103/PhysRevE.71.026109]. We provide a plausible answer concerning a discrepancy between the behavior of the edge Binder ratio reported in that work and our new results.

Erratum: Edge phase transitions of the tricritical Potts model in two dimensions [Phys. Rev. E 71, 026109 (2005)].

This corrects the article DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevE.71.026109.

Equivalent-neighbor Potts models in two dimensions.

We investigate the two-dimensional q=3 and 4 Potts models with a variable interaction range by means of Monte Carlo simulations. We locate the phase transitions for several interaction ranges as expressed by the number z of equivalent neighbors. For not-too-large z, the transitions fit well in the universality classes of the short-range Potts models. However, at longer ranges, the transitions become discontinuous. For q=3 we locate a tricritical point separating the continuous and discontinuous transitions near z=80, and a critical fixed point between z=8 and 12. For q=4 the transition becomes discontinuous for z>16. The scaling behavior of the q=4 model with z=16 approximates that of the q=4 merged critical-tricritical fixed point predicted by the renormalization scenario.

Special transitions in an O(n) loop model with an Ising-like constraint.

We investigate the O(n) nonintersecting loop model on the square lattice under the constraint that the loops consist of 90-deg bends only. The model is governed by the loop weight n, a weight x for each vertex of the lattice visited once by a loop, and a weight z for each vertex visited twice by a loop. We explore the (x,z) phase diagram for some values of n. For 01, the O(n)-like transition line appears to be absent. Thus, for z=0, the (n,x) phase diagram displays a line of phase transitions for n≤1. The line ends at n=1 in an infinite-order transition. We determine the conformal anomaly and the critical exponents along this line. These results agree accurately with a recent proposal for the universal classification of this type of model, at least in most of the range -1≤n≤1. We also determine the exponent describing crossover to the generic O(n) universality class, by introducing topological defects associated with the introduction of "straight" vertices violating the 90-deg-bend rule. These results are obtained by means of transfer-matrix calculations and finite-size scaling.

Completely packed O(n) loop models and their relation with exactly solved coloring models.

We investigate the completely packed O(n) loop model on the square lattice, and its generalization to an Eulerian graph model, which follows by including cubic vertices which connect the four incoming loop segments. This model includes crossing bonds as well. Our study was inspired by existing exact solutions of the so-called coloring model due to Schultz and Perk [Phys. Rev. Lett. 46, 629 (1981)], which is shown to be equivalent with our generalized loop model. We explore the physical properties and the phase diagram of this model by means of transfer-matrix calculations and finite-size scaling. The exact results, which include seven one-dimensional branches in the parameter space of our generalized loop model, are compared to our numerical results. The results for the phase behavior also extend to parts of the parameter space beyond the exactly solved subspaces. One of the exactly solved branches describes the case of nonintersecting loops and was already known to correspond with the ordering transition of the Potts model. Another exactly solved branch, describing a model with nonintersecting loops and cubic vertices, corresponds with a first-order, Ising-like phase transition for n>2. For 12 this branch is the locus of a first-order phase boundary between a phase with a hard-square, lattice-gas-like ordering and a phase dominated by cubic vertices. A mean-field argument explains the first-order nature of this transition.

Short-range correlations in percolation at criticality.

We derive the critical nearest-neighbor connectivity gn as 3/4, 3(7-9pc(tri))/4(5-4pc(tri)), and 3(2+7pc(tri))/4(5-pc(tri)) for bond percolation on the square, honeycomb, and triangular lattice, respectively, where pc(tri)=2sin(π/18) is the percolation threshold for the triangular lattice, and confirm these values via Monte Carlo simulations. On the square lattice, we also numerically determine the critical next-nearest-neighbor connectivity as gnn=0.6875000(2), which confirms a conjecture by Mitra and Nienhuis [J. Stat. Mech. (2004) P10006], implying the exact value gnn=11/16. We also determine the connectivity on a free surface as gn(surf)=0.6250001(13) and conjecture that this value is exactly equal to 5/8. In addition, we find that at criticality, the connectivities depend on the linear finite size L as ∼L(yt-d), and the associated specific-heat-like quantities Cn and Cnn scale as ∼L(2yt-d)ln(L/L0), where d is the lattice dimensionality, yt=1/ν the thermal renormalization exponent, and L0 a nonuniversal constant. We provide an explanation of this logarithmic factor within the theoretical framework reported recently by Vasseur et al. [J. Stat. Mech. (2012) L07001].

Ising-like transitions in the O(n) loop model on the square lattice.

We explore the phase diagram of the O(n) loop model on the square lattice in the (x,n) plane, where x is the weight of a lattice edge covered by a loop. These results are based on transfer-matrix calculations and finite-size scaling. We express the correlation length associated with the staggered loop density in the transfer-matrix eigenvalues. The finite-size data for this correlation length, combined with the scaling formula, reveal the location of critical lines in the diagram. For n>>2 we find Ising-like phase transitions associated with the onset of a checkerboardlike ordering of the elementary loops, i.e., the smallest possible loops, with the size of an elementary face, which cover precisely one-half of the faces of the square lattice at the maximum loop density. In this respect, the ordered state resembles that of the hard-square lattice gas with nearest-neighbor exclusion, and the finiteness of n represents a softening of its particle-particle potentials. We also determine critical points in the range -2≤n≤2. It is found that the topology of the phase diagram depends on the set of allowed vertices of the loop model. Depending on the choice of this set, the n>2 transition may continue into the dense phase of the n≤2 loop model, or continue as a line of n≤2 O(n) multicritical points.

Lattice gas with nearest- and next-to-nearest-neighbor exclusion.

We investigate a hard-square lattice gas on the square lattice by means of transfer-matrix and Monte Carlo methods. The size of the hard squares is equal to two lattice constants, so the simultaneous occupation of nearest-neighbor sites as well as of next-to-nearest-neighbor sites is excluded. Near saturation of the particle density, this system is known to undergo a phase transition to one out of four partially ordered phases. We find that this transition displays strong finite-size corrections to scaling and that the correlation functions deviate from isotropy to rather large distances. In contrast with an earlier study, we find that the critical temperature exponent of the transition is not Ising-like.

Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless-like percolation transitions in the two-dimensional XY model.

We study a percolation problem on a substrate formed by two-dimensional XY spin configurations using Monte Carlo methods. For a given spin configuration, we construct percolation clusters by randomly choosing a direction x in the spin vector space, and then placing a percolation bond between nearest-neighbor sites i and j with probability p(ij)=max(0,1-e(-2Ks(i)(x)s(j)(x))), where K>0 governs the percolation process. A line of percolation thresholds K(c)(J) is found in the low-temperature range J≥J(c), where J>0 is the XY coupling strength. Analysis of the correlation function g(p)(r), defined as the probability that two sites separated by a distance r belong to the same percolation cluster, yields algebraic decay for K≥K(c)(J), and the associated critical exponent depends on J and K. Along the threshold line K(c)(J), the scaling dimension for g(p) is, within numerical uncertainties, equal to 1/8. On this basis, we conjecture that the percolation transition along the K(c)(J) line is of the Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless type.

Crossover phenomena involving the dense O(n) phase.

We explore the properties of the low-temperature phase of the O(n) loop model in two dimensions by means of transfer-matrix calculations and finite-size scaling. We determine the stability of this phase with respect to several kinds of perturbations, including cubic anisotropy, attraction between loop segments, double bonds, and crossing bonds. In line with Coulomb gas predictions, cubic anisotropy and crossing bonds are found to be relevant and introduce crossover to different types of behavior. Whereas perturbations in the form of loop-loop attractions and double bonds are irrelevant, sufficiently strong perturbations of these types induce a phase transition of the Ising type, at least in the cases investigated. This Ising transition leaves the underlying universal low-temperature O(n) behavior unaffected.

Specific heat of the simple-cubic Ising model.

We provide an expression quantitatively describing the specific heat of the Ising model on the simple-cubic lattice in the critical region. This expression is based on finite-size scaling of numerical results obtained by means of a Monte Carlo method. It agrees satisfactorily with series expansions and with a set of experimental results. Our results include a determination of the universal amplitude ratio of the specific-heat divergences at both sides of the critical point.

Conducting-angle-based percolation in the XY model.

We define a percolation problem on the basis of spin configurations of the two-dimensional XY model. Neighboring spins belong to the same percolation cluster if their orientations differ less than a certain threshold called the conducting angle. The percolation properties of this model are studied by means of Monte Carlo simulations and a finite-size scaling analysis. Our simulations show the existence of percolation transitions when the conducting angle is varied, and we determine the transition point for several values of the XY coupling. It appears that the critical behavior of this percolation model can be well described by the standard percolation theory. The critical exponents of the percolation transitions, as determined by finite-size scaling, agree with the universality class of the two-dimensional percolation model on a uniform substrate. This holds over the whole temperature range, even in the low-temperature phase where the XY substrate is critical in the sense that it displays algebraic decay of correlations.

Single-cluster dynamics for the random-cluster model.

We formulate a single-cluster Monte Carlo algorithm for the simulation of the random-cluster model. This algorithm is a generalization of the Wolff single-cluster method for the q-state Potts model to noninteger values q>1. Its results for static quantities are in a satisfactory agreement with those of the existing Swendsen-Wang-Chayes-Machta (SWCM) algorithm, which involves a full-cluster decomposition of random-cluster configurations. We explore the critical dynamics of this algorithm for several two-dimensional Potts and random-cluster models. For integer q, the single-cluster algorithm can be reduced to the Wolff algorithm, for which case we find that the autocorrelation functions decay almost purely exponentially, with dynamic exponents z(exp)=0.07 (1), 0.521 (7), and 1.007 (9) for q=2, 3, and 4, respectively. For noninteger q, the dynamical behavior of the single-cluster algorithm appears to be very dissimilar to that of the SWCM algorithm. For large critical systems, the autocorrelation function displays a range of power-law behavior as a function of time. The dynamic exponents are relatively large. We provide an explanation for this peculiar dynamic behavior.

Crossing bonds in the random-cluster model.

We derive the scaling dimension associated with crossing bonds in the random-cluster representation of the two-dimensional Potts model by means of a mapping on the Coulomb gas. The scaling field associated with crossing bonds appears to be irrelevant on the critical as well as on the tricritical branch. The latter result stands in a remarkable contrast with the existing result for the tricritical O(n) model that crossing bonds are relevant. Although the O(1) model is equivalent with the q=2 random-cluster model, the crossing-bond exponents obtained for these two models appear to be different. We provide an explanation of this peculiar observation. In order to obtain an independent confirmation of the Coulomb gas result for the crossing-bond exponent, we perform a finite-size-scaling analysis based on numerical transfer-matrix calculations.

Percolation and critical O(n) loop configurations.

We study a percolation problem based on critical loop configurations of the O(n) loop model on the honeycomb lattice. We define dual clusters as groups of sites on the dual triangular lattice that are not separated by a loop, and investigate the bond-percolation properties of these dual clusters. The universal properties at the percolation threshold are argued to match those of Kasteleyn-Fortuin random clusters in the critical Potts model. This relation is checked numerically by means of cluster simulations of several O(n) models in the range 1

Critical properties of a dilute O(n) model on the kagome lattice.

A critical dilute O(n) model on the kagome lattice is investigated analytically and numerically. We employ a number of exact equivalences which, in a few steps, link the critical O(n) spin model on the kagome lattice to the exactly solvable critical q-state Potts model on the honeycomb lattice with q=(n+1)2. The intermediate steps involve the random-cluster model on the honeycomb lattice and a fully packed loop model with loop weight n'=sqrt(q) and a dilute loop model with loop weight n , both on the kagome lattice. This mapping enables the determination of a branch of critical points of the dilute O(n) model, as well as some of its critical properties. These properties differ from those of the generic O(n) critical points. For n=0, our model reproduces the known universal properties of the theta point describing the collapse of a polymer. For n not equal 0 it displays a line of multicritical points, with the same universal behavior as a branch of critical points that was found earlier in a dilute O(n) model on the square lattice. These findings are supported by a finite-size-scaling analysis in combination with transfer-matrix calculations.

Percolation transitions in two dimensions.

We investigate bond- and site-percolation models on several two-dimensional lattices numerically, by means of transfer-matrix calculations and Monte Carlo simulations. The lattices include the square, triangular, honeycomb kagome, and diced lattices with nearest-neighbor bonds, and the square lattice with nearest- and next-nearest-neighbor bonds. Results are presented for the bond-percolation thresholds of the kagome and diced lattices, and the site-percolation thresholds of the square, honeycomb, and diced lattices. We also include the bond- and site-percolation thresholds for the square lattice with nearest- and next-nearest-neighbor bonds. We find that corrections to scaling behave according to the second temperature dimension X_{t2}=4 predicted by the Coulomb gas theory and the theory of conformal invariance. In several cases there is evidence for an additional term with the same exponent, but modified by a logarithmic factor. Only for the site-percolation problem on the triangular lattice does such a logarithmic term appear to be small or absent. The amplitude of the power-law correction associated with X_{t2}=4 is found to be dependent on the orientation of the lattice with respect to the cylindrical geometry of the finite systems.

Tricritical O(n) models in two dimensions.

We show that the exactly solved low-temperature branch of the two-dimensional O(n) model is equivalent to an O(n) model with vacancies and a different value of n . We present analytic results for several universal parameters of the latter model, which is identified as a tricritical point. These results apply to the range n

Cluster simulations of loop models on two-dimensional lattices.

We develop cluster algorithms for a broad class of loop models on two-dimensional lattices, including several standard O(n) loop models at n> or =1. We show that our algorithm has little or no critical slowing-down when 1< or =n< or =2. We use this algorithm to investigate the honeycomb-lattice O(n) loop model, for which we determine several new critical exponents, and a square-lattice O(n) loop model, for which we obtain new information on the phase diagram.