Related papers: First-order transitions in fluctuating 1+1-dimensi…
Many systems where interactions compete with each other or with constraints are well described by a model first introduced by Brazovskii. Such systems include block copolymers, alloys with modulated phases, Rayleigh-Benard Cells and type-I…
Mixed order transitions are those which show a discontinuity of the order parameter as well as a divergent correlation length. We show that the behaviour of the order parameter correlation function along the transition line of mixed order…
The problem of a fluctuation-induced first-order transition is considered for $p $-wave superconductors. Both an $\epsilon$-expansion about $d=4$ and a large-$n$ expansion conclude that the transition for the physical case $n=6$ in $d=3$ is…
The unconstrained ensemble describes completely open systems in which energy, volume and number of particles fluctuate. Here we show that not only equilibrium states can exist in this ensemble, but also that completely open systems can…
During preheating after inflation, parametric resonance rapidly generates very large fluctuations of scalar fields. In models where the inflaton field $\phi$ oscillates in a double-well potential and interacts with another scalar field $X$,…
The transition between the two phases of 4D Euclidean Dynamical Triangulation [1] was long believed to be of second order until in 1996 first order behavior was found for sufficiently large systems [3,4]. However, one may wonder if this…
We consider non-equilibrium phenomena in a very simple model that displays a zero-temperature first-order phase transition. The quantum Ising model with a four-spin exchange is adopted as a general representative of first-order quantum…
It has been recently argued that localized, unstable, but extremely long-lived configurations, called oscillons, could affect the dynamics of a first order electroweak phase transition in an appreciable way. Treating the amplitude and the…
We study the spin-glass transition in a disordered quantum model. There is a region in the phase diagram where quantum effects are small and the phase transition is second order, as in the classical case. In another region, quantum…
Recently it was argued that quantum phase transitions can be radically different from classical phase transitions with as a highlight the 'deconfined critical points' exhibiting fractionalization of quantum numbers due to Berry phase…
Onset and loss of synchronization in coupled oscillators are of fundamental importance in understanding emergent behavior in natural and man-made systems, which range from neural networks to power grids. We report on experiments with…
We study the dynamics of a system of coupled oscillators of distributed natural frequencies, by including the features of both thermal noise, parametrized by a temperature, and inertial terms, parametrized by a moment of inertia. For a…
First order quantum phase transitions (1QPTs) are signaled, in the thermodynamic limit, by discontinuous changes in the ground state properties. These discontinuities affect expectation values of observables, including spatial correlations.…
In some recent papers by Tamura, Tanaka and Kawashima [arXiv:1102.5475, arXiv:1012.4254], a class of Potts models with "invisible" states was introduced, for which the authors argued by numerical arguments and by a mean-field analysis that…
We present the first detailed numerical study in three dimensions of a first-order phase transition that remains first-order in the presence of quenched disorder (specifically, the ferromagnetic/paramagnetic transition of the site-diluted…
The hunt for exotic quantum phase transitions described by emergent fractionalized degrees of freedom coupled to gauge fields requires a precise determination of the fixed point structure from the field theoretical side, and an extreme…
A spatially extended classical system with metastable states subject to weak spatiotemporal noise can exhibit a transition in its activation behavior when one or more external parameters are varied. Depending on the potential, the…
We introduce a condition for an ensemble of networked phase oscillators to feature an abrupt, first-order phase transition from an unsynchronized to a synchronized state. This condition is met in a very wide spectrum of situations, and for…
The nature of the transition to collective motion in assemblies of aligning self-propelled particles remains a long-standing matter of debate. In this article, we focus on dry active matter and show that weak fluctuations suffice to…
We introduce a family of two-dimensional lattice models of quasicrystals, using a range of square hard cores together with a soft interaction based on an aperiodic tiling set. Along a low temperature isotherm we find, by Monte Carlo…