Kinetics of heterogeneous single-species annihilation

Phase-ordering kinetics in the Allen-Cahn (Model A) class: Universal aspects elucidated by electrically induced transition in liquid crystals

The two-dimensional (2D) Ising model is the statistical physics textbook example for phase transitions and their kinetics. Quenched through the Curie point with Glauber rates, the late-time description of the ferromagnetic domain coarsening finds its place at the scalar sector of the Allen-Cahn (or Model A) class, which encompasses phase-ordering kinetics endowed with a nonconserved order parameter. Resisting exact results sought for theoreticians since Lifshitz's first account in 1962, the central quantities of 2D Model A-most scaling exponents and correlation functions-remain known up to approximate theories whose disparate outcomes urge experimental assessment. Here we perform such assessment based on a comprehensive study of the coarsening of 2D twisted nematic liquid crystals whose kinetics is induced by a superfast electrical switching from a spatiotemporally chaotic (disordered) state to a two-phase concurrent, equilibrium one. Tracking the dynamics via optical microscopy, we first show the sharp evidence of well-established Model A aspects, such as the dynamic exponent z=2 and the dynamic scaling hypothesis, to then move forward. We confirm the Bray-Humayun theory for Porod's regime describing intradomain length scales of the two-point spatial correlators and show that their nontrivial decay beyond the Porod's scale can be captured in a free-from-parameter fashion by Gaussian theories, namely the Ohta-Jasnow-Kawasaki (OJK) and Mazenko theories. Regarding time-related statistics, we corroborate the aging hypothesis in Model A systems, which includes the collapse of two-time correlators into a master curve whose format is, actually, best accounted for by a solution of the local scaling invariance theory: the same solution that fits the 2D nonconserved Ising model correlator along with the Fisher-Huse conjecture. We also suggest the true value for the local persistence exponent in Model A class, in disfavor of the exact outcome for the diffusion and OJK equations. Finally, we observe a fractal morphology for persistence clusters and extract their universal dimension. Given its accuracy and possibilities, this experimental setup may work as a prototype to address further universality issues in the realm of nonequilibrium systems.

Statistics of occupation times and connection to local properties of nonhomogeneous random walks

We consider the statistics of occupation times, the number of visits at the origin, and the survival probability for a wide class of stochastic processes, which can be classified as renewal processes. We show that the distribution of these observables can be characterized by a single exponent, that is connected to a local property of the probability density function of the process, viz., the probability of occupying the origin at time t, P(t). We test our results for two different models of lattice random walks with spatially inhomogeneous transition probabilities, one of which of non-Markovian nature, and find good agreement with theory. We also show that the distributions depend only on the occupation probability of the origin by comparing them for the two systems: When P(t) shows the same long-time behavior, each observable follows indeed the same distribution.

Zero-temperature ordering dynamics in a two-dimensional biaxial next-nearest-neighbor Ising model

We investigate the dynamics of a two-dimensional biaxial next-nearest-neighbor Ising model following a quench to zero temperature. The Hamiltonian is given by H=-J_{0}∑_{i,j=1}^{L}[(S_{i,j}S_{i+1,j}+S_{i,j}S_{i,j+1})-κ(S_{i,j}S_{i+2,j}+S_{i,j}S_{i,j+2})]. For κ<1, the system does not reach the equilibrium ground state and keeps evolving in active states forever. For κ≥1, though, the system reaches a final state, but it does not reach the ground state always and freezes to a striped state with a finite probability like a two-dimensional ferromagnetic Ising model and an axial next-nearest-neighbor Ising (ANNNI) model. The overall dynamical behavior for κ>1 and κ=1 is quite different. The residual energy decays in a power law for both κ>1 and κ=1 from which the dynamical exponent z has been estimated. The persistence probability shows algebraic decay for κ>1 with an exponent θ=0.22±0.002 while the dynamical exponent for ordering z=2.33±0.01. For κ=1, the system belongs to a completely different dynamical class with θ=0.332±0.002 and z=2.47±0.04. We have computed the freezing probability for different values of κ. We have also studied the decay of autocorrelation function with time for a different regime of κ values. The results have been compared with those of the two-dimensional ANNNI model.

Multi-point correlations for two-dimensional coalescing or annihilating random walks

In this paper we consider an infinite system of instantaneously coalescing rate 1 simple symmetric random walks on ℤ2, started from the initial condition with all sites in ℤ2 occupied. Two-dimensional coalescing random walks are a `critical' model of interacting particle systems: unlike coalescence models in dimension three or higher, the fluctuation effects are important for the description of large-time statistics in two dimensions, manifesting themselves through the logarithmic corrections to the `mean field' answers. Yet the fluctuation effects are not as strong as for the one-dimensional coalescence, in which case the fluctuation effects modify the large time statistics at the leading order. Unfortunately, unlike its one-dimensional counterpart, the two-dimensional model is not exactly solvable, which explains a relative scarcity of rigorous analytic answers for the statistics of fluctuations at large times. Our contribution is to find, for any N≥2, the leading asymptotics for the correlation functions ρN(x1,…,xN) as t→∞. This generalises the results for N=1 due to Bramson and Griffeath (1980) and confirms a prediction in the physics literature for N>1. An analogous statement holds for instantaneously annihilating random walks. The key tools are the known asymptotic ρ1(t)∼logt∕πt due to Bramson and Griffeath (1980), and the noncollision probability 𝒑NC(t), that no pair of a finite collection of N two-dimensional simple random walks meets by time t, whose asymptotic 𝒑NC(t)∼c0(logt)-(N2) was found by Cox et al. (2010). We re-derive the asymptotics, and establish new error bounds, both for ρ1(t) and 𝒑NC(t) by proving that these quantities satisfy effective rate equations; that is, approximate differential equations at large times. This approach can be regarded as a generalisation of the Smoluchowski theory of renormalised rate equations to multi-point statistics.

Effect of the nature of randomness on quenching dynamics of the Ising model on complex networks

Randomness is known to affect the dynamical behavior of many systems to a large extent. In this paper we investigate how the nature of randomness affects the dynamics in a zero-temperature quench of the Ising model on two types of random networks. In both networks, which are embedded in a one-dimensional space, the first-neighbor connections exist and the average degree is 4 per node. In random model A the second-neighbor connections are rewired with a probability p, while in random model B additional connections between neighbors at a Euclidean distance l(l > 1) are introduced with a probability P(l) proportionally l(-α). We find that for both models, the dynamics leads to freezing such that the system gets locked in a disordered state. The point at which the disorder of the nonequilibrium steady state is maximum is located. The behavior of dynamical quantities such as residual energy, order parameter, and persistence are discussed and compared. Overall, the behavior of physical quantities are similar, although subtle differences are observed due to the difference in the nature of randomness.

Nonuniversal nonequilibrium critical dynamics with disorder

We investigate finite-size scaling aspects of disorder reaction-diffusion processes in one dimension utilizing both numerical and analytical approaches. The former averages the spectrum gap of the associated evolution operators by doubling their degrees of freedom, while the latter uses various techniques to map the equations of motion to a first-passage time process. Both approaches are consistent with nonuniversal dynamic exponents and with stretched exponential scaling forms for particular disorder realizations.

Zero-temperature dynamics in the two-dimensional axial next-nearest-neighbor Ising model

We investigate the dynamics of a two-dimensional axial next-nearest-neighbor Ising model following a quench to zero temperature. The Hamiltonian is given by H= -J_(0) summation operator(L)_(i,j=1)S_(i,j)S_(i+1,j)-J_(1)summation operator_(i,j=1)(S_{i,j}S_{i,j+1}-kappaS_{i,j}S_{i,j+2}) . For kappa<1 , the system does not reach the equilibrium ground state but slowly evolves to a metastable state. For kappa>1 , the system shows a behavior similar to that of the two-dimensional ferromagnetic Ising model in the sense that it freezes to a striped state with a finite probability. The persistence probability shows algebraic decay here with an exponent theta=0.235+/-0.001 while the dynamical exponent of growth z=2.08+/-0.01 . For kappa=1 , the system belongs to a completely different dynamical class; it always evolves to the true ground state with the persistence and dynamical exponent having unique values. Much of the dynamical phenomena can be understood by studying the dynamics and distribution of the number of domain walls. We also compare the dynamical behavior to that of a Ising model in which both the nearest and next-nearest-neighbor interactions are ferromagnetic.

Survival probability of a diffusing test particle in a system of coagulating and annihilating random walkers

We calculate the survival probability of a diffusing test particle in an environment of diffusing particles that undergo coagulation at rate lambda(c) and annihilation at rate lambda(a) . The test particle is annihilated at rate lambda(') on coming into contact with the other particles. The survival probability decays algebraically with time as t(-theta;) . The exponent theta; in d<2 is calculated using the perturbative renormalization group formalism as an expansion in epsilon=2-d . It is shown to be universal, independent of lambda(') , and to depend only on delta , the ratio of the diffusion constant of test particles to that of the other particles, and on the ratio lambda(a) / lambda(c) . In two dimensions we calculate the logarithmic corrections to the power law decay of the survival probability. Surprisingly, the logarithmic corrections are nonuniversal. The one-loop answer for theta; in one dimension obtained by setting epsilon=1 is compared with existing exact solutions for special values of delta and lambda(a) / lambda(c) . The analytical results for the logarithmic corrections are verified by Monte Carlo simulations.

Persistence properties of a system of coagulating and annihilating random walkers

We study a d-dimensional system of diffusing particles that on contact either annihilate with probability 1/(q-1) or coagulate with probability (q-2)/(q-1). In one dimension, the system models the zero-temperature Glauber dynamics of domain walls in the q-state Potts model. We calculate P(m,t), the probability that a randomly chosen lattice site contains a particle whose ancestors have undergone exactly (m-1) coagulations. Using perturbative renormalization group analysis for d<2, we show that, if the number of coagulations m is much less than the typical number M(t), then P(m,t) approximately m(zeta/d)t(-theta), with theta=dQ+Q(Q-1/2)epsilon+O(epsilon(2)), zeta=(2Q-1)epsilon+(2Q-1)(Q-1)(1/2+AQ)epsilon(2)+O(epsilon(3)), where Q=(q-1)/q, epsilon=2-d and A=-0.006....M(t) is shown to scale as M(t) approximately t(d/2-delta), where delta=d(1-Q)+(Q-1)(Q-1/2)epsilon+O(epsilon(2)). In two dimensions, we show that P(m,t) approximately ln(t)(Q(3-2Q))ln(m)((2Q-1)(2))t(-2Q) for m<<t(2Q-1). We also derive an exact nonperturbative relation between the exponents: namely delta(Q)=theta(1-Q). The one-dimensional results corresponding to epsilon=1 are compared with results from Monte Carlo simulations.

Kang-Redner small-mass anomaly in cluster-cluster aggregation

The large-time small-mass asymptotic behavior of the average mass distribution P(m,t) is studied in a d-dimensional system of diffusing aggregating particles for 1< or =d< or =2. By means of both a renormalization group computation as well as a direct resummation of leading terms in the small-reaction-rate expansion of the average mass distribution, it is shown that P(m,t) approximately (1/t(d))(m(1/d)/sqrt[t])(e(KR)) for m<<t(d/2), where e(KR)=epsilon+O(epsilon(2)) and epsilon=2-d. In two dimensions, it is shown that P(m,t) approximately ln(m)ln(t)/t(2) for m<<t/ln(t). Numerical simulations in two dimensions supporting the analytical results are also presented.

Fraction of uninfected walkers in the one-dimensional Potts model

The dynamics of the one-dimensional q-state Potts model, in the zero-temperature limit, can be formulated through the motion of random walkers which either annihilate (A+A-->Phi) or coalesce (A+A-->A) with a q-dependent probability. We consider all of the walkers in this model to be mutually infectious. Whenever two walkers meet, they experience mutual contamination. Walkers which avoid an encounter with another random walker up to time t remain uninfected. The fraction of uninfected walkers is known to obey a power-law decay U(t) approximately t(-phi(q)), with a nontrivial exponent phi(q) [C. Monthus, Phys. Rev. E 54, 4844 (1996); S. N. Majumdar and S. J. Cornell, ibid. 57, 3757 (1998)]. We probe the numerical values of phi(q) to a higher degree of accuracy than previous simulations and relate the exponent phi(q) to the persistence exponent theta(q) [B. Derrida, V. Hakim, and V. Pasquier, Phys. Rev. Lett. 75, 751 (1995)], through the relation phi(q)=gamma(q)theta(q) where gamma is an exponent introduced in [S. J. O'Donoghue and A. J. Bray, preceding paper, Phys. Rev. E 65, 051113 (2002)]. Our study is extended to include the coupled diffusion-limited reaction A+A-->B, B+B-->A in one dimension with equal initial densities of A and B particles. We find that the density of walkers decays in this model as rho(t) approximately t(-1/2). The fraction of sites unvisited by either an A or a B particle is found to obey a power law, P(t) approximately t(-theta) with theta approximately 1.33. We discuss these exponents within the context of the q-state Potts model and present numerical evidence that the fraction of walkers which remain uninfected decays as U(t) approximately t(-phi), where phi approximately 1.13 when infection occurs between like particles only, and phi approximately 1.93 when we also include cross-species contamination. We find that the relation between phi and theta in this model can also be characterized by an exponent gamma, where similarly, phi=gamma(theta).

Persistence of a continuous stochastic process with discrete-time sampling: non-Markov processes

We consider the problem of "discrete-time persistence," which deals with the zero crossings of a continuous stochastic process X(T) measured at discrete times T=nDeltaT. For a Gaussian stationary process the persistence (no crossing) probability decays as exp(-theta(D)T)=[rho(a)](n) for large n, where a=exp(-DeltaT/2) and the discrete persistence exponent theta(D) is given by theta(D)=(ln rho)/(2 ln a). Using the "independent interval approximation," we show how theta(D) varies with DeltaT for small DeltaT and conclude that experimental measurements of persistence for smooth processes, such as diffusion, are less sensitive to the effects of discrete sampling than measurements of a randomly accelerated particle or random walker. We extend the matrix method developed by us previously [Phys. Rev. E 64, 015101(R) (2001)] to determine rho(a) for a two-dimensional random walk and the one-dimensional random-acceleration problem. We also consider "alternating persistence," which corresponds to a<0, and calculate rho(a) for this case.

Persistence in the one-dimensional A+B--> Ø reaction-diffusion model

The persistence properties of a set of random walkers obeying the A+B--> Ø reaction, with equal initial density of particles and homogeneous initial conditions, is studied using two definitions of persistence. The probability P(t) that an annihilation process has not occurred at a given site has the asymptotic form P(t) approximately const+t(-straight theta), where straight theta is the persistence exponent (type I persistence). We argue that, for a density of particles rho>>1, this nontrivial exponent is identical to that governing the persistence properties of the one-dimensional diffusion equation, partial differential(t)straight phi= partial differential(xx)straight phi, where straight theta approximately 0.1207 [S. N. Majumdar, C. Sire, A. J. Bray, and S. J. Cornell, Phys. Rev. Lett. 77, 2867 (1996)]. In the case of an initial low density, rho(0)<<1, we find straight theta approximately 1/4 asymptotically. The probability that a site remains unvisited by any random walker (type II persistence) is also investigated and found to decay with a stretched exponential form, P(t) approximately exp(-constxrho(1/2)(0)t(1/4)), provided rho(0)<<1. A heuristic argument for this behavior, based on an exactly solvable toy model, is presented.

Persistence in a stationary time series

We study the persistence in a class of continuous stochastic processes that are stationary only under integer shifts of time. We show that under certain conditions, the persistence of such a continuous process reduces to the persistence of a corresponding discrete sequence obtained from the measurement of the process only at integer times. We then construct a specific sequence for which the persistence can be computed even though the sequence is non-Markovian. We show that this may be considered as a limiting case of persistence in the diffusion process on a hierarchical lattice.

Unusual dynamical scaling in the spatial distribution of persistent sites in one-dimensional potts models

The distribution n(k,t) of the interval sizes k between clusters of persistent sites in the dynamical evolution of the one-dimensional q-state Potts model is studied using a combination of numerical simulations, scaling arguments, and exact analysis. It is shown to have the scaling form n(k,t)=t(-2z)f(k/t(z)), with z=max(1/2, straight theta), where straight theta(q) is the persistence exponent which describes the fraction P(t) approximately t(-straight theta) of sites which have not changed their state up to time t. When straight theta>1/2, the scaling length t(straight theta) for the interval-size distribution is larger than the coarsening length scale t(1/2) that characterizes spatial correlations of the Potts variables.

Random walks in logarithmic and power-law potentials, nonuniversal persistence, and vortex dynamics in the two-dimensional XY model

The Langevin equation for a particle ("random walker") moving in d-dimensional space under an attractive central force and driven by a Gaussian white noise is considered for the case of a power-law force, F(r) approximately -r(-sigma). The "persistence probability," P0(t), that the particle has not visited the origin up to time t is calculated for a number of cases. For sigma>1, the force is asymptotically irrelevant (with respect to the noise), and the asymptotics of P0(t) are those of a free random walker. For sigma<1, the noise is (dangerously) irrelevant and the asymptotics of P0(t) can be extracted from a weak noise limit within a path-integral formalism employing the Onsager-Machlup functional. The case sigma=1, corresponding to a logarithmic potential, is most interesting because the noise is exactly marginal. In this case, P0(t) decays as a power law, P0(t) approximately t(-straight theta) with an exponent straight theta that depends continuously on the ratio of the strength of the potential to the strength of the noise. This case, with d=2, is relevant to the annihilation dynamics of a vortex-antivortex pair in the two-dimensional XY model. Although the noise is multiplicative in the latter case, the relevant Langevin equation can be transformed to the standard form discussed in the first part of the paper. The mean annihilation time for a pair initially separated by r is given by t(r) approximately r(2) ln(r/a) where a is a microscopic cutoff (the vortex core size). Implications for the nonequilibrium critical dynamics of the system are discussed and compared to numerical simulation results.

Reaction diffusion models in one dimension with disorder

We study a large class of one-dimensional reaction diffusion models with quenched disorder using a real space renormalization group method (RSRG) which yields exact results at large time. Particles (e.g., of several species) undergo diffusion with random local bias (Sinai model) and may react upon meeting. We obtain a detailed description of the asymptotic states (i.e., attractive fixed points of the RSRG), such as the large time decay of the density of each specie, their associated universal amplitudes, and the spatial distribution of particles. We also derive the spectrum of nontrivial exponents which characterize the convergence towards the asymptotic states. For reactions which lead to several possible asymptotic states separated by unstable fixed points, we analyze the dynamical phase diagram and obtain the critical exponents characterizing the transitions. We also obtain a detailed characterization of the persistence properties for single particles as well as more complex patterns. We compute the decay exponents for the probability of no crossing of a given point by, respectively, the single particle trajectories (theta) or the thermally averaged packets (theta). The generalized persistence exponents associated to n crossings are also obtained. Specifying to the process A+A--> or A with probabilities (r,1-r), we compute exactly the exponents delta(r) and psi(r) characterizing the survival up to time t of a domain without any merging or with mergings, respectively, and the exponents deltaA(r) and psiA(r) characterizing the survival up to time t of a particle A without any coalescence or with coalescences, respectively. theta, psi, and delta obey hypergeometric equations and are numerically surprisingly close to pure system exponents (though associated to a completely different diffusion length). The effect of additional disorder in the reaction rates, as well as some open questions, are also discussed.

Residence time distribution for a class of Gaussian Markov processes

We study the distribution of residence time or equivalently that of "mean magnetization" for a family of Gaussian Markov processes indexed by a positive parameter alpha. The persistence exponent for these processes is simply given by theta=alpha but the residence time distribution is nontrivial. The shape of this distribution undergoes a qualitative change as theta increases, indicating a sharp change in the ergodic properties of the process. We develop two alternate methods to calculate exactly but recursively the moments of the distribution for arbitrary alpha. For some special values of alpha, we obtain closed form expressions of the distribution function.