Critical behavior of an Ising system on the Sierpinski carpet: a short-time dynamics study

Local and global magnetization on the Sierpiński carpet

The phase transition of the classical Ising model on the Sierpiński carpet, which has the fractal dimension log_{3}^{}8≈1.8927, is studied by an adapted variant of the higher-order tensor renormalization group method. The second-order phase transition is observed at the critical temperature T_{c}^{}≈1.478. Position dependence of local functions is studied through impurity tensors inserted at different locations on the fractal lattice. The critical exponent β associated with the local magnetization varies by two orders of magnitude, depending on lattice locations, whereas T_{c}^{} is not affected. Furthermore, we employ automatic differentiation to accurately and efficiently compute the average spontaneous magnetization per site as a first derivative of free energy with respect to the external field, yielding the global critical exponent of β≈0.135.

Calculation of critical exponents on fractal lattice Ising model by higher-order tensor renormalization group method

The critical behavior of the Ising model on a fractal lattice, which has the Hausdorff dimension log_{4}12≈1.792, is investigated using a modified higher-order tensor renormalization group algorithm supplemented with automatic differentiation to compute relevant derivatives efficiently and accurately. The complete set of critical exponents characteristic of a second-order phase transition was obtained. Correlations near the critical temperature were analyzed through two impurity tensors inserted into the system, which allowed us to obtain the correlation lengths and calculate the critical exponent ν. The critical exponent α was found to be negative, consistent with the observation that the specific heat does not diverge at the critical temperature. The extracted exponents satisfy the known relations given by various scaling assumptions within reasonable accuracy. Perhaps most interestingly, the hyperscaling relation, which contains the spatial dimension, is satisfied very well, assuming the Hausdorff dimension takes the place of the spatial dimension. Moreover, using automatic differentiation, we have extracted four critical exponents (α, β, γ, and δ) globally by differentiating the free energy. Surprisingly, the global exponents differ from those obtained locally by the technique of the impurity tensors; however, the scaling relations remain satisfied even in the case of the global exponents.

J_{1}-J_{2} fractal studied by multirecursion tensor-network method

We generalize a tensor-network algorithm to study the thermodynamic properties of self-similar spin lattices constructed on a square-lattice frame with two types of couplings, J_{1}^{} and J_{2}^{}, chosen to transform a regular square lattice (J_{1}^{}=J_{2}^{}) onto a fractal lattice if decreasing J_{2}^{} to zero (the fractal fully reconstructs when J_{2}^{}=0). We modified the higher-order tensor renormalization group (HOTRG) algorithm for this purpose. Single-site measurements are performed by means of so-called impurity tensors. So far, only a single local tensor and uniform extension-contraction relations have been considered in HOTRG. We introduce 10 independent local tensors, each being extended and contracted by 15 different recursion relations. We applied the Ising model to the J_{1}^{}-J_{2}^{} planar fractal whose Hausdorff dimension at J_{2}^{}=0 is d^{(H)}=ln12/ln4≈1.792. The generalized tensor-network algorithm is applicable to a wide range of fractal patterns and is suitable for models without translational invariance.

Critical temperatures of the Ising model on Sierpiñski fractal lattices

We report our latest results of the spectra and critical temperatures of the partition function of the Ising model on deterministic Sierpiñski carpets in a wide range of fractal dimensions. Several examples of spectra are given. When the fractal dimension increases (and correlatively the lacunarity decreases), the spectra aggregates more and more tightly along the spectrum of the regular square lattice. The single real rootvc, comprised between 0 and 1, of the partition function, which corresponds to the critical temperatureTcthrough the formulavc= tanh(1/Tc), reliably fits a power law of exponentkwherekis the segmentation step of the fractal structure. This simple expression allows to extrapolate the critical temperature fork→ ∞. The plot of the logarithm of this extrapolated critical temperature versus the fractal dimension appears to be reliably linear in a wide range of fractal dimensions, except for highly lacunary structures of fractal dimensions close from 1 (the dimension of a quasilinear lattice) where the critical temperature goes to 0 and its logarithm to −∞.

Stationary and dynamic critical behavior of the contact process on the Sierpinski carpet

We investigate the critical behavior of a stochastic lattice model describing a contact process in the Sierpinski carpet with fractal dimension d=log8/log3. We determine the threshold of the absorbing phase transition related to the transition between a statistically stationary active and the absorbing states. Finite-size scaling analysis is used to calculate the order parameter, order parameter fluctuations, correlation length, and their critical exponents. We report that all static critical exponents interpolate between the line of the regular Euclidean lattices values and are consistent with the hyperscaling relation. However, a short-time dynamics scaling analysis shows that the dynamical critical exponent Z governing the size dependence of the critical relaxation time is found to be larger then the literature values in Euclidean d=1 and d=2, suggesting a slower critical relaxation in scale-free lattices.

Effects of random and deterministic discrete scale invariance on the critical behavior of the Potts model

The effects of disorder on the critical behavior of the q-state Potts model in noninteger dimensions are studied by comparison of deterministic and random fractals sharing the same dimensions in the framework of a discrete scale invariance. We carried out intensive Monte Carlo simulations. In the case of a fractal dimension slightly smaller than two d(f) ~/= 1.974636, we give evidence that the disorder structured by discrete scale invariance does not change the first order transition associated with the deterministic case when q = 7. Furthermore the study of the high value q = 14 shows that the transition is a second order one both for deterministic and random scale invariance, but that their behavior belongs to different university classes.

Anisotropic anomalous diffusion modulated by log-periodic oscillations

We introduce finite ramified self-affine substrates in two dimensions with a set of appropriate hopping rates between nearest-neighbor sites where the diffusion of a single random walk presents an anomalous anisotropic behavior modulated by log-periodic oscillations. The anisotropy is revealed by two different random-walk exponents ν(x) and ν(y) in the x and y directions, respectively. The values of these exponents as well as the periods of the oscillations are obtained analytically and confirmed by Monte Carlo simulations.

Critical behavior of the Ising model on random fractals

We study the critical behavior of the Ising model in the case of quenched disorder constrained by fractality on random Sierpinski fractals with a Hausdorff dimension d(f) is approximately equal to 1.8928. This is a first attempt to study a situation between the borderline cases of deterministic self-similarity and quenched randomness. Intensive Monte Carlo simulations were carried out. Scaling corrections are much weaker than in the deterministic cases, so that our results enable us to ensure that finite-size scaling holds, and that the critical behavior is described by a new universality class. The hyperscaling relation is compatible with an effective dimension equal to the Hausdorff one; moreover the two eigenvalues exponents of the renormalization flows are shown to be different from the ones calculated from ε expansions, and from the ones obtained for fourfold symmetric deterministic fractals. Although the space dimensionality is not integer, lack of self-averaging properties exhibits some features very close to the ones of a random fixed point associated with a relevant disorder.

Anomalous diffusion with log-periodic modulation in a selected time interval

On certain self-similar substrates the time behavior of a random walk is modulated by logarithmic-periodic oscillations on all time scales. We show that if disorder is introduced in a way that self-similarity holds only in average, the modulating oscillations are washed out but subdiffusion remains as in the perfect self-similar case. Also, if disorder distribution is appropriately chosen the oscillations are localized in a selected time interval. Both the overall random walk exponent and the period of the oscillations are analytically obtained and confirmed by Monte Carlo simulations.

Log-periodic oscillations for diffusion on self-similar finitely ramified structures

Under certain circumstances, the time behavior of a random walk is modulated by logarithmic-periodic oscillations. Using heuristic arguments, we give a simple explanation of the origin of this modulation for diffusion on a substrate with two properties: self-similarity and finite ramification order. On these media, the time dependence of the mean-square displacement shows log-periodic modulations around a leading power law, which can be understood on the basis of a hierarchical set of diffusion constants. Both the random walk exponent and the period of oscillations are analytically obtained for a pair of examples, one is fractal and the other is nonfractal, and confirmed by Monte Carlo simulations. The last example shows that the anomalous diffusion can arise from substrates without holes of all sizes.

Short-time critical dynamics of damage spreading in the two-dimensional Ising model

The short-time critical dynamics of propagation of damage in the Ising ferromagnet in two dimensions is studied by means of Monte Carlo simulations. Starting with equilibrium configurations at T=∞ and magnetization M=0 , an initial damage is created by flipping a small amount of spins in one of the two replicas studied. In this way, the initial damage is proportional to the initial magnetization M0 in one of the configurations upon quenching the system at T C, the Onsager critical temperature of the ferromagnetic-paramagnetic transition. It is found that, at short times, the damage increases with an exponent θ D=1.915(3) , which is much larger than the exponent θ=0.197 characteristic of the initial increase of the magnetization M(t). Also, an epidemic study was performed. It is found that the average distance from the origin of the epidemic (R2(t)) grows with an exponent z∗ ≈ η ≈ 1.9, which is the same, within error bars, as the exponent θ D. However, the survival probability of the epidemics reaches a plateau so that δ=0. On the other hand, by quenching the system to lower temperatures one observes the critical spreading of the damage at T D ≃ 0.51TC, where all the measured observables exhibit power laws with exponents θ D=1.026(3), δ=0.133(1), and z∗=1.74(3).

Monte Carlo study of the phase transition in the critical behavior of the Ising model with shear

The critical behavior of the Ising model with nonconserved dynamics and an external driving field mimicking a shear profile is analyzed by studying its dynamical evolution in the short-time regime. Starting from high-temperature disordered configurations (fully disordered configurations, FDC), the critical temperature Tc is determined when the order parameter, defined as the absolute value of the transversal spin profile, exhibits a power-law behavior with an exponent that is a combination of some of the critical exponents of the transition. For each value of the shear field magnitude, labeled as gamma, Tc has been estimated and two stages have been found: (1) a growing stage at low values of gamma, where Tc approximately gammapsi and psi=0.52(3), and (2) a saturation regime at large gamma. The same values of Tc(gamma) were found studying the dynamical evolution from the ground-state configuration with all spins pointing in the same direction. By combining the exponents of the corresponding power laws obtained from each initial configuration, the set of critical exponents was calculated. These values, at large external field magnitude, define a critical behavior different from that of the Ising model and of other driven lattice gases.

Ballistic deposition on deterministic fractals: observation of discrete scale invariance

The growth of ballistic aggregates on deterministic fractal substrates is studied by means of numerical simulations. First, we attempt the description of the evolving interface of the aggregates by applying the well-established Family-Vicsek dynamic scaling approach. Systematic deviations from that standard scaling law are observed, suggesting that significant scaling corrections have to be introduced in order to achieve a more accurate understanding of the behavior of the interface. Subsequently, we study the internal structure of the growing aggregates that can be rationalized in terms of the scaling behavior of frozen trees, i.e., structures inhibited for further growth, lying below the growing interface. It is shown that the rms height (h_{s}) and width (w_{s}) of the trees of size s obey power laws of the form h_{s} proportional, variants;{nu_{ parallel}} and w_{s} proportional, variants;{nu_{ perpendicular}} , respectively. Also, the tree-size distribution (n_{s}) behaves according to n_{s} approximately s;{-tau} . Here, nu_{ parallel} and nu_{ perpendicular} are the correlation length exponents in the directions parallel and perpendicular to the interface, respectively. Also, tau is a critical exponent. However, due to the interplay between the discrete scale invariance of the underlying fractal substrates and the dynamics of the growing process, all these power laws are modulated by logarithmic periodic oscillations. The fundamental scaling ratios, characteristic of these oscillations, can be linked to the (spatial) fundamental scaling ratio of the underlying fractal by means of relationships involving critical exponents. We argue that the interplay between the spatial discrete scale invariance of the fractal substrate and the dynamics of the physical process occurring in those media is a quite general phenomenon that leads to the observation of logarithmic-periodic modulations of physical observables.

Phase-ordering kinetics on graphs

We study numerically the phase-ordering kinetics following a temperature quench of the Ising model with single spin-flip dynamics on a class of graphs, including geometrical fractals and random fractals, such as the percolation cluster. For each structure we discuss the scaling properties and compute the dynamical exponents. We show that the exponent a_{chi} for the integrated response function, at variance with all the other exponents, is independent of temperature and of the presence of pinning. This universal character suggests a strict relation between a_{chi} and the topological properties of the networks, in analogy to what is observed on regular lattices.

Discrete scale invariance effects in the nonequilibrium critical behavior of the Ising magnet on a fractal substrate

The nonequilibrium critical dynamics of the Ising magnet on a fractal substrate, namely the Sierpinski carpet with Hausdorff dimension d(H)=1.7925, has been studied within the short-time regime by means of Monte Carlo simulations. The evolution of the physical observables was followed at criticality, after both annealing ordered spin configurations (ground state) and quenching disordered initial configurations (high temperature state), for three segmentation steps of the fractal. We have obtained evidence showing that during these relaxation processes both the growth and the fragmentation of magnetic domains become influenced by the hierarchical structure of the substrate. In fact, the interplay between the dynamic behavior of the magnet and the underlying fractal leads to the emergence of a logarithmic-periodic oscillation, superimposed to a power law, which has been observed in the time dependence of both the decay of the magnetization and its logarithmic derivative. These oscillations have been carefully characterized in order to determine the critical temperature of the second-order phase transition and the critical exponents corresponding to the short-time regime. The effects of the substrate can also be observed from the dependence of the effective critical exponents on the segmentation step. The exponent theta of the initial increase of the magnetization has also been obtained and the results suggest that it would be almost independent of the fractal dimension of the substrate, provided that d(H) is close enough to d=2. The oscillations have been discussed within the framework of the discrete scale invariance of the substrate.