We consider the thermal phase transition from a paramagnetic to a stripe-antiferromagnetic phase in the frustrated two-dimensional square-lattice Ising model with competing interactions
J1<0 (nearest neighbor, ferromagnetic) and
J2>0 (second neighbor, antiferromagnetic). The striped phase breaks a
Z4 symmetry and is stabilized at low temperatures for
g=J2/∣J1∣>1/2. Despite the simplicity of the model, it has proved difficult to precisely determine the order and the universality class of the phase transitions. This was done convincingly only recently by Jin et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 108, 045702 (2012)]. Here, we further elucidate the nature of these transitions and their anomalies by employing a combination of cluster mean-field theory, Monte Carlo simulations, and transfer-matrix calculations. The
J1-
J2 model has a line of very weak first-order phase transitions in the whole region
1/2<g<g∗, where ${g}^{*}=0.67\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.01$. Thereafter, the transitions from
g=g∗ to $g\ensuremath{\rightarrow}\ensuremath{\infty}$ are continuous and can be fully mapped, using universality arguments, to the critical line of the well-known Ashkin-Teller model from its four-state Potts point to the decoupled Ising limit. We also comment on the pseudo-first-order behavior at the Potts point and its neighborhood in the Ashkin-Teller model on finite lattices, which in turn leads to the appearance of similar effects in the vicinity of the multicritical point
g∗ in the
J1-
J2 model. The continuous transitions near
g∗ can therefore be mistaken for first-order transitions, and this realization was the key to understanding the paramagnetic-striped transition for the full range of
g>1/2. Most of our conclusions are based on Monte Carlo calculations, while the cluster mean-field and transfer-matrix results provide useful methodological benchmarks for weakly first-order behaviors and Ashkin-Teller criticality.
We study the challenging thermal phase transition to stripe order in the frustrated square-lattice Ising model with couplings J(1) < 0 (nearest-neighbor, ferromagnetic) and J(2) > 0 (second-neighbor, antiferromagnetic) for g = J(2)/|J(1| > 1/2. Using Monte Carlo simulations and known analytical results, we demonstrate Ashkin-Teller criticality for g ≥ g*; i.e., the critical exponents vary continuously between those of the 4-state Potts model at g = g* and the Ising model for g → ∞. Thus, stripe transitions offer a route to realizing a related class of conformal field theories with conformal charge c = 1 and varying exponents. The transition is first order for g < g* = 0.67 ± 0.01, much lower than previously believed, and exhibits pseudo-first-order behavior for |g* ≤ g </~1.
By using extensive tensor network calculations, we map out the phase diagram of the frustrated J_{1}-J_{2} Ising model on the square lattice. In particular, we focus on the cases with controversy in the phase diagram, especially the stripe transition in the regime g=|J_{2}/J_{1}|>1/2 (J_{2}>0,J_{1}<0). While recent studies claimed that the phase transition is of first order when 1/2<g<g^{*} (with the smallest g^{*} being 0.67), our simulations suggest that if there is such a first-order region, it is smaller than those found in earlier studies by other methods. Combining with the analysis of critical properties, we provide evidence that the classical J_{1}-J_{2} model evolves continuously from two decoupled Ising models (g→∞ with central charge c=1) to a point belonging to the tricritical Ising universality class (with c=0.7) as g decreases to g^{*}≃0.54.
We find that the ordinary universality does not hold for a frustrated spin-1 Ising model with nearest-neighbor bilinear interaction
J1 and next-nearest-neighbor bilinear interaction
J2 on the square lattice. We estimated critical indices \ensuremath{\nu}, \ensuremath{\eta}, and
ys by applying the Monte Carlo renormalization-group method to the model. The critical index \ensuremath{\nu} varies with
J1/
J2 in a region where the ground state is of the super-antiferromagnetic configuration. Although the behavior of \ensuremath{\nu} is analogous to that of the spin-1/2 Ising model as a function of
J1/
J2, the value of \ensuremath{\nu} appears to be smaller than that of the corresponding spin-1/2 Ising model. The value of \ensuremath{\eta} agrees with the value predicted by the Onsager universality class. The crossover exponent
ys agrees with the value estimated for the spin-1/2 Ising model.
In this work the ordering processes in classical frustrated Ising models and the ground-state behavior of frustrated quantum spin models are investigated. In the first part the phase transition from a high-temperature paramagnetic phase to a antiferromagnetic ground state is analyzed for the square-lattice Ising model with competing antiferromagnetic interactions between nearest- and next-nearest-neighbor spins. In the case of spatially isotropic interactions the phase transition to a collinear state is of special interest. Using Monte-Carlo simulations on finite lattices as well as field-theoretical methods for the continuous model it is shown that depending on the frustration three different sectors can be distinguished that show (i) Ising-universal behavior (ii) Ashkin-Teller-like non-universal behavior (varying critical exponents) and (iii) non-critical first-order behavior. For spatially anisotropic interactions the emergence of an intermediate incommensurate phase is verified by means of Monte-Carlo simulations which has been predicted by earlier mean-field calculations. The nature of this phase is studied analyzing spin-spin correlation functions and its ordering wave-vector reveals a strong temperature and size dependence. In the second part the influence of quantum fluctuations on classical antiferromagnetic ground states are investigated in anisotropic quantum spin-1/2 Heisenberg models with competing interactions. Using quantum Monte-Carlo simulations, exact diagonalization and perturbation theory the ground-state phase diagrams are calculated for a square lattice with nearest- and next-nearest-neighbor interactions and a honeycomb lattice with up to third-nearest-neighbor interactions whereby the fluctuations are chosen to be non-frustrating. For both cases the stability regions of classical magnetic states are identified and an intermediate phase is detected that shows no sign of long-range magnetic order. Further calculations also rule out valence-bond-crystal or topological order for this state, thus a quantum disordered ground state is stabilized in these models.
The phase transitions in two-dimensional antiferromagnetic Ising model are studied on a square lattice by taking the interactions of next-nearest neighbors into account. The model is investigated on basis of the replica Monte Carlo algorithm and the histogrammic analysis of data. The diagram of the critical temperature dependence on an interaction value of next-nearest neighbors is plotted. The studied model reveals the phase transition of second order and the frustration points depending on relative interaction values and magnetic field. A effect, heat capacity splitting near the frustration points, is found.