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arXiv:1105.6144 · Journal of Statistical Mechanics Theory and Experiment

Ensemble equivalence in spin systems with short-range interactions

Kazutaka Takahashi, Hidetoshi Nishimori, Víctor Martín-Mayor

Published Aug 30, 2011• 4 citations
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Abstract

We study the problem of ensemble equivalence in spin systems with short-range interactions under the existence of a first-order phase transition. The spherical model with nonlinear nearest-neighbour interactions is solved exactly for both canonical and microcanonical ensembles. The result reveals apparent ensemble inequivalence at the first-order transition point in the sense that the microcanonical entropy is non-concave as a function of the energy and consequently the specific heat is negative. In order to resolve the paradox, we show that an unconventional saddle point should be chosen in the microcanonical calculation that represents a phase separation. The XY model with nonlinear interactions is also studied by microcanonical Monte Carlo simulations in two dimensions to see how this model behaves in comparison with the spherical model.

DOI
10.1088/1742-5468/2011/08/p08024

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We study the problem of ensemble equivalence in spin systems with short-range interactions under the existence of a first-order phase transition. The spherical model with nonlinear nearest-neighbour interactions is solved exactly for both canonical and microcanonical ensembles. The result reveals apparent ensemble inequivalence at the first-order transition point in the sense that the microcanonical entropy is non-concave as a function of the energy and consequently the specific heat is negative. In order to resolve the paradox, we show that an unconventional saddle point should be chosen in the microcanonical calculation that represents a phase separation. The XY model with nonlinear interactions is also studied by microcanonical Monte Carlo simulations in two dimensions to see how this model behaves in comparison with the spherical model.
For the spherical model with nearest-neighbour interactions, the microcanonical entropy s (ε, m ) is computed analytically in the thermodynamic limit for all accessible values of the energy ε and the magnetization m per spin. The entropy function is found to be concave (albeit not strictly concave), implying that the microcanonical and the canonical ensembles are equivalent, despite the long-range nature of the spherical constraint that the spins have to obey. Two transition lines are identified in the (ε, m )-plane, separating a paramagnetic phase from a ferromagnetic and an antiferromagnetic one. The resulting microcanonical phase diagram is compared to the more familiar canonical one.
In this paper, we propose a new generalized XY model with nearest-neighbor interaction which cannot be studied analytically. By adopting both the canonical Monte Carlo simulations and the microcanonical Monte Carlo simulations, the first-order phase transitions in both canonical ensemble and microcanonical ensemble are observed numerically, and the accurate phase-transition temperatures of the model with different parameters are given. From the distinct phase diagrams in two different ensembles, we conclude that the model we propose here exists as an ensemble equivalence.
Due to the equivalence of the statistical ensembles, thermostatic properties of physical systems with short-range interactions can be calculated in different ensembles leading to the same physics. In particular, the ensemble equivalence holds for systems that undergo a continuous phase transition in the infinite volume limit with the result that the properties of the transition can also be investigated in the microcanonical approach. Considering as an example the spherical model, the ensemble equivalence is explicitly demonstrated by calculating the critical properties in the microcanonical ensemble and comparing them to the well known canonical results.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT:In this thesis we discuss some of the anomalies present in systems with long-range interactions, for instance negative specifc heat and negative magnetic susceptibility, and show how they can be related to the convexity properties of the thermodynamic potentials and nonequivalence of ensembles. We also discuss the possibility of engineering long-range quantum spin systems with cold atoms in optical lattices to experimentally verify the existence of nonequivalence of ensembles. We then formulate an expression for the density of states when the energy and magnetisation correspond to a pair of non-commuting operators. Finally we analytically compute the entropy s(;m) as a function of energy, and magnetisation, m, for the anisotropic Heisenberg model with Curie-Weiss type interactions. The results show that the entropy is non-concave in terms of magnetisation under certain circumstances which in turn indicates that the microcanonical and canonical ensembles are not equivalent and that the magnetic susceptibility is negative. After making an appropriate change of variables we show that a second-order phase transition can be present at negative temperatures in the microcanonical ensemble which cannot be represented in the canonical ensemble.
Abstract We study the effect of competing interactions on ensemble inequivalence. We consider a one-dimensional Ising model with ferromagnetic mean-field interactions and short-range nearest-neighbor (NN) and next-NN couplings which can be either ferromagnetic or antiferromagnetic. Despite the relative simplicity of the model, our calculations in the microcanonical ensemble reveal a rich phase diagram. The comparison with the corresponding phase diagram in the canonical ensemble shows the presence of phase transition points and lines which are different in the two ensembles. As an example, in a region of the phase diagram where the canonical ensemble shows a critical point and a critical end point, the microcanonical ensemble has an additional critical point and also a triple point. The regions of ensemble inequivalence typically occur at lower temperatures and at larger absolute values of the competing couplings. The presence of two free parameters in the model allows us to obtain a fourth-order critical point, which can be fully characterized by deriving its Landau normal form.
In a pioneer work, John Nagle has shown that an Ising chain with competing short and long-range interactions displays second and first-order phase transitions separated by a tricritical point. More recently, it has been claimed that Nagle's model provides an example of the inequivalence between canonical and microcanonical calculations. We then revisit Nagle's original solution, as well as the usual formulation of the problem in a canonical ensemble, which lead to the same results. Also, in contrast to recent claims, we show that an alternative formulation in the microcanonical ensemble, with the adequate choice of the fixed thermodynamic extensive variables, leads to equivalent thermodynamic results.