The rate of convergence of the transfer matrix finite-size scaling (or phenomenological renormalisation) method is studied. It is shown both heuristically and numerically that the convergence of estimates for exponents, etc. is governed asymptotically by the leading irrelevant-variable scaling exponent. The more rapid apparent convergence rates observed in many practical calculations for two-dimensional lattices of widths up to ten lattice spacings are attributed to cancellation between various correction terms.
Using single cluster flip Monte Carlo simulations we accurately determine new finite size scaling functions which are expressed only in terms of the variable x=${\ensuremath{\xi}}_{\mathit{L}}$/L, where ${\ensuremath{\xi}}_{\mathit{L}}$ is the correlation length in a finite system of size L. Data for the d=2 and d=3 Ising models, taken at different temperatures and for different size lattices, show excellent data collapse over the entire range of scaling variable for susceptibility and correlation length. From these finite size scaling functions we can estimate critical temperatures and exponents with rather high accuracy even though data are not obtained extremely close to the critical point. The bulk values of the renormalized four-point coupling constant are accurately measured and show strong evidence for hyperscaling. \textcopyright{} 1996 The American Physical Society.
The ground-state parameters of the two-dimensional
S=1/2 antiferromagnetic Heisenberg model are calculated using the stochastic series expansion quantum Monte Carlo method for $L\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}L$ lattices with
L up to
16. The finite-size results for the energy
E, the sublattice magnetization
M, the long-wavelength susceptibility ${\ensuremath{\chi}}_{\ensuremath{\perp}}(q=2\ensuremath{\pi}/L)$, and the spin stiffness ${\ensuremath{\rho}}_{s},$ are extrapolated to the thermodynamic limit using fits to polynomials in
1/L, constrained by scaling forms previously obtained from renormalization-group calculations for the nonlinear $\ensuremath{\sigma}$ model and chiral perturbation theory. The results are fully consistent with the predicted leading finite-size corrections, and are of sufficient accuracy for extracting also subleading terms. The subleading energy correction $(\ensuremath{\sim}{1/L}^{4})$ agrees with chiral perturbation theory to within a statistical error of a few percent, thus providing numerical confirmation of the finite-size scaling forms to this order. The extrapolated ground- state energy per spin is $E=\ensuremath{-}0.669437(5)$. The result from previous Green's function Monte Carlo (GFMC) calculations is slightly higher than this value, most likely due to a small systematic error originating from ``population control'' bias in GFMC. The other extrapolated parameters are
M=0.3070(3), ${\ensuremath{\rho}}_{s}=0.175(2)$, ${\ensuremath{\chi}}_{\ensuremath{\perp}}=0.0625(9)$, and the spin-wave velocity
c=1.673(7). The statistical errors are comparable with those of previous estimates obtained by fitting loop algorithm quantum Monte Carlo data to finite-temperature scaling forms. Both
M and ${\ensuremath{\rho}}_{s}$ obtained from the finite-
T data are, however, a few error bars higher than the present estimates. It is argued that the
T=0 extrapolations performed here are less sensitive to effects of neglected higher-order corrections, and therefore should be more reliable.
A new method is proposed to study critical phenomena, which is a unification of Weiss' mean-field theory and Fisher's finite-size scaling theory. A systematic series of clusters is considered and generalized mean-fields are applied to the boundary spins of such clusters. From the size-dependence of the coefficients of mean-field singularities systematically obtained, the static critical exponents α, β and γ, and critical slowing down exponent Δ can be estimated. The critical point T C can be also evaluated from the size-dependence of mean-field critical points obtained in a systematic series of clusters. Some applications to the two- and three-dimensional Ising models are given explicitly to obtain T C =(2.24(0.036)) J / k B and γ=1.7(0.05) in the two-dimensional square lattice in our preliminary calculations.