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The Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless transition of mobile Hamiltonian polar particles

Mathias Höfler

Published Jan 1, 2019• 1 citation
OpenAlex

Abstract

The phase of matter is the state of a system in a region on a macroscopic scale. At this macroscopic scale, in equilibrium, physical properties of the system are homogeneous. Statistical physics tries to explain the homogeneity and the associated properties from microscopic interactions and by laws of nature. On a macroscopic scale, the systems to investigate are many-body systems like gases, liquids or solids. They are characterized by thermodynamic functions like the free energy. Order parameters, like for example the magnetization in magnetic systems, play a special role here. Most of the time they are associated with a breaking of symmetry when transitioning from one phase to another. This however is not a universal observation. One example for which this is not the case is the Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless phase transition (KT-transition). This particular transition can be studied in two-dimensional XY-models, where there is a phase transition without the breaking of continuous symmetries. First theoretical descriptions trace back to the works of Berezinskii [Ber71], as well as Kosterlitz and Thouless [Kos73, Kos74, Kos16]. They initially investigated a system of classical spins fixed on the nodes of a square lattice. Consequently, only the rotational degree of freedom remains. In this work we start with the model of [LB16] who introduces a coupling of spins to velocities of mobile particles. After a numerical analysis of different integration methods for the equations of motion and investigations of this system, we remove the coupling. By that, we mimic an XY- model with additional translational degrees of freedom. For this system we examine the system with respect to the occurrence of the KT-transition by computer simulations. We apply several general tools for the analysis of magnetic systems. Subsequently we look into topological defects in the system, namely vortices and anti-vortices. For temperatures lower than the transition temperature T < T KT , defects are closely bound together, while for temperatures T > T KT they can proliferate in the system and can be treated like a gas of unbound defects. Moreover, we investigate spatial and temporal spin-correlations to estimate the critical exponent in the system, as well as the critical temperature. For a reference we first simulate an XY-model on a trigonal lattice as a comparison for our results in the mobile model. In both systems we do find the KT-transition by the occurrence of unbound topological defects and from the critical exponents we calculate from the spin-correlations functions.

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The phase of matter is the state of a system in a region on a macroscopic scale. At this macroscopic scale, in equilibrium, physical properties of the system are homogeneous. Statistical physics tries to explain the homogeneity and the associated properties from microscopic interactions and by laws of nature. On a macroscopic scale, the systems to investigate are many-body systems like gases, liquids or solids. They are characterized by thermodynamic functions like the free energy. Order parameters, like for example the magnetization in magnetic systems, play a special role here. Most of the time they are associated with a breaking of symmetry when transitioning from one phase to another. This however is not a universal observation. One example for which this is not the case is the Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless phase transition (KT-transition). This particular transition can be studied in two-dimensional XY-models, where there is a phase transition without the breaking of continuous symmetries. First theoretical descriptions trace back to the works of Berezinskii [Ber71], as well as Kosterlitz and Thouless [Kos73, Kos74, Kos16]. They initially investigated a system of classical spins fixed on the nodes of a square lattice. Consequently, only the rotational degree of freedom remains. In this work we start with the model of [LB16] who introduces a coupling of spins to velocities of mobile particles. After a numerical analysis of different integration methods for the equations of motion and investigations of this system, we remove the coupling. By that, we mimic an XY- model with additional translational degrees of freedom. For this system we examine the system with respect to the occurrence of the KT-transition by computer simulations. We apply several general tools for the analysis of magnetic systems. Subsequently we look into topological defects in the system, namely vortices and anti-vortices. For temperatures lower than the transition temperature T < T KT , defects are closely bound together, while for temperatures T > T KT they can proliferate in the system and can be treated like a gas of unbound defects. Moreover, we investigate spatial and temporal spin-correlations to estimate the critical exponent in the system, as well as the critical temperature. For a reference we first simulate an XY-model on a trigonal lattice as a comparison for our results in the mobile model. In both systems we do find the KT-transition by the occurrence of unbound topological defects and from the critical exponents we calculate from the spin-correlations functions.
We investigate the out of equilibrium dynamics of the two-dimensional XY model when cooled across the Berezinskii–Kosterlitz–Thouless (BKT) phase transition using different protocols. We focus on the evolution of the growing correlation length and the density of topological defects (vortices). By using Monte Carlo simulations we first determine the time and temperature dependence of the growing correlation length after an infinitely rapid quench from above the transition temperature to the quasi-long-range order region. The functional form is consistent with a logarithmic correction to the diffusive law and it serves to validate dynamic scaling in this problem. This analysis clarifies the different dynamic roles played by bound and free vortices. We then revisit the Kibble–Zurek mechanism in thermal phase transitions in which the disordered state is plagued with topological defects. We provide a theory of quenching rate dependence in systems with the BKT-type transition that goes beyond the equilibrium scaling arguments. Finally, we discuss the implications of our results for a host of physical systems with vortex excitations, including planar ferromagnets and liquid crystals.
The Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless (BKT) transition is the paradigmatic example of a topological phase transition without symmetry breaking, where a quasiordered phase, characterized by a power-law scaling of the correlation functions at low temperature, is disrupted by the proliferation of topological excitations above the critical temperature T_{BKT}. In this Letter, we consider the effect of long-range decaying couplings ∼r^{-2-σ} on the BKT transition. After pointing out the relevance of this nontrivial problem, we discuss the phase diagram, which is far richer than the corresponding short-range one. It features-for 7/4<σ<2-a quasiordered phase in a finite temperature range T_{c}<T<T_{BKT}, which occurs between a symmetry broken phase for T<T_{c} and a disordered phase for T>T_{BKT}. The transition temperature T_{c} displays unique universal features quite different from those of the traditional, short-range XY model. Given the universal nature of our findings, they may be observed in current experimental realizations in 2D atomic, molecular, and optical quantum systems.
This thesis addresses the emergent electrostatics of two-dimensional, toroidal magnetic models that possess XY symmetry, providing a platform for novel investigations into the Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless (BKT) phase transition.The BKT transition drives the thermal dissociation of bound pairs of topological defects in many two-dimensional systems, including the two-dimensional XY model of magnetism. The XY model is closely analogous to the two-dimensional Coulomb gas, but can be simulated without computing the long-range interactions of the Coulombic system. This thesis elucidates this paradox by showing that Villain's approximation to the XY model is strictly equivalent to the Maggs-Rossetto (MR) electrostatic model when applied to the two-dimensional Coulomb gas.The mapping is used to probe the BKT transition through the application of the MR algorithm to the two-dimensional Coulomb gas. By simulating the Coulombic system, fluctuations in the winding of charges around the torus are shown to turn on at the BKT transition temperature. These topological-sector fluctuations in the electric field therefore signal the high-temperature phase of the transition.It is then shown that the effective critical exponent of Bramwell-Holdsworth (BH) theory can be measured in superfluid 4He films, which correspond to effective Coulomb gases in the limit of large but finite system size. With the Coulombic system taken as the base BKT system, it is inferred that BH theory is a general property of BKT systems.
Abstract In this paper, we thoroughly examined the Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless (BKT) phase transition in the two-dimensional XY model on the honeycomb lattice. To address its thermodynamical behavior, we combined standard numerical Monte Carlo simulations with the simulated annealing (SA) protocol and entropic simulations based on the Wang-Landau (WL) algorithm. The transition temperature was determined using the second (ϒ) and fourth-order (ϒ4) helicity modulus as the order parameter. Our best finite-size scaling analysis suggests T BKT = 0.575(8) from SA and T BKT = 0.576(3) from WL. These values deviate significantly from the expected theoretical value of 1 / 2 . We believe that this discrepancy suggests that the theoretical assumptions regarding the analytical calculation may need to be revisited. Additionally, we calculated the vortex density and the formation energy of the vortex-antivortex pairs, where the obtained vortex formation energy is 2μ = 5.80(12). Upon comparison with the square lattice, our results support the notion of instability of the honeycomb lattice to support the spin long-range order and give additional backing to the critical behavior we found.
The Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless (BKT) transition is the prototype of a phase transition driven by the formation and interaction of topological defects in two-dimensional (2D) systems. In typical models these are vortices: above a transition temperature TBKTT_{\rm BKT}TBKT​ vortices are free, below this transition temperature they get confined. In this work we extend the concept of BKT transition to quantum systems in two dimensions. In particular, we demonstrate that a zero-temperature quantum BKT phase transition, driven by a coupling constant can occur in 2D models governed by an effective gauge field theory with a diverging dielectric constant. One particular example is that of a compact U(1) gauge theory with a diverging dielectric constant, where the quantum BKT transition is induced by non-relativistic, purely 2D magnetic monopoles, which can be viewed also as electric vortices. These quantum BKT transitions have the same diverging exponent zzz as the quantum Griffiths transition but have nothing to do with disorder.
The Berezinskii–Kosterlitz–Thouless (BKT) transition is the prototype of a phase transition driven by the formation and interaction of topological defects in two-dimensional (2D) systems. In typical models, these are vortices: above a transition temperature TBKT, vortices are free; below this transition temperature, they get confined. In this work, we extend the concept of BKT transition to quantum systems in two dimensions. In particular, we demonstrate that a zero-temperature quantum BKT phase transition driven by a coupling constant can occur in 2D models governed by an effective gauge field theory with a diverging dielectric constant. One particular example is that of a compact U(1) gauge theory with a diverging dielectric constant, where the quantum BKT transition is induced by non-relativistic, purely 2D magnetic monopoles, which can be viewed also as electric vortices. These quantum BKT transitions have the same diverging exponent z as the quantum Griffiths transition but are not related to disorder.