Phase diagrams of a spin-1 Ising system with competing short- and long-range interactions.

We have studied the phase diagrams of the one-dimensional spin-1 Blume-Capel model with anisotropy constant D, in which equivalent-neighbor ferromagnetic interactions of strength -J are superimposed on nearest-neighbor antiferromagnetic interactions of strength K. A rich critical behavior is found due to the competing interactions. At zero temperature two ordered phases exist in the D/J-K/J plane, namely the ferromagnetic (F) and the antiferromagnetic one (AF). For lower values of D/J(D/J<0.25) these two ordered phases are separated by the point K_{c}=0.25J. For 0.250.5, only phases AF and F exist and are separated by a line given by D/J=K/J. At finite temperatures, we found that the ferromagnetic region of the phase diagram in the k_{B}T/J-D/J plane is enriched by another ferromagnetic phase F^{^{'}} above a first-order line for 0.195

Magnetization plateaus in the antiferromagnetic Ising chain with single-ion anisotropy and quenched disorder.

We have studied the presence of plateaus on the low-temperature magnetization of an antiferromagnetic spin-1 chain, as an external uniform magnetic field is varied. A crystal-field interaction is present in the model and the exchange constants follow a random quenched (Bernoulli or Gaussian) distribution. Using a transfer-matrix technique we calculate the largest Lyapunov exponent and, from it, the magnetization at low temperatures as a function of the magnetic field, for different values of the crystal field and the width of the distributions. For the Bernoulli distribution, the number of plateaus increases, with respect to the uniform case [Litaiff et al., Solid State Commun. 147, 494 (2008)] and their presence can be linked to different ground states, when the magnetic field is varied. For the Gaussian distributions, the uniform scenario is maintained, for small widths, but the plateaus structure disappears as the width increases.

Order-disorder quantum phase transition in the quasi-one-dimensional spin-1/2 collinear antiferromagnetic Heisenberg model.

The ground-state properties of the quasi-one-dimensional spin-1/2 antiferromagnetic Heisenberg model is investigated by using a variational method. Spins on chains along the x direction are antiferromagnetically coupled with exchange J>0, while spins between chains in the y direction are coupled either ferromagnetically (J' < 0) or antiferromagnetically (J' > 0). The staggered and the colinear antiferromagnetic magnetizations are computed and their dependence on the anisotropy parameter λ=|J'|/J is analyzed. It is found that an infinitesimal interchain coupling parameter is sufficient to stabilize a long-range order with either a staggered magnetization m_{s} (J' > 0) or a colinear antiferromagnetic magnetization m_{caf} (J' < 0), both behaving as ≃λ¹/² for λ → 0.

Phase transitions in a three-dimensional kinetic spin-1/2 Ising model with random field: effective-field-theory study.

The dynamical phase transitions of the kinetic Ising model in the presence of a random magnetic field with a bimodal probability distribution is studied by using effective-field theory (EFT) with correlations. We have used a Glauber-type stochastic dynamic to describe the time evolution of the system, where the system strongly depends on the H≡√(c) root mean square deviation of the magnetic field. The EFT dynamic equation is given for the simple cubic lattice (z=6), and the dynamic order parameter is calculated. The system presents ferromagnetic and paramagnetic states for low and high temperatures, respectively. Our results predict first-order transitions at low temperatures and large disorder strengths, which corresponds to the existence of a nonequilibrium tricritical point (TCP) in a phase diagram in the T-H plane. We compare the results with the equilibrium phase diagram, where only the first-order line is different. Our qualitative results are compatible with recent Monte Carlo simulations.

The quantum spin-1/2 J1-J2 antiferromagnet on a stacked square lattice: a study of effective-field theory in a finite cluster.

The ground state phase diagram of the quantum spin-1/2 Heisenberg antiferromagnet in the presence of nearest-neighbor (J(1)) and next-nearest-neighbor (J(2)) interactions (J(1)-J(2) model) on a stacked square lattice, where we introduce an interlayer coupling through nearest-neighbor bonds of strength J(), is studied within the framework of the differential operator technique. The Hamiltonian is solved by effective-field theory in a cluster with N=4 spins (EFT-4). We obtain the sublattice magnetization m(A) for the ordered phases: antiferromagnetic (AF) and collinear (CAF-collinear antiferromagnetic). We propose a functional for the free energy Ψ(µ)(m(µ)) (µ=A, B) to obtain the phase diagram in the λ-α plane, where λ=J()/J(1) and α=J(2)/J(1). Depending on the values of λ and α, we found different ordered states (AF and CAF) and a disordered state (quantum paramagnetic (QP)). For an intermediate region α(1c)(λ) < α < α(2c)(λ) we observe a QP phase that disappears for λ below some critical value λ(1)≈0.67. For α < α(1c)(λ) and α > α(2c)(λ), and below λ(1), we have the AF and CAF semi-classically ordered states, respectively. At α=α(1c)(λ) a second-order transition between the AF and QP states occurs and at α=α(2c)(λ) a first-order transition between the AF and CAF phases takes place. The boundaries between these ordered phases merge at the critical end point CEP≡(λ(1), α(c)), where α(c)≈0.56. Above this CEP there is again a direct first-order transition between the AF and CAF phases, with a behavior described by the point α(c) independent of λ ≥ λ(1).

Anisotropic Heisenberg model on hierarchical lattices with aperiodic interactions: a renormalization-group approach.

Using a real-space renormalization-group approximation, we study the anisotropic quantum Heisenberg model on hierarchical lattices, with interactions following aperiodic sequences. Three different sequences are considered, with relevant and irrelevant fluctuations, according to the Luck-Harris criterion. The phase diagram is discussed as a function of the anisotropy parameter Delta (such that Delta=0 and 1 correspond to the isotropic Heisenberg and Ising models, respectively). We find three different types of phase diagrams, with general characteristics: the isotropic Heisenberg plane is always an invariant one (as expected by symmetry arguments) and the critical behavior of the anisotropic Heisenberg model is governed by fixed points on the Ising-model plane. Our results for the isotropic Heisenberg model show that the relevance or irrelevance of aperiodic models, when compared to their uniform counterpart, is as predicted by the Harris-Luck criterion. A low-temperature renormalization-group procedure was applied to the classical isotropic Heisenberg model in two-dimensional hierarchical lattices: the relevance criterion is obtained, again in accordance with the Harris-Luck criterion.

Three-dimensional Ising model with nearest- and next-nearest-neighbor interactions.

The phase diagram of the Ising model in the presence of nearest- and next-nearest-neighbor interactions on a simple cubic lattice is studied within the framework of the differential operator technique. The Hamiltonian is solved by employing an effective-field theory with finite clusters consisting of a pair of spins. A functional form is also proposed for the free energy, similar to the Landau expansion, in order to obtain the phase diagram of the model. The transition from the ferromagnetic (or antiferromagnetic) phase to the disordered paramagnetic phase is of second order. On the other hand, a first-order transition is obtained from the lamellar phase to the paramagnetic phase, as well as from the lamellar phase to the ferromagnetic (or antiferromagnetic) phase, with the presence of a critical end point. An expected singular behavior of the first-order line at the critical end point is also obtained.