An Importance Sampling Algorithm for the Ising Model with Strong Couplings

We consider the problem of estimating the partition function of the ferromagnetic Ising model in a consistent external magnetic field. The estimation is done via importance sampling in the dual of the Forney factor graph representing the model. Emphasis is on models at low temperature (corresponding to models with strong couplings) and on models with a mixture of strong and weak coupling parameters.Comment: Proc. 2016 Int. Zurich Seminar on Communications (IZS), Zurich, Switzerland, March 2-4, 2016, pp. 180-18

Exact Potts Model Partition Functions on Strips of the Honeycomb Lattice

We present exact calculations of the partition function of the $q$-state Potts model on (i) open, (ii) cyclic, and (iii) M\"obius strips of the honeycomb (brick) lattice of width $L_y=2$ and arbitrarily great length. In the infinite-length limit the thermodynamic properties are discussed. The continuous locus of singularities of the free energy is determined in the $q$ plane for fixed temperature and in the complex temperature plane for fixed $q$ values. We also give exact calculations of the zero-temperature partition function (chromatic polynomial) and $W(q)$, the exponent of the ground-state entropy, for the Potts antiferromagnet for honeycomb strips of type (iv) $L_y=3$, cyclic, (v) $L_y=3$, M\"obius, (vi) $L_y=4$, cylindrical, and (vii) $L_y=4$, open. In the infinite-length limit we calculate $W(q)$ and determine the continuous locus of points where it is nonanalytic. We show that our exact calculation of the entropy for the $L_y=4$ strip with cylindrical boundary conditions provides an extremely accurate approximation, to a few parts in $10^5$ for moderate $q$ values, to the entropy for the full 2D honeycomb lattice (where the latter is determined by Monte Carlo measurements since no exact analytic form is known).Comment: 48 pages, latex, with encapsulated postscript figure

Dynamic Critical Behavior of a Swendsen-Wang-Type Algorithm for the Ashkin-Teller Model

We study the dynamic critical behavior of a Swendsen-Wang-type algorithm for the Ashkin--Teller model. We find that the Li--Sokal bound on the autocorrelation time ($\tau_{{\rm int},{\cal E}} \ge {\rm const} \times C_H$) holds along the self-dual curve of the symmetric Ashkin--Teller model, and is almost but not quite sharp. The ratio $\tau_{{\rm int},{\cal E}} / C_H$ appears to tend to infinity either as a logarithm or as a small power ($0.05 \leq p \leq 0.12$). In an appendix we discuss the problem of extracting estimates of the exponential autocorrelation time.Comment: 59 pages including 3 figures, uuencoded g-compressed ps file. Postscript size = 799740 byte

Four-point boundary connectivities in critical two-dimensional percolation from conformal invariance

We conjecture an exact form for an universal ratio of four-point cluster connectivities in the critical two-dimensional $Q$-color Potts model. We also provide analogous results for the limit $Q\rightarrow 1$ that corresponds to percolation where the observable has a logarithmic singularity. Our conjectures are tested against Monte Carlo simulations showing excellent agreement for $Q=1,2,3$.Comment: 29 pages, 9 Figures. Published version: improved discussion, additional numerical tests and reference

A critical Ising model on the Labyrinth

A zero-field Ising model with ferromagnetic coupling constants on the so-called Labyrinth tiling is investigated. Alternatively, this can be regarded as an Ising model on a square lattice with a quasi-periodic distribution of up to eight different coupling constants. The duality transformation on this tiling is considered and the self-dual couplings are determined. Furthermore, we analyze the subclass of exactly solvable models in detail parametrizing the coupling constants in terms of four rapidity parameters. For those, the self-dual couplings correspond to the critical points which, as expected, belong to the Onsager universality class.Comment: 25 pages, 6 figure

Thin Fisher Zeroes

Biskup et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 84 (2000) 4794] have recently suggested that the loci of partition function zeroes can profitably be regarded as phase boundaries in the complex temperature or field planes. We obtain the Fisher zeroes for Ising and Potts models on non-planar (``thin'') regular random graphs using this approach, and note that the locus of Fisher zeroes on a Bethe lattice is identical to the corresponding random graph. Since the number of states appears as a parameter in the Potts solution the limiting locus of chromatic zeroes is also accessible.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figure

Invaded cluster algorithm for critical properties of periodic and aperiodic planar Ising models

We demonstrate that the invaded cluster algorithm, recently introduced by Machta et al, is a fast and reliable tool for determining the critical temperature and the magnetic critical exponent of periodic and aperiodic ferromagnetic Ising models in two dimensions. The algorithm is shown to reproduce the known values of the critical temperature on various periodic and quasiperiodic graphs with an accuracy of more than three significant digits. On two quasiperiodic graphs which were not investigated in this respect before, the twelvefold symmetric square-triangle tiling and the tenfold symmetric T\"ubingen triangle tiling, we determine the critical temperature. Furthermore, a generalization of the algorithm to non-identical coupling strengths is presented and applied to a class of Ising models on the Labyrinth tiling. For generic cases in which the heuristic Harris-Luck criterion predicts deviations from the Onsager universality class, we find a magnetic critical exponent different from the Onsager value. But also notable exceptions to the criterion are found which consist not only of the exactly solvable cases, in agreement with a recent exact result, but also of the self-dual ones and maybe more.Comment: 15 pages, 5 figures; v2: Fig. 5b replaced, minor change

Susceptibility amplitude ratios in the two-dimensional Potts model and percolation

The high-temperature susceptibility of the $q$-state Potts model behaves as $\Gamma|T-T_c|^{-\gamma}$ as $T\to T_c+$, while for $T\to T_c-$ one may define both longitudinal and transverse susceptibilities, with the same power law but different amplitudes $\Gamma_L$ and $\Gamma_T$. We extend a previous analytic calculation of the universal ratio $\Gamma/\Gamma_L$ in two dimensions to the low-temperature ratio $\Gamma_T/\Gamma_L$, and test both predictions with Monte Carlo simulations for $q=3$ and 4. The data for $q=4$ are inconclusive owing to large corrections to scaling, while for $q=3$ they appear consistent with the prediction for $\Gamma_T/\Gamma_L$, but not with that for $\Gamma/\Gamma_L$. A simple extrapolation of our analytic results to $q\to1$ indicates a similar discrepancy with the corresponding measured quantities in percolation. We point out that stronger assumptions were made in the derivation of the ratio $\Gamma/\Gamma_L$, and our work suggests that these may be unjustified.Comment: 17 pages, late