Pronounced minimum of the thermodynamic Casimir forces of O(n{\bf n}) symmetric film systems: Analytic theory

Thermodynamic Casimir forces of film systems in the O$(n)$ universality classes with Dirichlet boundary conditions are studied below bulk criticality. Substantial progress is achieved in resolving the long-standing problem of describing analytically the pronounced minimum of the scaling function observed experimentally in $^4$He films $(n=2)$ by R. Garcia and M.H.W. Chan, Phys. Rev. Lett. ${\bf 83}, 1187 \;(1999)$ and in Monte Carlo simulations for the three-dimensional Ising model ($n=1$) by O. Vasilyev et al., EPL ${\bf 80}, 60009 \;(2007)$. Our finite-size renormalization-group approach yields excellent agreement with the depth and the position of the minimum for $n=1$ and semiquantitative agreement with the minimum for $n=2$. Our theory also predicts a pronounced minimum for the $n=3$ Heisenberg universality class.Comment: 1 figur

Critical Casimir force in slab geometry with finite aspect ratio: analytic calculation above and below TcT_c

We present a field-theoretic study of the critical Casimir force of the Ising universality class in a $d$-dimensional ${L_\parallel^{d-1} \times L}$ slab geometry with a finite aspect ratio $\rho = L/L_\parallel$ above, at, and below $T_c$. The result of a perturbation approach at fixed dimension $d=3$ is presented that describes the dependence on the aspect ratio in the range $\rho \gtrsim 1/4$. Our analytic result for the Casimir force scaling function for $\rho = 1/4$ agrees well with recent Monte Carlo data for the three-dimensional Ising model in slab geometry with periodic boundary conditions above, at, and below $T_c$.Comment: 4 figure

Finite-size effects on the thermal conductivity of ^4He near T_\lambda

We present results of a renormalization-group calculation of the thermal conductivity of confined $\rm^4$He in a $L^2 \times \infty$ geometry above and at $T_\lambda$ within model F with Dirichlet boundary conditions for the order parameter. We assume a heat flow parallel to the boundaries which implies Neumann boundary conditions for the entropy density. No adjustable parameters other than those known from bulk theory and static finite-size theory are used. Our theoretical results are compared with experimental data by Kahn and Ahlers.Comment: 2 pages, 2 figure

Implicitization of Bihomogeneous Parametrizations of Algebraic Surfaces via Linear Syzygies

We show that the implicit equation of a surface in 3-dimensional projective space parametrized by bi-homogeneous polynomials of bi-degree (d,d), for a given positive integer d, can be represented and computed from the linear syzygies of its parametrization if the base points are isolated and form locally a complete intersection

Crossover from Goldstone to critical fluctuations: Casimir forces in confined O(n){\bf(n)} symmetric systems

We study the crossover between thermodynamic Casimir forces arising from long-range fluctuations due to Goldstone modes and those arising from critical fluctuations. Both types of forces exist in the low-temperature phase of O$(n)$ symmetric systems for $n>1$ in a $d$-dimensional ${L_\parallel^{d-1} \times L}$ slab geometry with a finite aspect ratio $\rho = L/L_\parallel$. Our finite-size renormalization-group treatment for periodic boundary conditions describes the entire crossover from the Goldstone regime with a nonvanishing constant tail of the finite-size scaling function far below $T_c$ up to the region far above $T_c$ including the critical regime with a minimum of the scaling function slightly below $T_c$. Our analytic result for $\rho \ll 1$ agrees well with Monte Carlo data for the three-dimensional XY model. A quantitative prediction is given for the crossover of systems in the Heisenberg universality class.Comment: 2 figure

Non-universal critical Casimir force in confined 4^4He near the superfluid transition

We present the results of a one-loop calculation of the effect of a van der Waals type interaction potential $\sim | {\bf x} |^{-d-\sigma}$ on the critical Casimir force and specific heat of confined $^4$He near the superfluid transition. We consider a $^4$He film of thickness $L$. In the region $L \gtrsim \xi$ (correlation length) we find that the van der Waals interaction causes a leading non-universal non-scaling contribution of $O (\xi^2 L^{-d-\sigma})$ to the critical temperature dependence of the Casimir force above $T_\lambda$ that dominates the universal scaling contribution $\sim e^{- L/\xi}$ predicted by earlier theories. For the specific heat we find subleading non-scaling contributions of $O(L^{-1})$ and $O(L^{-d-\sigma})$.Comment: 2 pages, submitted to LT23 Proceedings on June 14, 2002, accepted for publication in Physica B on September 12, 200

Violation of Finite-Size Scaling in Three Dimensions

We reexamine the range of validity of finite-size scaling in the $\phi^4$ lattice model and the $\phi^4$ field theory below four dimensions. We show that general renormalization-group arguments based on the renormalizability of the $\phi^4$ theory do not rule out the possibility of a violation of finite-size scaling due to a finite lattice constant and a finite cutoff. For a confined geometry of linear size $L$ with periodic boundary conditions we analyze the approach towards bulk critical behavior as $L \to \infty$ at fixed $\xi$ for $T > T_c$ where $\xi$ is the bulk correlation length. We show that for this analysis ordinary renormalized perturbation theory is sufficient. On the basis of one-loop results and of exact results in the spherical limit we find that finite-size scaling is violated for both the $\phi^4$ lattice model and the $\phi^4$ field theory in the region $L \gg \xi$. The non-scaling effects in the field theory and in the lattice model differ significantly from each other.Comment: LaTex, 51 page

Minimal renormalization without \epsilon-expansion: Three-loop amplitude functions of the O(n) symmetric \phi^4 model in three dimensions below T_c

We present an analytic three-loop calculation for thermodynamic quantities of the O(n) symmetric \phi^4 theory below T_c within the minimal subtraction scheme at fixed dimension d=3. Goldstone singularities arising at an intermediate stage in the calculation of O(n) symmetric quantities cancel among themselves leaving a finite result in the limit of zero external field. From the free energy we calculate the three-loop terms of the amplitude functions f_phi, F+ and F- of the order parameter and the specific heat above and below T_c, respectively, without using the \epsilon=4-d expansion. A Borel resummation for the case n=2 yields resummed amplitude functions f_phi and F- that are slightly larger than the one-loop results. Accurate knowledge of these functions is needed for testing the renormalization-group prediction of critical-point universality along the \lambda-line of superfluid He(4). Combining the three-loop result for F- with a recent five-loop calculation of the additive renormalization constant of the specific heat yields excellent agreement between the calculated and measured universal amplitude ratio A+/A- of the specific heat of He(4). In addition we use our result for f_phi to calculate the universal combination R_C of the amplitudes of the order parameter, the susceptibility and the specific heat for n=2 and n=3. Our Borel-resummed three-loop result for R_C is significantly more accurate than the previous result obtained from the \epsilon-expansion up to O(\epsilon^2).Comment: 29 pages LaTeX including 3 PostScript figures, to appear in Nucl. Phys. B [FS] (1998