6 research outputs found
Patch-repetition correlation length in glassy systems
We obtain the patch-repetition entropy Sigma within the Random First Order
Transition theory (RFOT) and for the square plaquette system, a model related
to the dynamical facilitation theory of glassy dynamics. We find that in both
cases the entropy of patches of linear size l, Sigma(l), scales as s_c l^d+A
l^{d-1} down to length-scales of the order of one, where A is a positive
constant, s_c is the configurational entropy density and d the spatial
dimension. In consequence, the only meaningful length that can be defined from
patch-repetition is the cross-over length xi=A/s_c. We relate xi to the typical
length-scales already discussed in the literature and show that it is always of
the order of the largest static length. Our results provide new insights, which
are particularly relevant for RFOT theory, on the possible real space structure
of super-cooled liquids. They suggest that this structure differs from a mosaic
of different patches having roughly the same size.Comment: 6 page
Order in glassy systems
A directly measurable correlation length may be defined for systems having a
two-step relaxation, based on the geometric properties of density profile that
remains after averaging out the fast motion. We argue that the length diverges
if and when the slow timescale diverges, whatever the microscopic mechanism at
the origin of the slowing down. Measuring the length amounts to determining
explicitly the complexity from the observed particle configurations. One may
compute in the same way the Renyi complexities K_q, their relative behavior for
different q characterizes the mechanism underlying the transition. In
particular, the 'Random First Order' scenario predicts that in the glass phase
K_q=0 for q>x, and K_q>0 for q<x, with x the Parisi parameter. The hypothesis
of a nonequilibrium effective temperature may also be directly tested directly
from configurations.Comment: Typos corrected, clarifications adde
The statistics of diffusive flux
We calculate the explicit probability distribution function for the flux
between sites in a simple discrete time diffusive system composed of
independent random walkers. We highlight some of the features of the
distribution and we discuss its relation to the local instantaneous entropy
production in the system. Our results are applicable both to equilibrium and
non-equilibrium steady states as well as for certain time dependent situations.Comment: 12 pages, 1 figur
Order in extremal trajectories
Given a chaotic dynamical system and a time interval in which some quantity
takes an unusually large average value, what can we say of the trajectory that
yields this deviation? As an example, we study the trajectories of the
archetypical chaotic system, the baker's map. We show that, out of all
irregular trajectories, a large-deviation requirement selects (isolated) orbits
that are periodic or quasiperiodic. We discuss what the relevance of this
calculation may be for dynamical systems and for glasses
Nonequilibrium Steady States of Matrix Product Form: A Solver's Guide
We consider the general problem of determining the steady state of stochastic
nonequilibrium systems such as those that have been used to model (among other
things) biological transport and traffic flow. We begin with a broad overview
of this class of driven diffusive systems - which includes exclusion processes
- focusing on interesting physical properties, such as shocks and phase
transitions. We then turn our attention specifically to those models for which
the exact distribution of microstates in the steady state can be expressed in a
matrix product form. In addition to a gentle introduction to this matrix
product approach, how it works and how it relates to similar constructions that
arise in other physical contexts, we present a unified, pedagogical account of
the various means by which the statistical mechanical calculations of
macroscopic physical quantities are actually performed. We also review a number
of more advanced topics, including nonequilibrium free energy functionals, the
classification of exclusion processes involving multiple particle species,
existence proofs of a matrix product state for a given model and more
complicated variants of the matrix product state that allow various types of
parallel dynamics to be handled. We conclude with a brief discussion of open
problems for future research.Comment: 127 pages, 31 figures, invited topical review for J. Phys. A (uses
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