Finite-size effects in layered magnetic systems

Abstract

Thermal and magnetic effects in a system consisting of thin layers of coupled Ising spins with $S=1/2$ and $S=1$ are considered. The specific heat and the correlation length display maxima at two different temperatures. It is discussed in what sense these maxima can be interpreted as a finite-size rounding of a thermodynamic singularity associated with a phase transition. The connection with ordinary, extraordinary and special surface phase transitions is made. In $2D$, the surface critical exponents are calculated from conformal invariance. The bulk and surface finite-size scaling of the order parameter profiles at the transition points is discussed. In $2D$, an exact scaling function for the profiles is suggested through conformal invariance arguments for the (extra)ordinary transition.

13 pages, Revtex, with 9 eps figures

References in corpus (4)

• Defect Lines in the Ising Model and Boundary States on Orbifolds
• Near-Surface Long-Range Order at the Ordinary Transition
• Conformal invariance and linear defects in the two-dimensional Ising model
• Finite-Size Scaling and Universality in the Spin 1 Quantum XY Chain

Cited by in corpus (8)

• Boundary conformal field theory approach to the two-dimensional critical Ising model with a defect line
• Critical phenomena at perfect and non-perfect surfaces
• Off-Diagonal Density Profiles and Conformal Invariance
• Monte Carlo simulation of the irreversible growth of magnetic thin films
• A Monte Carlo method for critical systems in infinite volume: the planar Ising model
• Study of Damage Propagation at the Interface Localization-Delocalization Transition of the Confined Ising Model
• Conformal off-diagonal boundary density profiles on a semi-infinite strip
• Order-disorder criticality, wetting, and morphological phase transitions in the irreversible growth of far-from-equilibrium magnetic films