Introduction to Conformal Invariance and Its Applications to Critical Phenomena

Introduction to Conformal Invariance and Its Applications to Critical Phenomena PDF Author: Philippe Christe
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 3540475753
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 260

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Book Description
The history of critical phenomena goes back to the year 1869 when Andrews discovered the critical point of carbon dioxide, located at about 31°C and 73 atmospheres pressure. In the neighborhood ofthis point the carbon dioxide was observed to become opalescent, that is, light is strongly scattered. This is nowadays interpreted as comingfrom the strong fluctuations of the system close to the critical point. Subsequently, a wide varietyofphysicalsystems were realized to display critical points as well. Ofparticular importance was the observation of a critical point in ferromagnetic iron by Curie. Further examples include multicomponent fluids and alloys, superfluids, superconductors, polymers and may even extend to the quark-gluon plasmaand the early universe as a whole. Early theoretical investigationstried to reduce the problem to a very small number of degrees of freedom, such as the van der Waals equation and mean field approximations and culminating in Landau's general theory of critical phenomena. In a dramatic development, Onsager's exact solutionofthe two-dimensional Ising model made clear the important role of the critical fluctuations. Their role was taken into account in the subsequent developments leading to the scaling theories of critical phenomena and the renormalization group. These developements have achieved a precise description of the close neighborhood of the critical point and results are often in good agreement with experiments. In contrast to the general understanding a century ago, the presence of fluctuations on all length scales at a critical point is today emphasized.

Introduction to Conformal Invariance and Its Applications to Critical Phenomena

Introduction to Conformal Invariance and Its Applications to Critical Phenomena PDF Author: Philippe Christe
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 3540475753
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 260

Get Book

Book Description
The history of critical phenomena goes back to the year 1869 when Andrews discovered the critical point of carbon dioxide, located at about 31°C and 73 atmospheres pressure. In the neighborhood ofthis point the carbon dioxide was observed to become opalescent, that is, light is strongly scattered. This is nowadays interpreted as comingfrom the strong fluctuations of the system close to the critical point. Subsequently, a wide varietyofphysicalsystems were realized to display critical points as well. Ofparticular importance was the observation of a critical point in ferromagnetic iron by Curie. Further examples include multicomponent fluids and alloys, superfluids, superconductors, polymers and may even extend to the quark-gluon plasmaand the early universe as a whole. Early theoretical investigationstried to reduce the problem to a very small number of degrees of freedom, such as the van der Waals equation and mean field approximations and culminating in Landau's general theory of critical phenomena. In a dramatic development, Onsager's exact solutionofthe two-dimensional Ising model made clear the important role of the critical fluctuations. Their role was taken into account in the subsequent developments leading to the scaling theories of critical phenomena and the renormalization group. These developements have achieved a precise description of the close neighborhood of the critical point and results are often in good agreement with experiments. In contrast to the general understanding a century ago, the presence of fluctuations on all length scales at a critical point is today emphasized.

Conformal Invariance and Critical Phenomena

Conformal Invariance and Critical Phenomena PDF Author: Malte Henkel
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 3662039370
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 433

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Book Description
Critical phenomena arise in a wide variety of physical systems. Classi cal examples are the liquid-vapour critical point or the paramagnetic ferromagnetic transition. Further examples include multicomponent fluids and alloys, superfluids, superconductors, polymers and fully developed tur bulence and may even extend to the quark-gluon plasma and the early uni verse as a whole. Early theoretical investigators tried to reduce the problem to a very small number of degrees of freedom, such as the van der Waals equation and mean field approximations, culminating in Landau's general theory of critical phenomena. Nowadays, it is understood that the common ground for all these phenomena lies in the presence of strong fluctuations of infinitely many coupled variables. This was made explicit first through the exact solution of the two-dimensional Ising model by Onsager. Systematic subsequent developments have been leading to the scaling theories of critical phenomena and the renormalization group which allow a precise description of the close neighborhood of the critical point, often in good agreement with experiments. In contrast to the general understanding a century ago, the presence of fluctuations on all length scales at a critical point is emphasized today. This can be briefly summarized by saying that at a critical point a system is scale invariant. In addition, conformal invaTiance permits also a non-uniform, local rescal ing, provided only that angles remain unchanged.

Introduction to Conformal Invariance and Its Applications to Critical Phenomena

Introduction to Conformal Invariance and Its Applications to Critical Phenomena PDF Author: Philippe Christe
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Conformal invariants
Languages : en
Pages : 260

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Book Description


Conformal Invariance: an Introduction to Loops, Interfaces and Stochastic Loewner Evolution

Conformal Invariance: an Introduction to Loops, Interfaces and Stochastic Loewner Evolution PDF Author: Malte Henkel
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 3642279341
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 200

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Book Description
Conformal invariance has been a spectacularly successful tool in advancing our understanding of the two-dimensional phase transitions found in classical systems at equilibrium. This volume sharpens our picture of the applications of conformal invariance, introducing non-local observables such as loops and interfaces before explaining how they arise in specific physical contexts. It then shows how to use conformal invariance to determine their properties. Moving on to cover key conceptual developments in conformal invariance, the book devotes much of its space to stochastic Loewner evolution (SLE), detailing SLE’s conceptual foundations as well as extensive numerical tests. The chapters then elucidate SLE’s use in geometric phase transitions such as percolation or polymer systems, paying particular attention to surface effects. As clear and accessible as it is authoritative, this publication is as suitable for non-specialist readers and graduate students alike.

Conformal Invariance And Applications To Statistical Mechanics

Conformal Invariance And Applications To Statistical Mechanics PDF Author: C Itzykson
Publisher: World Scientific
ISBN: 9814507598
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 992

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Book Description
This volume contains Introductory Notes and major reprints on conformal field theory and its applications to 2-dimensional statistical mechanics of critical phenomena. The subject relates to many different areas in contemporary physics and mathematics, including string theory, integrable systems, representations of infinite Lie algebras and automorphic functions.

Conformal Invariance

Conformal Invariance PDF Author:
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 9783642279355
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 208

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Book Description


Conformal Field Theory

Conformal Field Theory PDF Author: Philippe Francesco
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 1461222567
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 908

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Book Description
Filling an important gap in the literature, this comprehensive text develops conformal field theory from first principles. The treatment is self-contained, pedagogical, and exhaustive, and includes a great deal of background material on quantum field theory, statistical mechanics, Lie algebras and affine Lie algebras. The many exercises, with a wide spectrum of difficulty and subjects, complement and in many cases extend the text. The text is thus not only an excellent tool for classroom teaching but also for individual study. Intended primarily for graduate students and researchers in theoretical high-energy physics, mathematical physics, condensed matter theory, statistical physics, the book will also be of interest in other areas of theoretical physics and mathematics. It will prepare the reader for original research in this very active field of theoretical and mathematical physics.

Scaling and Renormalization in Statistical Physics

Scaling and Renormalization in Statistical Physics PDF Author: John Cardy
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521499590
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 264

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Book Description
This text provides a thoroughly modern graduate-level introduction to the theory of critical behaviour. It begins with a brief review of phase transitions in simple systems, then goes on to introduce the core ideas of the renormalisation group.

String Theory Research Progress

String Theory Research Progress PDF Author: Ferenc N. Balogh
Publisher: Nova Publishers
ISBN: 9781604560756
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 246

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Book Description
String theory is a model of fundamental physics whose building blocks are one-dimensional extended objects called strings, rather than the zero-dimensional point particles that form the basis for the standard model of particle physics. The phrase is often used as shorthand for Superstring theory, as well as related theories such as M-theory. By replacing the point-like particles with strings, an apparently consistent quantum theory of gravity emerges. Moreover, it may be possible to 'unify' the known natural forces (gravitational, electromagnetic, weak nuclear and strong nuclear) by describing them with the same set of equations. Studies of string theory have revealed that it predicts higher-dimensional objects called branes. String theory strongly suggests the existence of ten or eleven (in M-theory) space-time dimensions, as opposed to the usual four (three spatial and one temporal) used in relativity theory.

Perspectives on Solvable Models

Perspectives on Solvable Models PDF Author: Uwe Grimm
Publisher: World Scientific
ISBN: 9814501042
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 308

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Book Description
This volume consists of a collection of recent research articles dedicated to Vladimir Rittenberg on the occasion of his 60th birthday. Various aspects of solvable models in different areas of theoretical and mathematical physics are covered. Particular topics include diffusion, self-organized criticality, classical and quantum spin chains, two-dimensional lattice models, quantum algebras, and conformal field theory. The list of contributing authors contains altogether 34 names, including among others, Baxter, Cardy, Itzykson, Martin, McCoy, Nahm, Pearce and de Vega. Contents:PrefaceExact Steady States of Asymmetric Diffusion and Two-Species Annihilation with Back Reaction from the Ground State of Quantum Spin Models (F C Alcaraz)Schrödinger Invariance in Discrete Stochastic Systems (M Henkel & G Schütz)Exact Thermostatic Results for the n-Vector Model on the Harmonic Chain (G Junker & H Leschke)Non-Hermitian Tricriticality in the Blume-Capel Model with Imaginary Field (G von Gehlen)Fusion of A–D–E Lattice Models (Y-K Zhou & P A Pearce)A Critical Ising Model on the Labyrinth (M Baake et al.)Quantum Superspin Chains (T H Baker & P D Jarvis)q-Deformations of Quantum Spin Chains with Exact Valence-Bond Ground States (M T Batchelor & C M Yung)The Tensor Product of Tensor Operators Over Quantum Algebras: Some Applications to Quantum Spin Chains (M Scheunert)Infinite Families of Gauge-Equivalent R-Matrices and Gradations of Quantized Affine Algebras (A J Bracken et al.)Sigma Models with (2,2) World Sheet Supersymmetry (F Delduc & E Sokatchev)and other papers Readership: Theoretical physicists. keywords: