The random-field Ising model (RFIM), one of the basic models for quenched disorder, can be studied numerically with the help of efficient ground-state algorithms. In this study, we extend these algorithm by various methods in order to analyze low-energy excitations for the three-dimensional RFIM with Gaussian distributed disorder that appear in the form of clusters of connected spins. We analyze several properties of these clusters. Our results support the validity of the droplet-model description for the RFIM.
In random quantum magnets, like the random transverse Ising chain, the low energy excitations are localized in rare regions and there are only weak correlations between them. It is a fascinating question whether these correlations are completely irrelevant in the sense of the renormalization group. To answer this question, we calculate the distribution of the excitation energy of the random transverse Ising chain in the disordered Griffiths phase with high numerical precision by the strong disorder renormalization group method and - for shorter chains - by free-fermion techniques. Asymptotical…
The interplay of correlated spatial modulation and symmetry breaking leads to quantum critical phenomena intermediate between those of the clean and randomly disordered cases. By performing a detailed analytic and numerical case study of the quasi-periodically (QP) modulated transverse field Ising chain, we provide evidence for the conjectures of Ref. [Crowley et. al. 2018] regarding the QP-Ising universality class. In the generic case, we confirm that the logarithmic wandering coefficient $w$ governs both the macroscopic critical exponents and the energy-dependent localisation length of the c…
We consider 2D random Ising ferromagnetic models, where quenched disorder is represented either by random local magnetic fields (Random Field Ising Model) or by a random distribution of interaction couplings (Random Bond Ising Model). In both cases we first perform zero- and finite-temperature Monte-Carlo simulations to determine how the critical temperature depends on the disorder parameter. We then focus on the reversal transition triggered by an external field, and study the associated Barkhausen noise. Our main result is that the critical exponents characterizing the power-law associated w…
We present a complementary estimation of the critical exponent $α$ of the specific heat of the 5D random-field Ising model from zero-temperature numerical simulations. Our result $α= 0.12(2)$ is consistent with the estimation coming from the modified hyperscaling relation and provides additional evidence in favor of the recently proposed restoration of dimensional reduction in the random-field Ising model at $D = 5$.
We investigate the transverse field Ising model subject to a two-step periodic driving protocol and quasiperiodic modulation of the Ising couplings. Analytical results on the phase boundaries associated with Majorana edge modes and numerical results on the localization of single-particle excitations are presented. The implication of a region with fully localized domain-wall-like excitations in the parameter space is eigenstate order and exact spectral pairing of Floquet eigenstates, based on which we conclude the existence of time crystals. We also examine various correlation functions of the …
We study a quantum spin-1/2 chain that is dual to the canonical problem of non-equilibrium Kawasaki dynamics of a classical Ising chain coupled to a thermal bath. The Hamiltonian is obtained for the general disordered case with non-uniform Ising couplings. The quantum spin chain (dubbed Ising-Kawasaki) is stoquastic, and depends on the Ising couplings normalized by the bath's temperature. We give its exact ground states. Proceeding with uniform couplings, we study the one- and two-magnon excitations. Solutions for the latter are derived via a Bethe Ansatz scheme. In the antiferromagnetic regim…
The Ising spin glass in two dimensions exhibits rich behavior with subtle differences in the scaling for different coupling distributions. We use recently developed mappings to graph-theoretic problems together with highly efficient implementations of combinatorial optimization algorithms to determine exact ground states for systems on square lattices with up to $10\,000\times 10\,000$ spins. While these mappings only work for planar graphs, for example for systems with periodic boundary conditions in at most one direction, we suggest here an iterative windowing technique that allows one to de…
A lot of progress has been made recently in our understanding of the random-field Ising model thanks to large-scale numerical simulations. In particular, it has been shown that, contrary to previous statements: the critical exponents for different probability distributions of the random fields and for diluted antiferromagnets in a field are the same. Therefore, critical universality, which is a perturbative renormalization-group prediction, holds beyond the validity regime of perturbation theory. Most notably, dimensional reduction is restored at five dimensions, i.e., the exponents of the ran…
The pairwise maximum entropy model, also known as the Ising model, has been widely used to analyze the collective activity of neurons. However, controversy persists in the literature about seemingly inconsistent findings, whose significance is unclear due to lack of reliable error estimates. We therefore develop a method for accurately estimating parameter uncertainty based on random walks in parameter space using adaptive Markov Chain Monte Carlo after the convergence of the main optimization algorithm. We apply our method to the spiking patterns of excitatory and inhibitory neurons recorded …
This chapter introduces a variety of spin glass models, beyond the simple Sherrington-Kirkpatrick (SK) version, that have led to enriched understanding and application.