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Unidirectional transports have been observed in two-dimensional systems, however, so far they have not been experimentally observed in three-dimensional bulk materials. In this theoretical work, we show that the recently discovered Weyl materials provide a platform for unidirectional transports inside bulk materials. With high experimental feasibility, a complex Dirac mass can be generated and manipulated in photonic Weyl crystals, creating unidirectionally propagating modes observable in transmission experiments. A possible realization in (electronic) Weyl semimetals is also studied. We show in a lattice model that, with a short-range interaction, the desired form of the Dirac mass can be spontaneously generated in a first-order transition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study off-equilibrium behaviors at first-order transitions (FOTs) driven by a time dependence of the temperature across the transition point Tc, such as the linear behavior T(t)/Tc = 1 ± t/ts where ts is a time scale. In particular, we investigate the possibility of nontrivial off-equilibrium scaling behaviors in the regime of slow changes, corresponding to large ts. We consider the two-dimensional Potts models, which provide an ideal theoretical laboratory to investigate issues related to FOTs driven by thermal fluctuations. We put forward general ansatzes for off-equilibrium scaling behaviors around the time t=0 corresponding to Tc. Then we present numerical results for the q=10 and 20 Potts models. We show that off-equilibrium scaling behaviors emerge at FOTs with relaxational dynamics, when appropriate boundary conditions are considered, such as mixed boundary conditions favoring different phases at the opposite sides of the system, which enforce an interface in the system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two-dimensional systems with U(1) symmetry exhibit a peculiar phase, i.e., the Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless (BKT) phase. In particular situations, the BKT phase exists as an intermediate-temperature phase. There have been scenarios for the phase transitions at the two end points of the intermediate BKT phase; i.e., the phase transition at the low-temperature end point is a BKT transition and that at the high-temperature end point is either a BKT transition or a first-order transition. The present study gives a novel scenario, i.e., a second-order transition with a new critical universality and a BKT transition. We found that this new phase transition is realized in spin-crossover systems on a triangular lattice with an antiferromagnetic short-range interaction. At the low-temperature transition the elastic interaction plays as a ferromagnetic infinite-range interaction and encourages the breaking of Z2 symmetry between high-spin-rich and low-spin-rich states. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Classical nucleation theory (CNT) is the most widely used framework to describe the early stage of first-order phase transitions. Unfortunately, the different points of view adopted to derive it yield different kinetic equations for the probability density function, e.g., Zeldovich-Frenkel or Becker-Döring-Tunitskii equations. Starting from a phenomenological stochastic differential equation, a unified equation is obtained in this work. In other words, CNT expressions are recovered by selecting one or another stochastic calculus. Moreover, it is shown that the unified CNT thus obtained produces the same Fokker-Planck equation as that from a recent update of CNT [J. F. Lutsko and M. A. Durán-Olivencia, J. Chem. Phys. 138, 244908 (2013)] when mass transport is governed by diffusion. Finally, we derive a general induction-time expression along with specific approximations of it to be used under different scenarios, in particular, when the mass-transport mechanism is governed by direct impingement, volume diffusion, surface diffusion, or interface transfer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the tricritical scaling behavior of the two-dimensional spin-1 Blume-Capel model by using the Wang-Landau method of measuring the joint density of states for lattice sizes up to 48 × 48 sites. We find that the specific heat deep in the first-order area of the phase diagram exhibits a double-peak structure of the Schottky-like anomaly appearing with the transition peak. The first-order transition curve is systematically determined by employing the method of field mixing in conjunction with finite-size scaling, showing a significant deviation from the previous data points. At the tricritical point, we characterize the tricritical exponents through finite-size-scaling analysis including the phenomenological finite-size scaling with thermodynamic variables. Our estimation of the tricritical eigenvalue exponents, yt = 1.804(5), yg = 0.80(1), and yh = 1.925 (3), provides the first Wang-Landau verification of the conjectured exact values, demonstrating the effectiveness of the density of- states-based approach in finite-size scaling study of multicritical phenomena. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multiplex networks (MNs) have become a platform of recent research in network sciences because networks in many real-world systems interact and function together. One of the main scientific issues in MNs is how the interdependence changes the emerging patterns or phase transitions. Until now, studies of such an issue have concentrated on cluster-breakdown phenomena, aiming to understand the resilience of the system under random failures of edges. These studies have revealed that various phase transition (PT) types emerge in MNs. However, such studies are rather limited to percolation-related problems, i.e., the limit q → 1 of the g-state Potts model. Thus, a systematic study of opinion formation in social networks with the effect of interdependence between different social communities, which may be seen as the study of the emerging pattern of the Ising model on MNs, is needed. Here we study a well-known spin model called the Ashkin-Teller (AT) model in scale-free networks. The AT model can be regarded as a model for interacting systems between two species of Ising spins placed on respective layers in double-layer networks. Our study shows that, depending on the interlayer coupling strength and a network topology, unconventional PT patterns can also emerge in interaction-based phenomena: continuous, discontinuous, successive, and mixed-order PTs and a continuous PT not satisfying the scaling relation. The origins of such rich PT patterns are elucidated in the framework of Landau-Ginzburg theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several independent observations have suggested that the catastrophe transition in microtubules is not a first-order process, as is usually assumed. Recent in vitro observations by Gardner et al. [M. K. Gardner et al., Cell 147, 1092 (2011)] showed that microtubule catastrophe takes place via multiple steps and the frequency increases with the age of the filament. Here we investigate, via numerical simulations and mathematical calculations, some of the consequences of the age dependence of catastrophe on the dynamics of microtubules as a function of the aging rate, for two different models of aging: exponential growth, but saturating asymptotically, and purely linear growth. The boundary demarcating the steady-state and non-steady-state regimes in the dynamics is derived analytically in both cases. Numerical simulations, supported by analytical calculations in the linear model, show that aging leads to nonexponential length distributions in steady state. More importantly, oscillations ensue in microtubule length and velocity. The regularity of oscillations, as characterized by the negative dip in the autocorrelation function, is reduced by increasing the frequency of rescue events. Our study shows that the age dependence of catastrophe could function as an intrinsic mechanism to generate oscillatory dynamics in a microtubule population, distinct from hitherto identified ones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We find that the classical one-dimensional XY model, with angular-momentum-conserving Langevin dynamics, mimics the non-Newtonian flow regimes characteristic of soft matter when subjected to counterrotating boundaries. An elaborate steady-state phase diagram has continuous and first-order transitions between states of uniform flow, shear-banding, solid-fluid coexistence and slip planes. Results of numerical studies and a concise mean-field constitutive relation offer a paradigm for diverse nonequilibrium complex fluids. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We have explored the origin of unusual first-order-type electronic and structural transitions in IrTe2, based on the first-principles total energy density functional theory analysis. We have clarified that the structural transition occurs through the interplay among the charge density wavelike lattice modulation with q1/5=(1/5,0,1/5), in-plane dimer ordering, and the uniform lattice deformation. The Ir-Ir dimer formation via a molecular-orbital version of the Jahn-Teller distortion in the Ir-Ir zigzag stripe is found to play the most important role in producing the charge disproportionation state. Angle-resolved photo-emission spectroscopy reveals the characteristic features of structural transition, which are in good agreement with the density functional theory bands obtained by the band-unfolding technique. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Structural arrays with nanoscale spacing arise in many device concepts. Carbon nanotube transistors are an extreme example, where a practical technology will require arrays of parallel nanotubes with spacing of order 10 nm or less. We show that with decreasing pitch there is a first-order transition, from a robust structure in which the metal wets the substrate between tubes, to a poorly wetting structure in which the metal rides atop the nanotube array without touching the substrate. The latter is analogous to the superhydrophobic "lotus leaf effect." There is a sharp minimum in the delamination energy of metal contacts at the transition pitch. We discuss implications for contact resistance and possible mitigation strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A hybrid spin-electron system defined on a one-dimensional double-tetrahedral chain, in which the localized Ising spin regularly alternates with two mobile electrons delocalized over a triangular plaquette, is exactly solved with the help of generalized decoration-iteration transformation. It is shown that a macroscopic degeneracy of ferromagnetic and ferrimagnetic ground states arising from chiral degrees of freedom of the mobile electrons cannot be lifted by a magnetic field in contrast to a macroscopic degeneracy of the frustrated ground state, which appears due to a kinetically driven frustration of the localized Ising spins. An anomalous behavior of all basic thermodynamic quantities can be observed on account of massive thermal excitations, which mimic a temperature-driven first-order phase transition from the nondegenerate frustrated state to the highly degenerate ferrimagnetic state at nonzero magnetic fields. A substantial difference in the respective degeneracies is responsible for an immense low-temperature peak of the specific heat and very abrupt (almost discontinuous) thermal variations of the entropy and sublattice magnetizations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present an approach to the melting of graphene based on nucleation theory for a first order phase transition from the two-dimensional (2D) solid to the 3D liquid via an intermediate quasi-2D liquid. The applicability of nucleation theory, supported by the results of systematic atomistic Monte Carlo simulations, provides an intrinsic definition of the melting temperature of graphene, Tm, and allows us to determine it. We find Tm ∼ 4510 K, about 250 K higher than that of graphite using the same interatomic interaction model. The found melting temperature is shown to be in good agreement with the asymptotic results of melting simulations for finite disks and ribbons of graphene. Our results strongly suggest that graphene is the most refractory of all known materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We theoretically investigate the time dependence of the first-order coherence function for a one-dimensional driven dissipative nonequilibrium condensate. Simulations on the generalized Gross-Pitaevskii equation show that the characteristic time scale of exponential decay agrees with the linearized Bogoliubov theory in the regime of large interaction energy. For very weak interactions, the temporal correlation deviates from the linear theory, and instead respects the dynamic scaling of the Kardar-Parisi-Zhang universality class. This nonlinear dynamics is found to be quantitatively captured by a noisy Kuramoto-Sivashinsky equation for the phase dynamics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the low-temperature properties of the classical three-dimensional compass or t2g orbital model on simple-cubic lattices by means of comprehensive large-scale Monte Carlo simulations. Our numerical results give evidence for a directionally ordered phase that is reached via a first-order transition at the temperature T0 = 0.098 328(3)7/kB. To obtain our results, we employ local and cluster update algorithms, parallel tempering and multiple histogram reweighting as well as model-specific screw-periodic boundary conditions, which help counteract severe finite-size effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a model of ant traffic considering individual ants as self-propelled particles undergoing single-file motion on a one-dimensional trail. Recent experiments on unidirectional ant traffic in well-formed natural trails showed that the collective velocity of ants remains approximately unchanged, leading to the absence of jamming even at very high densities [John et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 102, 108001 (2009)]. Assuming a feedback control mechanism of self-propulsion force generated by each ant using information about the distance from the ant in front, our model captures all the main features observed in the experiment. The distance headway distribution shows a maximum corresponding to separations within clusters. The position of this maximum remains independent of average number density. We find a non-equilibrium first-order transition, with the formation of an infinite cluster at a threshold density where all the ants in the system suddenly become part of a single cluster. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, dynamical phase transitions have been identified based on the nonanalytic behavior of the Loschmidt echo in the thermodynamic limit [Heyl et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 110, 135704 (2013)]. By introducing conditional probability amplitudes, we show how dynamical phase transitions can be further classified, both mathematically, and potentially in experiment. This leads to the definition of first-order dynamical phase transitions. Furthermore, we develop a generalized Keldysh formalism which allows us to use nonequilibrium dynamical mean-field theory to study the Loschmidt echo and dynamical phase transitions in high-dimensional, nonintegrable models. We find dynamical phase transitions of first order in the Falicov-Kimball model and in the Hubbard model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the zero-temperature quantum phase transition between liquid and hep solid 4He. We use the variational method with a simple yet exchange-symmetric and fully explicit wave function. It is found that the optimized wave function undergoes spontaneous symmetry breaking and describes the quantum solidification of helium at 22 atm. The explicit form of the wave function allows us to consider various contributions to the phase transition. We find that the employed wave function is an excellent candidate for describing both a first-order quantum phase transition and the ground state of a Bose solid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We demonstrate that application of an increasing shear field on a glass leads to an intriguing dynamic first-order transition in analogy with equilibrium transitions. By following the particle dynamics as a function of the driving field in a colloidal glass, we identify a critical shear rate upon which the diffusion time scale of the glass exhibits a sudden discontinuity. Using a new dynamic order parameter, we show that this discontinuity is analogous to a first-order transition, in which the applied stress acts as the conjugate field on the system's dynamic evolution. These results offer new perspectives to comprehend the generic shear-banding instability of a wide range of amorphous materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We use element-resolved IR-pump/extreme ultraviolet-probe experiments to disentangle the ultrafast interplay of the magnetic sublattices of an ordered crystalline magnetic alloy. As a paradigmatic example, we investigate the case of the FeRh alloy, which shows a delayed response for the different components. Furthermore, a detailed time-resolved magneto-optic study shows that the data can be analyzed by only assuming Elliot-Yafet-like scattering, as the underlying mechanism for ultrafast demagnetization, resulting in an unexpected nonmonotonic dependence of the spin-flip rate, as a function of quenching. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We obtain exact solutions for kinks in ϕ8, ϕ10, and ϕ12 field theories with degenerate minima, which can describe a second-order phase transition followed by a first-order one, a succession of two first-order phase transitions and a second-order phase transition followed by two first-order phase transitions, respectively. Such phase transitions are known to occur in ferroelastic and ferroelectric crystals and in meson physics. In particular, we find that the higher-order field theories have kink solutions with algebraically decaying tails and also asymmetric cases with mixed exponential-algebraic tail decay, unlike the lower-order ϕ4 and ϕ6 theories. Additionally, we construct distinct kinks with equal energies in all three field theories considered, and we show the coexistence of up to three distinct kinks (for a ϕ12 potential with six degenerate minima). We also summarize phonon dispersion relations for these systems, showing that the higher-order field theories have specific cases in which only nonlinear phonons are allowed. For the ϕ10 field theory, which is a quasiexactly solvable model akin to ϕ6, we are also able to obtain three analytical solutions for the classical free energy as well as the probability distribution function in the thermodynamic limit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, and electrical conductivity measurements of molybdenum disulfide MoS2 are performed at pressures up to 81 GPa in diamond anvil cells. Above 20 GPa we find discontinuous changes in Raman spectra and x-ray diffraction patterns which provide evidence for isostructural phase transition from 2Hc to 2Ha modification through layer sliding previously predicted theoretically. This first-order transition, which is completed around 40 GPa, is characterized by a collapse in the c-lattice parameter and volume and also by changes in interlayer bonding After the phase transition completion, MoS2 becomes metallic. The reversibility of the phase transition is identified from all these techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present analytic and numeric results for percolation in a network formed of interdependent spatially embedded networks. We show results for a treelike and a random regular network of networks each with (i) unconstrained dependency links and (ii) dependency links restricted to a maximum Euclidean length r. Analytic results are given for each network of networks with spatially unconstrained dependency links and compared to simulations. For the case of two fully interdependent spatially embedded networks it was found [Li et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 108, 228702 (2012)] that the system undergoes a first-order phase transition only for r > rc ≈ 8. We find here that for treelike networks of networks (composed of n networks) rc significantly decreases as n increases and rapidly (n ≥ 11) reaches its limiting value of 1. For cases where the dependencies form loops, such as in random regular networks, we show analytically and confirm through simulations that there is a certain fraction of dependent nodes, qmax, above which the entire network structure collapses even if a single node is removed. The value of qmax decreases quickly with m, the degree of the random regular network of networks. Our results show the extreme sensitivity of coupled spatial networks and emphasize the susceptibility of these networks to sudden collapse. The theory proposed here requires only numerical knowledge about the percolation behavior of a single network and therefore can be used to find the robustness of any network of networks where the profile of percolation of a singe network is known numerically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a system of interdependent networks, an initial failure of nodes invokes a cascade of iterative failures that may lead to a total collapse of the whole system in the form of an abrupt first-order transition. When the fraction of initial failed nodes 1 - p reaches criticality p = pc, the abrupt collapse occurs by spontaneous cascading failures. At this stage, the giant component decreases slowly in a plateau form and the number of iterations in the cascade r diverges. The origin of this plateau and its increasing with the size of the system have been unclear. Here we find that, simultaneously with the abrupt first-order transition, a spontaneous second-order percolation occurs during the cascade of iterative failures. This sheds light on the origin of the plateau and how its length scales with the size of the system. Understanding the critical nature of the dynamical process of cascading failures may be useful for designing strategies for preventing and mitigating catastrophic collapses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A systematic investigation of the nuclear polarization effects in one- and few-electron heavy ions is presented. The nuclear polarization corrections in the zeroth and first orders in 1 /Z are evaluated to the binding energies, the hyperfine splitting, and the bound-electron g factor. It is shown that the nuclear polarization contributions can be substantially canceled simultaneously with the rigid nuclear corrections. This allows for new prospects for probing the QED effects in a strong electromagnetic field and the determination of fundamental constants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently much attention has been paid to the study of the robustness of interdependent and multiplex networks and, in particular, the networks of networks. The robustness of interdependent networks can be evaluated by the size of a mutually connected component when a fraction of nodes have been removed from these networks. Here we characterize the emergence of the mutually connected component in a network of networks in which every node of a network (layer) a is connected with qa its randomly chosen replicas in some other networks and is interdependent of these nodes with probability r. We find that when the superdegrees qu of different layers in a network of networks are distributed heterogeneously, multiple percolation phase transition can occur. We show that, depending on the value of r, these transition are continuous or discontinuous. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study explosive synchronization, a phenomenon characterized by first-order phase transitions between incoherent and synchronized states in networks of coupled oscillators. While explosive synchronization has been the subject of many recent studies, in each case strong conditions on the heterogeneity of the network, its link weights, or its initial construction are imposed to engineer a first-order phase transition. This raises the question of how robust explosive synchronization is in view of more realistic structural and dynamical properties. Here we show that explosive synchronization can be induced in mildly heterogeneous networks by the addition of quenched disorder to the oscillators' frequencies, demonstrating that it is not only robust to, but moreover promoted by, this natural mechanism. We support these findings with numerical and analytical results, presenting simulations of a real neural network as well as a self-consistency theory used to study synthetic networks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the effects of smooth inhomogeneities at first-order transitions. We show that a temperature gradient at a thermally driven first-order transition gives rise to nontrivial universal scaling behaviors with respect to the length scale I, of the variation of the local temperature Tx. We propose a scaling ansatz to describe the crossover region at the surface where Tx = Tc, where the typical discontinuities of a first-order transition are smoothed out. The predictions of this scaling theory are checked, and get strongly supported, by numerical results for the two-dimensional (2D) Potts models, for a sufficiently large number of states to have first-order transitions. Comparing with analogous results at the 2D Ising transition, we note that the scaling behaviors induced by a smooth inhomogeneity appear quite similar in first-order and continuous transitions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ground state of twist-bend nematic liquid crystals is a heliconical molecular arrangement in which the nematic director precesses uniformly about an axis, making a fixed angle with it. Both precession senses are allowed in the ground state of these phases. When one of the two helicities is prescribed, a single helical nematic phase emerges. A quadratic elastic theory is proposed here for each of these phases which features the same elastic constants as the classical theory of the nematic phase, requiring all of them to be positive. To describe the helix axis, it introduces an extra director field which becomes redundant for ordinary nematics. Putting together helical nematics with opposite helicities, we reconstruct a twist-bend nematic, for which the quadratic elastic energies of the two helical variants are combined in a nonconvex energy. States with minimal energy and opposite helicities may come in contact along an interface belonging to a special family of developable surfaces, including a peculiar cone, which can be constructed through a general method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Molecular dynamics simulations were carried out on a series of Lennard-Jones binary mixtures of rigid, asymmetric, dumbbell-shaped molecules. Below an onset temperature, the rotational and translational dynamics split into the slow structural a relaxation and a higher-frequency Johari-Goldstein β relaxation. Both processes are dynamically heterogeneous, having broad distributions of relaxation times. However, only the α relaxation shows strong dynamic correlations; correlations at the β; time scale are weak, in particular for molecules having shorter bonds. Despite the close connection between the two processes, we find no correlation between the α and β relaxation times of individual molecules; that is, a molecule exhibiting slow β motion does not necessarily undergo slow α dynamics and likewise for fast molecules. However, the single-molecule α relaxation times do correlate with both the α and β relaxation strengths. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We propose a phase diagram for the shear flow of dry granular particles in two dimensions based on simulations and a phenomenological Landau theory for a nonequilibrium first-order phase transition. Our approach incorporates both frictional as well as frictionless particles. The most important feature of the frictional phase diagram is reentrant flow and a critical jamming point at finite stress. In the frictionless limit the regime of reentrance vanishes and the jamming transition is continuous with a critical point at zero stress. The jamming phase diagrams derived from the model agree with the experiments of Bi et al. [Nature (London) 480, 355 (2011)] and brings together previously conflicting numerical results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The triangular lattice of S = 1/2 spins with XXZ anisotropy is a ubiquitous model for various frustrated systems in different contexts. We determine the quantum phase diagram of the model in the plane of the anisotropy parameter and the magnetic field by means of a large-size cluster mean-field method with a scaling scheme. We find that quantum fluctuations break up the nontrivial continuous degeneracy into two first-order phase transitions. In between the two transition boundaries, the degeneracy-lifting results in the emergence of a new coplanar phase not predicted in the classical counterpart of the model. We suggest that the quantum phase transition to the nonclassical coplanar state can be observed in triangular-lattice antiferromagnets with large easy-plane anisotropy or in the corresponding optical-lattice systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate a Kuramoto model incorporated with the first-order and the second-order interaction terms. We show that the model displays the coexistence of multiattractors and different attractors may be characterized by the phase distributions of oscillators. By investigating the transition diagrams in both forward continuation and backward continuation, we find that the synchronous state with unimodal phase distribution is the most stable one while the state in cluster synchrony with evenly distributed bimodal phase distribution is the least stable one. We also present the phase diagram of the model in the parameter space. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyzes the properties of rotationally symmetric self-localized solutions with different radial quantum numbers in the simplest one- and two-component reaction-diffusion systems. The consideration is made in one and two dimensions with the focus on the fundamental and first higher-order solutions showing zero and one intersections of the radial profile with zero. It is demonstrated that the solution with one intersection does not exist for the case of the quadratic-cubic nonlinearity, while the cubic-quintic extension of the models does allow existence. I show additionally that the cubic-quintic reaction diffusion system supports the existence and stability of the states with zero quantum numbers, as well as their antistates, state-antistate pairs, and clusters, which can be interpreted as the states with nonzero azimuthal quantum number. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Clustering, or transitivity, a behavior observed in real-world networks, affects network structure and function. This property has been studied extensively, but most of this research has been limited to clustering in single networks. The effect of clustering on the robustness of coupled networks, on the other hand, has received much less attention. Only the case of a pair of fully coupled networks with clustering has recently received study. Here we generalize the study of clustering of a fully coupled pair of networks and apply it to a partially interdependent network of networks with clustering within the network components. We show, both analytically and numerically, how clustering within networks affects the percolation properties of interdependent networks, including the percolation threshold, the size of the giant component, and the critical coupling point at which the first-order phase transition changes to a second-order phase transition as the coupling between the networks is reduced. We study two types of clustering, one proposed by Newman [Phys. Rev. Lett. 103, 058701 (2009)] in which the average degree is kept constant while the clustering is changed, and the other by Hackett et al. [Phys. Rev. E 83, 056107 (2011)] in which the degree distribution is kept constant. The first type of clustering is studied both analytically and numerically, and the second is studied numerically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the mutual percolation of a system composed of two interdependent random regular networks. We introduce a notion of distance to explore the effects of the proximity of interdependent nodes on the cascade of failures after an initial attack. We find a nontrivial relation between the nature of the transition through which the networks disintegrate and the parameters of the system, which are the degree of the nodes and the maximum distance between interdependent nodes. We explain this relation by solving the problem analytically for the relevant set of cases. In the process, we solve a variant of Rényi's parking problem on treelike graphs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Motivated by interest in the elastic properties of high-strength amorphous metals, we examine the elastic properties of select crystalline phases. Using first-principles methods, we calculate elastic moduli in various chemical systems containing transition metals, specifically early (Ta,W) and late (Co,Ni). Theoretically predicted alloy elastic properties are verified for Ni-Ta by comparison with experimental measurements using resonant ultrasound spectroscopy. Comparison of our computed elastic moduli with effective medium theories shows that alloying leads to enhancement of bulk moduli relative to averages of the pure elements and considerable deviation of predicted and computed shear moduli. Specifically, we find an enhancement of bulk modulus relative to effective medium theory and propose a candidate system for high-strength, ductile amorphous alloys. Trends in the elastic properties of chemical systems are analyzed using force constants, electronic densities of state, and crystal overlap Hamilton populations. We interpret our findings in terms of the electronic structure of the alloys. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the mechanism of the B2→R martensitic transformation in the shape memory alloy AuZn by means of first-principles theory. Phonon anomalies in the TA2 acoustic branch along the Γ-M [ξ,ξ,0] direction associated with a structural transformation are observed. The calculated Fermi surface of the B2 phase of AuZn reveals large portions nested with each other by a translation through a vector q=1/3[1,1,0] associated with the soft mode. In addition, we find that the B2 phase can be stabilized by pressure in the low-temperature limit. The energetic barrier for the B2→R transition is 2 mRy and appears to be near a critical point. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report on the first three-dimensional numerical simulations of first-order phase transitions in the early Universe to include the cosmic fluid as well as the scalar field order parameter. We calculate the gravitational wave (GW) spectrum resulting from the nucleation, expansion, and collision of bubbles of the low-temperature phase, for phase transition strengths and bubble wall velocities covering many cases of interest. We find that the compression waves in the fluid continue to be a source of GWs long after the bubbles have merged, a new effect not taken properly into account in previous modeling of the GW source. For a wide range of models, the main source of the GWs produced by a phase transition is, therefore, the sound the bubbles make. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the phase diagram of a Dirac semimetal in a magnetic field at a nonzero charge density. It is shown that there exists a critical value of the chemical potential at which a first~order phase transition takes place. At subcritical values of the chemical potential the ground state is a gapped state with a dynamically generated Dirac mass and a broken chiral symmetry. The supercritical phase is the normal (gapless) phase with a nontrivial chiral structure: it is a Weyl semimetal with a pair of Weyl nodes for each of the original Dirac points. The nodes are separated by a dynamically induced chiral shift. The direction of the chiral shift coincides with that of the magnetic field and its magnitude is determined by the quasiparticle charge density, the strength of the magnetic field, and the strength of the interaction. The rearrangement of the Fermi surface accompanying this phase transition is described. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a systematic analysis of dynamic scaling in the time evolution of the phase order parameter for coupled oscillators with nonidentical natural frequencies in terms of the Kuramoto model. This provides a comprehensive view of phase synchronization. In particular, we extend finite-size scaling (FSS) in the steady state to dynamics, determine critical exponents, and find the critical coupling strength. The dynamic scaling approach enables us to measure not only the FSS exponent associated with the correlation volume in finite systems but also thermodynamic critical exponents. Based on the extended FSS theory, we also discuss how the sampling of natural frequencies and thermal noise affect dynamic scaling, which is numerically confirmed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examine the solvent-mediated interaction between two neutral colloidal particles due to preferential adsorption in a near-critical binary mixture. We take into account the renormalization effect due to the critical fluctuations using the recent local functional theory [J. Chem. Phys. 136, 114704 (2012)]. We calculate the free energy and the force between two colloidal particles as functions of the temperature T, the composition far from the colloidal particles c∞ and the colloid separation i. The interaction is much enhanced when the component favored by the colloid surfaces is poor in the reservoir. For such off-critical compositions, we find a surface of a first-order bridging transition I = lc*(T,c&,) in the T-C∞-... space in a universal, scaled form, across which a discontinuous change occurs between separated and bridged states. This surface starts from the bulk coexistence surface (CX) and ends at a bridging critical line where i is determined by T as ... = ...c(T). On approaching the critical line, the discontinuity vanishes and the derivatives of the force with respect to T and I both diverge. Furthermore, bridged states continuously change into separated states if cM (or T) is varied from a value on CX to a value far from CX with t kept smaller than ic(T). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the context of the random first order transition theory we use an extended mode coupling theory of the glass transition that includes activated events to account for spatiotemporal structures in rejuvenating glasses. We numerically solve fluctuating dynamical equations for mobility and fictive temperature fields which capture both mobility generation through activated events and facilitation effects. Upon rejuvenating, a source of high mobility at a glass surface initiates a growth front of mobility which propagates into the unstable low mobility region. The speed of the front quantitatively agrees with experiments on the rejuvenation of ultrastable glasses, which "melt" from their surface. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We used a configuration-based kinetic Monte Carlo model to explain important features related to formation of the √3 x √3)/?30° mosaic of metal and semiconductor atoms on the Si( 111 ) surface. Using first-order desorption processes, we simulate the surprising zero-order desorption spectra, reported in some cases of metal desorption from the Si(l 11) surface. We show that the mechanism responsible for the zerolike order of desorption is the enhanced desorption from disordered areas. Formation of the √3 x √3 mosaic with properties of a strongly frustrated antiferromagnetic Ising model is simulated by a configuration-sensitive desorption. For substitution of desorbed metal atoms by Si adatoms, fast diffusion of the adatoms on top of a lxl layer is proposed as the most probable. Simulations of desorption-induced structural transitions provide us a link between underlying atomistic processes and the observed evolving morphologies with resultant macroscopic desorption fluxes. An effect of the desorption sensitivity on a configuration of neighboring atoms is emphasized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We analyze numerically thermal fluctuations of the static overlap between equilibrium configurations in a glass-forming liquid approaching the glass transition. We find that the emergence of slow dynamics near the onset temperature correlates with the development of non-Gaussian probability distributions of overlap fluctuations, measured using both annealed and quenched definitions. Below a critical temperature, a thermodynamic field conjugate to the overlap induces a first-order phase transition, whose existence we numerically demonstrate in the annealed case. These results establish that the approach to the glass transition is accompanied by profound changes in the nature of thermodynamic fluctuations, deconstructing the view that glassy dynamics occurs with little structural evolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we have explored computationally the solidification process of a nickel cluster consisting of 2057 atoms. This process has the characteristic features of the first-order phase transition occurring in a finite system. The focus of our research is placed on the elucidation of correlated dynamics of a large ensemble of particles in the course of the nanoscale liquid-solid phase transition through the computation and analysis of the results of molecular dynamics (MD) simulations with the corresponding theoretical model. This problem is of significant interest and importance because the controlled dynamics of systems on the nanoscale is one of the central topics in the development of modern nanotechnologies. MD simulations in large molecular systems are rather computer power demanding. Therefore, in order to advance with MD simulations, we have used modern computational methods based on the graphics processing units (GPUs). The advantages of the use of GPUs for MD simulations in comparison with the CPUs are demonstrated and benchmarked. The reported speedup reaches factors greater than 400. This work opens a path towards exploration with the use of MD of a larger number of scientific problems inaccessible earlier with the CPU-based computational technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

First-order phase transitions (PTs) with more than one globally conserved charge, so-called noncongruent PTs, have characteristic differences compared to congruent PTs (e.g., dimensionality of phase diagrams and location and properties of critical points and end points). In the present article we investigate the noncongruence of the nuclear liquid-gas PT at subsaturation densities and the deconfinement PT at high densities and/or temperatures in Coulombless models, relevant for heavy-ion collisions and neutron stars. For the first PT, we use the FSUgold relativistic mean-field model and for the second one the relativistic chiral SU(3) model. The chiral SU(3) model is one of the few models for the deconfinement PT,. which contains quarks and hadrons in arbitrary proportions (i.e., a "solution") and gives a continuous transition from pure hadronic to pure quark matter above a critical point. The study shows the universality of the applied concept of noncongruence for the two PTs with an upper critical point and illustrates the different typical scales involved. In addition, we lind a principle difference between the liquid-gas and the deconfinement PTs: in contrast to the ordinary Van-der-Waals-like PT, the phase coexistence line of the deconfinement PT has a negative slope in the pressure-temperature plane. As another qualitative difference we find that the noncongruent features of the deconfinement PT become vanishingly small around the critical point. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]