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Thermodynamical properties of the helix-coil transition were successfully described in the past by the model of Lifson, Poland and Sheraga. Here we compute the corresponding structure factor and show that it possesses a universal scaling behavior near the transition point, even when the transition is of first order. Moreover, we introduce a dynamical version of this model, that we solve numerically. A Langevin equation is also proposed to describe the dynamics of the density of hydrogen bonds. Analytical solution of this equation shows dynamical scaling near the critical temperature and predicts a gelation phenomenon above the critical temperature. In the case when comparison of the two dynamical approaches is possible, the predictions of our phenomenological theory agree with the results of the Monte Carlo simulations., Comment: 11 pages, 7 figures

We consider a vertex model on the simple-quartic lattice defined by line graphs on the lattice for which there is always an odd number of lines incident at a vertex. This is the odd 8-vertex model which has eight possible vertex configurations. We establish that the odd 8-vertex model is equivalent to a staggered 8-vertex model. Using this equivalence we deduce the solution of the odd 8-vertex model when the weights satisfy a free-fermion condition. It is found that the free-fermion model exhibits no phase transitions in the regime of positive vertex weights. We also establish the complete equivalence of the free-fermion odd 8-vertex model with the free-fermion 8-vertex model solved by Fan and Wu. Our analysis leads to several Ising model representations of the free-fermion model with pure 2-spin interactions., Comment: 13 pages, 5 figures, dedicated to Elliott H. Lieb on the occasion of his 70th birthday

The overdamped dynamics of a charged particle driven by an uniform electric field through a random sequence of scatterers in one dimension is investigated. Analytic expressions of the mean velocity and of the velocity power spectrum are presented. These show that above a threshold value of the field normal diffusion is superimposed to ballistic motion. The diffusion constant can be given explicitly. At the threshold field the transition between conduction and localization is accompanied by an anomalous diffusion. Our results exemplify that, even in the absence of time-dependent stochastic forces, a purely mechanical model equipped with a quenched disorder can exhibit normal as well as anomalous diffusion, the latter emerging as a critical property., Comment: 16 pages, no figures

We analyse the ground state of a particle in a double-well potential, with a cylindrical symmetry, and in the presence of a magnetic field. We find that the azimuthal quantum number m takes the values m = 0,1,2... when we increase the magnetic field. At critical values of the magnetic field, the ground state is twice degenerate. The magnetisation shows an oscillatory behaviour and jumps at critical values of the magnetic field. This phase transition could be seen in the condensate of a dilute gas of charged bosons confined by a double-well potential., Comment: 9 pages, 8 figures

The problem of a restricted random walk on graphs which keeps track of the number of immediate reversal steps is considered by using a transfer matrix formulation. A closed-form expression is obtained for the generating function of the number of n-step walks with r reversal steps for walks on any graph. In the case of graphs of a uniform valence, we show that our result has a probabilistic meaning, and deduce explicit expressions for the generating function in terms of the eigenvalues of the adjacency matrix. Applications to periodic lattices and the complete graph are given., Comment: plain latex, 10 pages, 1 fig., submitted to Ann. Combinatorics

This article deals with dynamical systems depending on a slowly varying parameter. We present several physical examples illustrating memory effects, such as metastability and hysteresis, which frequently appear in these systems. A mathematical theory is outlined, which allows to show existence of hysteresis cycles, and determine related scaling laws., Comment: 28 pages (AMS-LaTeX), 18 PS figures

We consider the Rosenzweig-Porter model of random matrix which interpolates between Poisson and gaussian unitary statistics and compute exactly the two-point correlation function. Asymptotic formulas for this function are given near the Poisson and gaussian limit., Comment: 19 pages, no figures

We consider the motion of a damped particle in a potential oscillating slowly between a simple and a double well. The system displays hysteresis effects which can be of periodic or chaotic type. We explain this behaviour by computing an analytic expression of a Poincar'e map., Comment: 4 pages RevTeX, 3 PS figs, uses psfig.sty. Submitted to Phys. Rev. Letters. PS file also available at http://dpwww.epfl.ch/instituts/ipt/berglund.html

The problem of close-packed dimers on the honeycomb lattice was solved by Kasteleyn in 1963. Here we extend the solution to include interactions between neighboring dimers in two spatial lattice directions. The solution is obtained by using the method of Bethe ansatz and by converting the dimer problem into a five-vertex problem. The complete phase diagram is obtained and it is found that a new frozen phase, in which the attracting dimers prevail, arises when the interaction is attractive. For repulsive dimer interactions a new first-order line separating two frozen phases occurs. The transitions are continuous and the critical behavior in the disorder regime is found to be the same as in the case of noninteracting dimers characterized by a specific heat exponent $\a=1/2$., Comment: latex, 29 pages + 7 figures

We consider classical billiards in plane, connected, but not necessarily bounded domains. The charged billiard ball is immersed in a homogeneous, stationary magnetic field perpendicular to the plane. The part of dynamics which is not trivially integrable can be described by a "bouncing map". We compute a general expression for the Jacobian matrix of this map, which allows to determine stability and bifurcation values of specific periodic orbits. In some cases, the bouncing map is a twist map and admits a generating function which is useful to do perturbative calculations and to classify periodic orbits. We prove that billiards in convex domains with sufficiently smooth boundaries possess invariant tori corresponding to skipping trajectories. Moreover, in strong field we construct adiabatic invariants over exponentially large times. On the other hand, we present evidence that the billiard in a square is ergodic for some large enough values of the magnetic field. A numerical study reveals that the scattering on two circles is essentially chaotic., Comment: Explanations added in Section 5, Section 6 enlarged, small errors corrected; Large figures have been bitmapped; 40 pages LaTeX, 15 figures, uuencoded tar.gz. file. To appear in J. Stat. Phys. 83