IF/UFRJ

Statistical Mechanics
2019/2 – Raimundo
Problem Set #9

30/9/2019 - due by 7/10/2019

1. Figure 1 shows the coexistence curves for a typical fluid. The liquid and gas
phases coexist along the curve AC, called the vapour pressure curve. You may
assume that along AC changes in volume of the liquid are negligible in com-
parison with changes in the gas volume; you may also admit that the latter
can be treated as an ideal gas, and that the latent heat of vaporisation, `, is
approximately constant over the temperature interval of interest.

(a) Show that the vapour pressure curve is given by

P = P0 e−`/RT ,

where R is the gas constant, and P0 is a constant.

(b) Show that the heat capacity along the vapour pressure curve is given by
ν`
Ccoex = CP − ,
T
for ν moles.

2. Obtain the critical exponents α, β, γ and δ for the van der Waals gas.

3. The spin-S Heisenberg model is defined by the Hamiltonian

X X
H = −J Si · Sj − µ H · Si ,
hiji i

where µ is the magnetic moment, H is an applied external field, and the sums
extend over sites of a d-dimensional lattice, but hiji restricts the sum over
nearest neighbour pairs. We consider the Weiss approximation for this model.

1
 z

z’
zJ < z >
2
R
< z>

Figure 1: Problem 1 – Coexistence curves for a < x> x

typical pure fluid. The vapour pressure curve goes
from A (the triple point) to C (the critical point). Figure 2: Problem 4 – Weiss theory for the Ising
model in a transverse field; see text.

(a) Show that the critical temperature for magnetism is given by

S(S + 1) µzJ
kB Tc = ,
3 2
where z is the coordination number of the lattice (i.e. the number of nearest
neighbours of any site). Compare your result with that for the Ising model
and comment physically.
(b) Show that the magnetisation satisfies a law of corresponding states when
expressed in terms of reduced field, H̃, and temperature, T̃ .
(c) Obtain the critical exponents α, β, γ, and δ, and comment on the influence
of S and d.

4. The simplest example of a quantum critical point (i.e., a critical point at zero
temperature) occurs in systems described by the Ising model in a transverse
field, whose Hamiltonian is
X X
H = −J σiz σjz − Γ σix ,
hi,ji i

where the σ ’s are Pauli matrices, and the first sum extends to pairs of nearest
neighbour sites of a d-dimensional lattice with coordination number z.

(a) (i) Discuss the nature of the ground state of this system in the limits
Γ  J and Γ  J.
(ii) Sketch the expected behaviour of the magnetisation, hσ z i as a function
of T , for fixed Γ. Compare with what you would expect for hσ z i(T )
when Γ = 0.

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 (iii) Then make a sketch of the expected behaviour of the critical temper-
ature as a function of Γ.

In what follows we will highlight how these features can be quantitatively

obtained within the Weiss approximation.
(b) We define an effective Weiss Hamiltonian as
X
HW = − γ · σ i,
i

in which the mean field acting on each spin is given by

zJ z
γ = Γx̂ + hσ i ẑ;
2
see Fig. 2. Taking ẑ0 k γ as the new direction of quantisation (see Fig. 2),
show that
0
hσ z i = tanh βγ,
where γ ≡ | γ |.
(c) The Weiss field, γ , makes an angle θ with the ẑ direction, such that θ = 0
when Γ = 0, or γ = (1/2)zJhσ z iẑ, and θ = π/2 when hσ z i = 0, or γ = Γx̂;
see Fig. 2. Show that γ satisfies a self-consistency condition,
γ 1
= zJ.
tanh βγ 2

(d) The phase transition is signalled by hσ z i ' 0. Show that in this case the
critical curve is given by
Γ 2Γ
tanh = ,
kB Tc zJ
and make a sketch of τc ≡ (2kB Tc /zJ) as a function of g = 2Γ/zJ. Check
if your results match the qualitative prediction made in (a)(iii).