Brazilian Journal of Physics (2023) 53:95

https://doi.org/10.1007/s13538-023-01310-z

STATISTICAL

The Blume‑Emery‑Griffiths Model with Competing Interactions

on the Bethe Lattice
Pedro R. Piccini1 · Lucas Nicolao1 · M.H. R. Tragtenberg1

Received: 9 March 2023 / Accepted: 1 May 2023

© The Author(s) under exclusive licence to Sociedade Brasileira de Física 2023

Abstract
We study in detail the behaviour of a spin-1 model with competing interactions between next and next-nearest neighbours,
biquadratic interactions between nearest neighbours, crystalline and external magnetic fields, on a Bethe lattice in the infinite
coordination limit. We solve this model analytically and investigate its phase diagrams by numerically iterating the recur-
sion relations on the Bethe lattice. The phase diagrams display more than one multiphase points and finite commensurate
modulated phases both at finite and at zero temperature. The ground state of the system is also investigated. We observe rich
phase diagrams with different ordered phases arranged in complex structures. Special attention is dedicated to the peculiar
effects of biquadratic interactions and crystalline field, which in general distort and eventually suppress some of the com-
mensurate ordered phases. The external field behaviour shows differences between 0 ordered phase and the paramagnetic
phase for the first time in these models.

Keywords Modulated phases · Competing interactions · BEG model · Field behaviour

1 Introduction [5]. The calculations were extended to phase diagrams in the

The Axial Next-Nearest Neighbor Ising (ANNNI) model
with spin 1/2 was proposed [1] in order to explain modu-
lated phases, particularly the modulated magnetic structure
of erbium. It presents competing nearest neighbour fer-
romagnetic and next-nearest neighbour antiferromagnetic
interactions along one direction of the crystal. It took a
while to reveal the peculiar features of this model. The mean
field diagram of the model revealed: a Lifshitz point [2], the
existence of many commensurate phases and commensurate-
incommensurate Pokrovski-Talapov phase transitions medi-
ated by solitons, and a devil’s staircase in the commensurate
phase wavevector [3, 4]. The multiphase point at zero tem-
perature from where infinitely many commensurate phases
spread from was revealed by low temperature series analysis
This article is dedicated to professor Silvio Roberto Salinas on
the occasion of his 80th birthday.
* M.H. R. Tragtenberg
marcelotragtenberg@gmail.com
1
Departamento de Física, Universidade Federal de Santa
Catarina, 88040‑900 Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil
presence of an external magnetic field [6]. The modulated
phases exhibit metamagnetic or folding-like behaviour.
Vannimenus proposed a different mean field like
approach for the ANNNI model, based in recurrence rela-
tions on a Bethe lattice with coordination number 3, and
found a phase diagram similar to the 2D ANNNI model
in the usual mean field approach, but in a rather simpler
way [7]. At about the same time, another mean field like
approach for the ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic Ising
model was developed [8]. It was based in the derivation of
recursion relations of the shell magnetization on a Bethe
lattice [9]. This approach was applied to the ANNNI model
in zero external magnetic field, in the infinite coordination
limit, and gave rise to a strange attractor of the map, with
positive Lyapunov exponent and fractal dimension [10, 11].
The extension of this approach for the external field behav-
iour of the ANNNI model on the Bethe lattice revealed com-
plex modulated behaviour, including tricritical-like behav-
iour, folded modulated phases with chaotic attractors and
co-stability of modulated phases with same wave number
but different configurations [12].
The extension of the ANNNI model for spin 1 (Blume-
Capel model) [13] and its phase diagrams show the breakup
of the modulated-ferro regions with the disappearing of

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 95 Page 2 of 11
the Lifshitz point for strong enough negative crystal fields
( D < 0 ) that favours the S = 0 state. The chaotic attractors
are also found in the model. The co-stability of an ordered
phase where the spin zero state is predominant and both
ferro and modulated phases is a new feature of the model.
More recently, a preliminary study of the Blume-Emery-
Griffiths (BEG) model with competing interactions, named
BEGV (from BEG Vannimenus), attracted some attention
[14]. The solution of the model in this case was also on a
Bethe lattice with a finite coordination number. On the other
hand, the model has shown strong potential for new kinds of
behaviour and stimulated us to go deeper in this direction.
In this work we study the BEGV model on the Bethe lat-
tice in the infinite coordination limit. We find a plethora of
new aspects of this complex model. We determine many dif-
ferent phase diagrams for different values of biquadratic near-
est neighbour interactions and crystal field, both individually
and jointly. They show new ordered phases co-stable with
ferromagnetic, paramagnetic or modulated phases. Finite
regions of modulated phases are present at the ground state.
Many multiphase points at the ground state were also found.
A preliminary exploration of the effect of the external field
in the BEGV model is also shown, unveiling a great potential
for exotic behaviour of the model.
The paper is organized as follows. Section 2 contains
the model description, which includes the calculation of
the recurrence relations and the three-dimensional map
related to the BEGV model on the Bethe lattice. Character-
istic phase diagrams of the BEGV model without external
magnetic field are shown in Sect. 3. The nontrivial ground
state of the model is the object of Sect. 4. Finally, Sect. 5 is
devoted to a peculiar external magnetic field behaviour of
the model while in Sect. 6 we draw our conclusions.
2 Model and Recurrence Relations
The Blume-Emery-Griffiths-Vannimenus model with mag-
netic field consists of spins 𝜎i = −1, 0, +1 on a Bethe lattice,
in the infinite coordination limit ( z → ∞) with first and sec-
ond neighbours interactions, in a magnetic and a crystalline
field. The Hamiltonian of the model is
∑ ∑ ∑
H = −J1 𝜎i 𝜎j − J2 𝜎i 𝜎k − K 𝜎i2 𝜎j2
(i,j) ((i,k)) (i,j)
∑ ∑ (1)
−H 𝜎i − D 𝜎i2 ,
i i
where (i, j) denotes summation over first neighbours, ((i, k))
summation over second neighbours, K is the intensity of
the biquadratic interaction between first neighbours, H is
the intensity of the magnetic field and D is the intensity of
the crystalline field. We are interested in the cases where
13
Brazilian Journal of Physics (2023) 53:95
the interaction between first and second neighbours spins
are ferromagnetic ( J1 > 0) and antiferromagnetic ( J2 < 0),
respectively. In the infinite coordination limit, the coordina-
tion number of the Bethe lattice z → ∞ and the intensity of
the first and second neighbours interaction goes to zero in a
way that zJ1, zK and z2 J2 are finite.
This model can be solved analytically by reaching a set
of equations, the map associated with the model, which
can be used to produce phase diagrams for the system by
numerical iteration. To reach this set of equations we make
use of the recurrence relations of the Bethe lattice. With
these equations, we are able to iterate over a set of shells
to determine the properties of the following shell in direc-
tion of the centre of the lattice, and so forth. This allows
us to determine the order parameters (magnetization and
quadrupole moment) of the shells of the Bethe lattice, as it
is similarly done in [8]. For simplicity, we will denote the
shells of the Bethe lattice from the surface to the centre, as
illustrated in Fig. 1, with the surface shell denoted as n = 0
and the centre as n = N in the limit N → ∞.
In order to obtain the recurrence relations, we will take
partial traces over the spins, starting at n = 0 and moving
in the direction of the centre of the lattice. When we take
the trace over the shell n = 0 , we get effective fields act-
ing on shells n = 1 and 2. We can also identify the effec-
tive interactions of the spins of those shells. Denoting
the r = z − 1 spins of the surface of a single branch as
𝜎01 , 𝜎02 , ..., 𝜎0r and the spins of the following shells n = 1 and
2 as 𝜎1 and 𝜎2 , and taking the trace over the surface spins
we get, for the 𝜎01 branch:
Fig. 1  Bethe lattice shells for the case z = 3 and N = 3, and the com-
peting interactions between first ( J1) and second neighbours ( J2)
Brazilian Journal of Physics (2023) 53:95 Page 3 of 11 95

From Eqs. (6) and (7) we can identify the expression for the
∑
Tr = exp[(G1 𝜎1 + G2 𝜎2 + GK 𝜎01 (𝜎1 )2
function defined in (8) as:
𝜎01 (2)
GD 𝜎01 B)𝜎01 ],
{
+ + )r
f 𝜎, 𝜎 � = 1 + 2eGD exp 2eGD ×
( ) (

where we have defined

[
rGK (𝜎)2 cosh B + rG1 𝜎 + rG2 𝜎 � sinh B }
( ) ] (14)
,
J1 J2 K 1 + 2eGD cosh B
G1 ≡ G2 ≡ GK ≡ (3)
kB T kB T kB T while from this Eq. (14) and from relations (9) to (12) we
obtain the parameters U, V, W and Z:
D H
GD ≡ B≡ , (4) 2eGD rG2 sinh B
kB T kB T U= , (15)
1 + 2eGD cosh B
as the dimensionless parameters of the Hamiltonian given
by Eq. (1). Since all superficial branches are equivalent, the 2eGD rG1 sinh B
partial trace of all superficial spins is given by V= , (16)
1 + 2eGD cosh B
(∑
Tr = exp[(G1 𝜎1 + G2 𝜎2 + GK 𝜎01 (𝜎1 )2
𝜎01
W = 0, (17)
)r (5)
+ GD 𝜎01 + B)𝜎01 ] . 2eGD rGK cosh B
Z= . (18)
1 + 2eGD cosh B
Taking into account that the spins can assume the values ±1
and 0 we obtain explicitly the trace in Eq. (5) as In order to arrive at the local fields and the effective Ham-
iltonian for the shell n, we can then define:
Tr = (1 + 2eGD )r exp 2eGD (rGK (𝜎1 )2 cosh B
{[
] } (6) B0 ≡ B A0 ≡ G1 D0 ≡ GD . (19)
+ (rG1 𝜎1 + rG2 𝜎2 ) sinh B) ∕(1 + 2eGD cosh B) .
After the trace over the spins at shell n = 0, the magnetic
In order to obtain the effective fields acting in each shell,
and crystalline fields affecting shell n = 1 are:
we assume that the trace given by Eq. (6) can be written as
(20)
( )
B1 = B + V B0 , A0 , G2 , D0 , GK ,
Tr = C exp W𝜎1 𝜎2 + V𝜎1 + U𝜎2 + Z𝜎12 , (7)
{ }

and in this way, we can write the trace in an appropriate way ( )

D1 = GD + Z B0 , A0 , G2 , D0 , GK , (21)
as to obtain the effective fields. By defining the relation:
}2 and the total magnetic field on shell n = 2 is
f (𝜎, 𝜎 � ) ≡ C exp W𝜎𝜎 � + V𝜎 + U𝜎 � + Z𝜎 , (8)
{

(22)
( )
B2 = B + rU B0 , A0 , G2 , D0 , GK .
we can write the coefficients defined in Eq. (7) as
[ ] The factor r in Eq. (22) appears due to the fact that
1 f (1, 1)f (−1, 1) every spin on shell n = 2 is bound to r spins from shell
U = ln (9)
4 f (1, −1)f (−1, −1) n = 1, each one of those adding to an effective field U.
There is no need to find a relation for the crystalline field
1
[
f (1, 1)f (1, −1)
] in relation to shell n = 2 , for in the original Hamiltonian
V = ln (10) in Eq. (1) there is no biquadratic relation between second
4 f (−1, 1)f (−1, −1)
neighbours. Meanwhile the effective interaction between
[ ] spins from shell n = 1 and n = 2 is:
1 f (1, 1)f (−1, −1)
W = ln (11)
(23)
( )
4 f (1, −1)f (−1, 1) A1 = G1 + W B0 , A0 , G2 , D0 , GK .

[ ] In similar manner, the recurrence relations on the subse-

1 f (−1, 0)f (1, 0) quent shells are:
Z = ln (12)
4 f (0, 0)f (0, 0) ( )
B2 = B + rU B0 , A0 , G2 , D0 , GK
( ) (24)
C = f (0, 0). (13) + V B1 , A1 , G2 , D1 , GK

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 95 Page 4 of 11 Brazilian Journal of Physics (2023) 53:95

(25)
(
D2 = GD + Z B1 , A1 , G2 , D1 , GK
) ) ]/
qn = cosh H + rJ1 Mn−1 + r2 J2 Mn−2 ∕T
[(
{
1 −(D+rKqn−1 )∕T
(26) e +
( )
B3 = B + rU B1 , A1 , G2 , D1 , GK 2 (38)
}
2
[( ) ]
cosh H + rJ1 Mn−1 + r J2 Mn−2 ∕T .
(27)
( )
A2 = G1 + W B1 , A1 , G2 , D1 , GK .

And we can generalize these relations for a shell n, obtain- Now, to deal with the system on the infinite coordination
ing the total magnetic field, the total crystalline field and the limit, we can put rJ1 in evidence in Eqs. (37) and (38) and
effective interaction as redefine the relevant parameters to subsequently use them
( ) to generate the phase diagrams.
Bn = B + V Bn−1 , An−1 , G2 , Dn−1 , GK Then, we define our new finite and dimensionless model
( ) (28)
+ rU Bn−2 , An−2 , G2 , Dn−2 , GK parameters as:
−rJ2 K T
≡p ̃
≡K ̃
≡T (39)
(29)
( )
Dn = GD + Z Bn−1 , An−1 , G2 , Dn−1 , GK J1 J1 rJ1

(30)
( )
An = G1 + W Bn−1 , An−1 , G2 , Dn−1 , GK H ̃ D ̃
rJ1
≡H
rJ1
≡ D, (40)
From those effective fields we obtain the effective Hamil-
tonian for spins at the n shell of the Bethe lattice: where we draw special attention to the parameter p, since
∑ ∑ it measures the relative strength between first and second
Hn = −Bn 𝜎i − Dn 𝜎i2 , (31) neighbour spin-spin interactions, or equivalently, the compe-
i i
tition between ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic interac-
and from it the average magnetization Mn and quadrupole tions, since we are interested in the case J1 > 0 and J2 < 0.
moment qn for the n-shell: Finally, since in the map defined in (37) and (38) the
magnetization Mn requires two previous iterations to be
−BHn
obtained ( Mn−1 and Mn−2 ), we can define an equivalent
∑
𝜎 𝜎i e 2eDn sinh Bn
Mn = ∑i −BH = , (32) three-dimensional map as:
𝜎i e
n 1 + 2eDn cosh Bn
xn ≡ Mn−1
∑ 2 −BHn
𝜎i (𝜎i ) e 2eDn cosh Bn
qn = = . (33) yn ≡ Mn (41)
e−BHn 1 + 2eDn cosh Bn
∑
𝜎i zn ≡ qn ,
Comparing Eqs. (15), (16) and (17) with Eqs. (32) and (33), and so we finally obtain the map associated with model:
we get the relations
xn+1 =yn (42)
(34)
( )
U Bn , An , G2 , Dn , GK = rG2 Mn ,
[( ) ]/
yn+1 = sinh yn − pxn + H ̃ ∕T
̃
(35)
( )
V Bn , An , G2 , Dn , GK = rG1 Mn ,
( )
1 − D+̃ Kz ̃
̃ n ∕T
{
e + (43)
(36)
( )
Z Bn , An , G2 , Dn , GK = rGK qn . 2 [( ) ]}
cosh yn − pxn + H ̃ ∕T
̃
Comparing Eqs. (28) to (36) and returning, when possible,
to the original Hamiltonian (1) constants, and choosing units [( ) ]/
where we can set kB = 1, we get the recursion relations for the zn+1 = cosh yn − pxn + H ̃ ∕T
̃
order parameters ( )
1 − D+̃ Kz ̃
̃ n ∕T
{
) ]/ e + (44)
Mn = sinh H + rJ1 Mn−1 + r2 J2 Mn−2 ∕T 2 [(
[(
) ]}
{ cosh yn − pxn + H ̃ ∕T
̃ .
1 −(D+rKqn−1 )∕T
e + (37)
2
} The starting parameters of the mapping (x1 , y1 , z1 ) are
cosh H + rJ1 Mn−1 + r2 J2 Mn−2 ∕T
[( ) ] equivalent to the choosing of the starting conditions of mag-
netization and the quadrupole moment on the most external

13
Brazilian Journal of Physics (2023) 53:95
shells of the tree. Iterating the map defined in Eqs. (42)–(44)
to the limit n → ∞ we obtain its asymptotic solutions that
are used to define phase diagrams of the model.
In order to ease the notation in the construction of the
phase diagrams in the following section, we will drop the
tilde from the dimensionless model parameters defined in
Eqs. (39) and (40), which are those relevant in the infinite
coordination limit.
3 Phase Diagrams
We have obtained the phase diagrams of the model by means
of direct iteration of the associated map (42)–(44). For that
we choose the initial magnetization and quadrupole moment
for the first shells of the Cayle Tree and generated the sub-
sequent ones from the map.
The first result that we present in Fig. 2 is a T-p phase
diagram in the special case where H = K = D = 0, as a ref-
erence case for the following phase diagrams. The differ-
ence between this result and previous results in competing
interaction models defined on a Bethe lattice [12] is that here
the values that the spins can assume are ±1, 0. By allowing
spins to take the value 0, the paramagnetic transition tem-
perature is multiplied by 2/3. We can recover quantitatively
the diagram presented in [12] if we set K → ∞.
The label of each commensurate modulated phase, as pre-
sented in the key of Fig. 2, is defined as a fraction based on
the periodicity of the phase. The denominator corresponds to
the number of spins comprising a modulation period, while
the numerator corresponds the number of complete oscil-
lations within a period, or equivalently, half the number of
signal changes of the site magnetization within a period. For
example, the 16 modulated phase corresponds, for instance, to
a periodic spin configuration … ↑↑↑↓↓↓↑↑↑↓↓↓ …, mean-
ing six spins in a period, two changes of signal within a
period. Of course, the same classification extends to the
properties modulation of the magnetization, or the mean
spin values per site. As another example, the 29 modulated
phase corresponds, for instance, to a periodic spin configura-
tion … ↑↑↓↓↑↑↓↓ 0 ↑↑↓↓↑↑↓↓ 0 …, namely nine spins in a
period, four changes of signal within a period.
It is also worth mentioning that, in some cases, like the
0
2
and 2
10
phases, the label represents two configurations that
are related by reflection. In this sense, the 02 label repre-
sents 2 configurations of the ferromagnetic phase, one with
positive and the other with negative uniform magnetiza-
tion. Likewise, 10 2
label represents two configurations of a
5-period phase related by reflection [15].
Subsequently, we study the effect of varying the param-
eter K, the intensity of the biquadratic interaction between
first neighbour spins. The effect of positive values of K is
Page 5 of 11 95
Fig. 2  Phase diagram for H = D = K = 0 with some of the commen-
surate modulated phases denoted in different colours, as shown in the
key. The label scheme for these phases is given by a fraction based
on the form of their periodicity, where the denominator corresponds
to the size of the period and the numerator the number of complete
oscillations within a period — more details can be found in the main
text. The white region corresponds to incommensurate modulated
phases. The phase denoted by 0/1 is the paramagnetic phase, while
0/2 is the ferromagnetic phase and “a” is the antiquadrupolar phase
(not present in this phase diagram). The colour scheme presented in
this figure is adopted for all figures of the paper
very simple, since it is a continuous interpolation from the
limit K → ∞, which favours only spin values ±1, to the case
K = 0 presented in Fig. 2. It is more interesting to observe
the effects of negative values of K, since it favours the value
0 for neighbouring spins. The phase diagrams shown in
Fig. 3 offer a good view of these effects.
The negative values of K show a first effect of widening
of the modulated phase 1/6 on the ground state and at low
temperatures, where the phase is extended to a value equal to
1 + K to 1 − K . This effect occurs for 0 ≥ K ≥ −0.5, and can
be seen particularly in the case K = −0.5 in Fig. 3(a), in con-
trast with the original phase diagram in Fig. 2 — note that
p extends to higher values in the former. In Figs. 3(a) and
(b) we can notice a remarkable feature in the T → 0 limit,
which is the emergence of many multiphase points at zero
temperature — 2 points in the former case (for K = −0.5,
at p = 0.5 and p = 1.5) and 3 points in the last case (for
K = −1.0 , at p = 0.0, 1.0 and 2.0). For lower values of K,
as for instance K = −1.5 as shown in Fig. 3(d), the ground
state becomes dominated by the 1/4 phase. These issues are
explored further in the next section where we discuss the
ground state properties of the model.
Another visible effect is a suppression of the ferromag-
netic phase at low temperatures, forming a reentrance of
this phase at the frontier with the modulated phases. For
K = −1.0, as shown in Fig. 3(b), we can see a much stronger
distortion of different phases caused by the parameter K. The
1/6 phase is heavily shifted to the left, while the 1/5 phase is
widened and starts to occupy a large portion of the ground
13
 95 Page 6 of 11
Fig. 3  T-p phase diagrams with
varying K, and D = H = 0.
a K = −0.5, b K = −1.0, c
K = −1.25 and d K = −1.5
state. We can also notice that both the ferromagnetic and the
modulated phases are being “twisted” to the right.
Furthermore, as the parameter K becomes more nega-
tive, an antiquadrupolar phase starts to be favoured in the
paramagnetic phase region between the ferromagnetic and
the modulated phases, as can be noticed in Fig. 3(b)–(d).
This phase is characterized by a constant zero magnetiza-
tion and a quadrupolar moment alternating between 0 and
2/3. This means that the structure of this phase is composed
a shell with all spins equal to 0, and so both magnetization
and quadrupolar moment equal to 0, alternating with a shell
with spins states randomly distributed between values +1, 0
and −1, with magnetization still 0 but quadrupolar moment
2/3. For the case where K = −1.25, shown in Fig. 3(c), the
antiquadrupolar phase becomes prevalent in relation to the
ferromagnetic phase, but the latter still exists in a small space.
For K = −1.5, Fig. 3(d), the antiquadrupolar phase has com-
pletely taken over the place of the ferromagnetic phase.
Also, the distortions in the form of the phase boundaries
in the T-p phase diagram become more prominent as K is
lowered. For K = −1.25, Fig. 3(c), we observe a “bending”
of the ferromagnetic and modulated phases, which are curl-
ing on themselves, in a significant increase of the tendency
observed for K = −1.0 . For K = −1.5, Fig. 3(d), there is a
greater increase of the “twisting” effect, with the 1/4 phase
dominating the ground state and narrowing the remaining
commensurate modulated phases. It’s interesting to notice
that for K < −1.0 we can observe a direct transition from the
ferromagnetic phase to the 1/4 phase, without the phase 1/6
between them, as would be usual for the K = 0 case.
13
Brazilian Journal of Physics (2023) 53:95
Another kind of observation that we can make in this
model is the effects of the crystalline field D on the T-p
phase diagram. Similar to what was pointed out earlier for
the K case, the nontrivial effects of D are those where D
takes on negative values, favouring the value 0 for the spins.
Some effects of decreasing the values of D from −0.2 to −0.5
in the T-p phase diagrams are shown in Fig. 4.
The negative values of D show a first effect of widening
of the modulated phase 1/6 on the ground state. As can be
seen, the phase now extends from a value equal to 1 + D to
a value equal to 1 − D. This is the same effect observed for
small negative values of K, and is true for 0 ≥ D ≥ −0.5.
Such widening effects of both parameters are observed more
clearly in the ground state phase diagrams shown in the next
section. Another visible effect is the increasing dominance
of the paramagnetic phase, which starts to take over the
region of the phase diagram between the ferromagnetic and
modulated phases. In this process, the incommensurate mod-
ulated region and commensurate modulated phases close to
ferromagnetic phase, such as the 1/8 phase, becomes pro-
gressively suppressed until they disappear for D = −0.5, as
shown in Fig. 4, where we can see a direct transition between
the 1/6 and paramagnetic phases. As the temperature tran-
sition between the paramagnetic and modulated phases is
lowered, the remaining commensurate phases such as 2/10
become “squeezed”. All of these effects increase with the
absolute value of D, as should be expected, since this change
favours the 0 state of the spins.
Some distinctions between the effects of the parameters
K and D are easier to be observed for higher absolute values
Brazilian Journal of Physics (2023) 53:95
Fig. 4  T-p phase diagrams with
varying D, and K = H = 0.
a D = −0.2, b D = −0.3, c
D = −0.4 and d D = −0.5
of these parameters, which can be done comparing Fig. 3(d)
and Fig. 4(d). While the former destabilizes completely the
ferromagnetic phase, the latter diminishes it in temperature
by favouring the paramagnetic phase without shifting the
modulated phases to lower values of p. In both cases the
region between the ferromagnetic and modulated phases
is occupied by the paramagnetic and/or the antiquadrupo-
lar phases. Nonetheless, specially at low temperatures, for
higher values of −K there is a clear separation between fer-
romagnetic and the modulated phases.
The effects of these parameters are further explored in a
set of phase diagrams shown in Fig. 5, showing the results
of a combination of negative values of both D and K. The
resulting phase diagrams show a combination of the effects
exhibited in Fig. 3 and Fig. 4, varying K and D individually.
There is the widening of the modulated phase 1/6 on the
ground state, as seen for both negative K and D, a separa-
tion between the paramagnetic and ferromagnetic phases for
negative K, and a compression of the ferromagnetic phase
for negative D. Comparing the cases where K = −1.25 and
D = −0.3, Fig. 5(d), with K = −1.25 and K = −1.5, both
with D = 0, Fig. 3(c) and (d), we can see that increasing −D
somewhat enhances effectively the value of −K , but also
suppress both the antiquadrupolar phase and the reentrance
of the 1/4 phase around it.
At last, it is important to mention that the map converges
to a minimum of the free energy of the system, which for
some set of parameters can be more than one, indicating
a coexistence of phases. For instance, in Fig. 6 we show
Page 7 of 11 95
portions of the phase diagrams shown in Fig. 3 and Fig. 4
with an initial condition M0 ≃ 0 in order to favour spe-
cially the convergence to disordered phases. We can see
that in the case of negative values of K the antiquadrupolar
phase coexists with both ferromagnetic phase and modu-
lated phases in an intermediate temperature region and for
a small range of values of p. In the case of negative values
of the D, the paramagnetic phase coexists at low tempera-
tures in a wide range of values of p with both ferromagnetic
phase and modulated phases. The difference in range of
these effects lies in the very nature of K and D, while the
former is a biquadratic interaction between first neighbours,
the last is a local field that promotes explicitly the 0 spin
values, and this aspect is also reflected in the ground states
of the system.
4 Ground State
To understand the low temperature properties, and hence,
the basic structure of the ordered phases of the model, it is
important to investigate its ground states. One way to obtain
precise phase diagrams for the ground state of the system is
to analyse the equations for the map (42)–(44) in the limit
of T → 0.
Since Eq. (42) for xn+1 is trivial, we need to concentrate on
the ones for yn+1 and zn+1 — Eqs. (43) and (44) respectively.
For the purpose of clarity, we will first rewrite them in expo-
nential form in order to obtain:
13
 95 Page 8 of 11 Brazilian Journal of Physics (2023) 53:95

Fig. 5  T-p phase diagrams with

varying K and D, and H = 0.
a K = −0.2 and D = −0.3
b K = −0.5 and D = −0.3 c
K = −0.5 and D = −0.5 d
K = −1.25 and D = −0.3

xn+1 = yn
B ≡ D + Kzn − yn + pxn − H. (47)
eA∕T − eB∕T
yn+1 =
1 + eA∕T + eB∕T (45) When we take the limit of T → 0, the values of eA∕T and eB∕T
1
zn+1 = )−1 will depend only of the sign of A and B. Given that, there
are 4 possibilities to observe for the initial conditions of the
(
1+ e A∕T + eB∕T
map, corresponding to combinations of positive or negative
where values for A and B. After a simple analysis, we get to these
A ≡ D + Kzn + yn − pxn + H (46) possible correspondences for when T → 0:

Fig. 6  T-p phase diagrams with

initial condition M0 = 0.01
favouring disordered phases. The
rest of the figures are done using
M0 = 0.99 as the initial condi-
tion. a D = H = 0 and K = −1.0,
in contrast with Fig. 3b, b
D = H = 0 and K = −1.25,
in contrast with Fig. 3c, c
K = H = 0 and D = −0.3,
in contrast with Fig. 4b, d
K = H = 0 and D = −0.4, in
contrast with Fig. 4c

13
Brazilian Journal of Physics (2023) 53:95
A > 0 and B > 0 → yn+1 = 0 and zn+1 = 1 ,
A > 0 and B < 0 → yn+1 = 1 and zn+1 = 1 ,
(48)
A < 0 and B > 0 → yn+1 = −1 and zn+1 = 1 ,
A < 0 and B < 0 → yn+1 = 0 and zn+1 = 0 .
We can then iterate this simplified map, which depends
only on the signs of A and B, from initial conditions of the
system to generate precise phase diagrams for the ground
states of the system. It’s interesting to notice that although
x1 depends on the value of y0 , x2 and beyond will depend on
the values of the previous yn, which in turn depends only on
the sign of A and B. Even so, because A and B also depend
on the values of D, K, p and H, the modulated phases can
have more than just four possibilities. Using this simplified
map, we can obtain phase diagrams for many sets of param-
eters on the ground state. Some of the most relevant ones
are presented in Fig. 7.
We can observe the effect of an increasingly negative
value of K on the ground states in Fig. 7(a). For K = 0, we
have the expected ferromagnetic and 1/4 phases. Increasing
the absolute value of K, it is expected for spin states 0 to be
favoured as when the first neighbour spins possess states
±1. This causes the 1/6 ground state to appear between fer-
romagnetic and 1/4 ground states, and for higher values of
−K , a different 1/4 ground state, more diluted than the usual
one, dominates the phase diagram. To better understand this
effect, it is important to have a closer look at these ground
states. Let us denote ↑ as the +1 spin state, ↓ as −1, and
0 otherwise. Apart from symmetry related degenerescen-
cies, while the ferromagnetic ground state corresponds to
Fig. 7  Ground state (T = 0)
phase diagrams for differ-
ent pairs of parameters in the
D, K, p and H space, where only
the indicated pair is varying
and the remaining pair are held
constant (in general set to 0
otherwise noticed). a p − K ,
b p − D, c D − K with p = 1.5
and d p − H . The ground state
colour follows the same colour
scheme presented in Fig. 2,
except to the lighter green which
corresponds to a more diluted
1/4 ground state whose spin
values are ↑ 0 ↓ 0. The light
grey in this case corresponds to
an ordered 0 ground state
Page 9 of 11 95
constant ↑ state across the Bethe lattice shells, the 1/4 ground
state that appears for 0 ≥ K > −1 corresponds to a periodic
configuration of ↑↑↓↓. The 1/6 ground state corresponds
to ↑↑ 0 ↓↓ 0. Finally, the diluted 1/4 phase that appears for
K ≤ −1 corresponds to ↑ 0 ↓ 0 . The ground state structure
shown in Fig. 7(a), reflects the role of negative K in promot-
ing 0 states as first neighbours of ±1 states.
Now we turn our attention to the effect of an increas-
ingly negative value of D on the ground states, shown in
Fig. 7(b). For D = 0 , we have the expected ferromagnetic
and 1/4 ground states. Increasing the absolute value of a
negative D, it’s expected for states 0 to be favoured in all
positions. As in the case with negative K, the first effect of
a negative D on the ground state is the gradual appearance
of the 1/6 ground state between the ferromagnetic and the
1/4 ground states. The main difference is that for D ≤ −0.5
we can notice the appearance of a constant 0 state across the
Bethe lattice shells that increasingly dominates the phase
diagram for increasing −D . Furthermore, it is remarkable
that the diluted 1/4 ground state also appears for D ≤ −1, as
a result of the competition between p (that favours alternat-
ing ±1 periodic states) and negative D (that favours 0 states),
allowing a transition between the diluted 1/4 phase and the
0 ordered phase.
By selecting an interesting value of p, we can observe
the combined effects of K and D on the ground state. In
Fig. 7(c) we show the effect of both parameters in the case
p = 1.5 where ground states with interleaved +1 and −1 as
second neighbours are preferred. It is important to remember
that negative K favours 0 spin states in vicinity of ±1 spin
states, while negative D favours 0 states everywhere. There
13
 95 Page 10 of 11
Fig. 8  H − T phase diagram for K = 0, D = −0.5 and p = 1.0. Dif-
ferent phases are described in the main text
are some effects to be examined here. First, for D < −1.5
the only existing phase is the ordered 0 phase, as expected.
Besides this, we can notice that the ground state diagram is
symmetric around the line D = K , which reinforces some of
the results discussed in the previous section. This symmetry
means that the effects of D and K, up to some level and at
T = 0, reinforce each other in promoting 0 spin states. The
sequence of ground states along the line D = K , for small
negative values of D, reflects the one observed in Figs. 7(a)
and (b): 1/4, 1/6 and diluted 1/4.
In order to complement the results for varying K and D,
we investigate preliminary the effect of the external field H
on the ground state, as can be seen in Fig. 7(d). As expected,
an increase on the value of H favours locally +1 spin states,
enhancing the prevalence of a ferromagnetic ground state
in detriment of the 1/4 ground state. Some more interesting
effects of H are discussed in the next section.
5 Phase Diagram with External Magnetic Field
In the section we make a preliminary exploration of the
model under the influence of an external magnetic field
H, and present a single phase diagram in Fig. 8 for K = 0 ,
D = −0.5 and p = 1 to demonstrate the possibilities opened
by this parameter on the model.
The prominent blue region represents a magnetized para-
magnetic phase, and hence a disordered phase, while the
light grey region on the bottom left portion of the phase
diagram corresponds to the 0 ordered phase that survives in
the presence of both temperature and the external field. This
is a new result that highlights the difference of an ordered 0
phase and the magnetized paramagnetic phase. The blob in
the centre of the phase diagram shows a complex mixture
of phases. The white region represents the incommensurate
modulated phases, and the red regions on the top boundary
13
Brazilian Journal of Physics (2023) 53:95
and inside the blob represent the 1/6 phase. The lower right
portion of this blob we can see that modulated phases fold
over each another, while the lower left region shows a com-
plex structure that could indicate signatures of chaos with
shrimp structures [16]. This and other effects of the external
field will be the subject of further investigation.
6 Conclusions
In this work we were able to show new features in the behav-
iour of modulated systems. The spin-1 BEGV model allows
for stabilizing different ordered phase together with preemi-
nence of the 0 ordered phase and disordered phases such as
the paramagnetic and antiquadrupolar phases. It generates
many multiphase points at zero temperature, a stable modu-
lated ground state other than the 1/4 for a finite range of
parameters, which are novel features in this class of models.
The competition also gives room to phase diagrams where
the modulated and ferromagnetic phases are co-stable with
a 0 ordered state and the paramagnetic phase and the anti-
quadrupolar phases. The ground state of the model is very
complex with many regions of co-stability between different
modulated phases or modulated-0 ordered phases. The way
to find the limit of zero temperature of the mapping was
nontrivial and has never been reported. Co-stability between
ferromagnetic and 0 ordered phase is also found.
A preliminary study of the field behaviour of the model
shows an original feature: the 0 ordered phase remains stable
for finite external field. This is the first time that this phase
is clearly distinguished from the paramagnetic phase, which
happens at higher temperatures and has nonzero magneti-
zation in the presence of the field. Both phases have zero
magnetization at zero field, but different field behaviour.
Besides, we show a modulated region in the form of a bubble
embedded within these phases behaviour that has never been
reported in modulated systems in the presence of external
field. The structure of the bubble is complex, showing three
regions: a folded phase region, another similar to shrimp-
like behaviour and another with a 1/6 stable phase. The
detailed exploration of this behaviour will be the subject of
further investigation.
Declarations
The authors declare no competing interests.
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