In this paper we study phase transitions for weakly interacting multiagent systems. By investigating the linear response of a system composed of a finite number of agents, we are able to probe the emergence in the thermodynamic limit of a singular behaviour of the susceptibility. We find clear evidence of the loss of analyticity due to a pole crossing the real axis of frequencies. Such behaviour has a degree of universality, as it does not depend on either the applied forcing nor on the considered observable. We present results relevant for both equilibrium and nonequilibrium phase transitions by studying the Desai-Zwanzig and Bonilla-Casado-Morillo models.
We review the occurrence of the patterns of the onset of chaos in low-dimensional nonlinear dissipative systems in leading topics of condensed matter physics and complex systems of various disciplines. We consider the dynamics associated with the attractors at period-doubling accumulation points and at tangent bifurcations to describe features of glassy dynamics, critical fluctuations and localization transitions. We recall that trajectories pertaining to the routes to chaos form families of time series that are readily transformed into networks via the Horizontal Visibility algorithm, and this in turn facilitates establish connections between entropy and Renormalization Group properties. We discretize the replicator equation of game theory to observe the onset of chaos in familiar social dilemmas, and also to mimic the evolution of high-dimensional ecological models. We describe an analytical framework of nonlinear mappings that reproduce rank distributions of large classes of data (including Zipfs law). We extend the discussion to point out a common circumstance of drastic contraction of configuration space driven by the attractors of these mappings. We mention the relation of generalized entropy expressions with the dynamics along and at the period doubling, intermittency and quasi-periodic routes to chaos. Finally, we refer to additional natural phenomena in complex systems where these conditions may manifest.
In this work we consider the phase transition from ordered to disordered states that occur in the Vicsek model of self-propelled particles. This model was proposed to describe the emergence of collective order in swarming systems. When noise is added to the motion of the particles, the onset of collective order occurs through a dynamical phase transition. Based on their numerical results, Vicsek and his colleagues originally concluded that this phase transition was of second order (continuous). However, recent numerical evidence seems to indicate that the phase transition might be of first order (discontinuous), thus challenging Vicseks original results. In this work we review the evidence supporting both aspects of this debate. We also show new numerical results indicating that the apparent discontinuity of the phase transition may in fact be a numerical artifact produced by the artificial periodicity of the boundary conditions.
(abridged) In this paper, we present the issues we consider as essential as far as the statistical mechanics of finite systems is concerned. In particular, we emphasis our present understanding of phase transitions in the framework of information theory. Information theory provides a thermodynamically-consistent treatment of finite, open, transient and expanding systems which are difficult problems in approaches using standard statistical ensembles. As an example, we analyze is the problem of boundary conditions, which in the framework of information theory must also be treated statistically. We recall that out of the thermodynamical limit the different ensembles are not equivalent and in particular they may lead to dramatically different equation of states, in the region of a first order phase transition. We recall the recent progresses achieved in the understanding of first-order phase transition in finite systems: the equivalence between the Yang-Lee theorem and the occurrence of bimodalities in the intensive ensemble and the presence of inverted curvatures of the thermodynamic potential of the associated extensive ensemble.
When a second-order phase transition is crossed at fine rate, the evolution of the system stops being adiabatic as a result of the critical slowing down in the neighborhood of the critical point. In systems with a topologically nontrivial vacuum manifold, disparate local choices of the ground state lead to the formation of topological defects. The universality class of the transition imprints a signature on the resulting density of topological defects: It obeys a power law in the quench rate, with an exponent dictated by a combination of the critical exponents of the transition. In inhomogeneous systems the situation is more complicated, as the spontaneous symmetry breaking competes with bias caused by the influence of the nearby regions that already chose the new vacuum. As a result, the choice of the broken symmetry vacuum may be inherited from the neighboring regions that have already entered the new phase. This competition between the inherited and spontaneous symmetry breaking enhances the role of causality, as the defect formation is restricted to a fraction of the system where the front velocity surpasses the relevant sound velocity and phase transition remains effectively homogeneous. As a consequence, the overall number of topological defects can be substantially suppressed. When the fraction of the system is small, the resulting total number of defects is still given by a power law related to the universality class of the transition, but exhibits a more pronounced dependence on the quench rate. This enhanced dependence complicates the analysis but may also facilitate experimental test of defect formation theories.
We study the response to perturbations in the thermodynamic limit of a network of coupled identical agents undergoing a stochastic evolution which, in general, describes non-equilibrium conditions. All systems are nudged towards the common centre of mass. We derive Kramers-Kronig relations and sum rules for the linear susceptibilities obtained through mean field Fokker-Planck equations and then propose corrections relevant for the macroscopic case, which incorporates in a self-consistent way the effect of the mutual interaction between the systems. Such an interaction creates a memory effect. We are able to derive conditions determining the occurrence of phase transitions specifically due to system-to-system interactions. Such phase transitions exist in the thermodynamic limit and are associated with the divergence of the linear response but are not accompanied by the divergence in the integrated autocorrelation time for a suitably defined observable. We clarify that such endogenous phase transitions are fundamentally different from other pathologies in the linear response that can be framed in the context of critical transitions. Finally, we show how our results can elucidate the properties of the Desai-Zwanzig model and of the Bonilla-Casado-Morillo model, which feature paradigmatic equilibrium and non-equilibrium phase transitions, respectively.