Mixing properties and exponential decay for lattice systems in finite volumes. (Q1879860)

Many models encountered in statistical mechanics exhibit exponential decay of the two-point function at sufficiently high temperatures. Typical spin systems exhibit exponential decay or correlations, and many standard percolation models are known or believed to have exponential decay of connectivities for those noncritical parameter values at which there is no percolation. Such exponential decay is by its nature an infinite-volume property, but it does have a finite-volume analog. The main result of this paper is the following Theorem. Let \(P\) be a translation-invariant bond percolation model on \(\mathcal B(Z^2)\) having semibounded energy, exponential decay of connectivities and the weak mixing property. Then \(P\) has uniform exponential decay of finite-volume connectivities for the class of all simply lattice-connected subsets of \(\mathcal B(Z^2)\) with arbitrary bond boundary conditions, for both the Euclidean and restricted-path metrics. For example, for the Fortuin-Kasteleyn random cluster model in two dimensions, the author shows that exponential decay of connectivity in infinite volume implies exponential decay in simply connected finite volumes, uniformly over all such volumes and all boundary conditions, and implies a strong mixing property for such volumes with certain types of boundary conditions. For the Potts model in two dimensions, the author also shows that exponential decay of correlations in infinite volume implies a strong mixing property in simply connected finite volumes, uniformly over all such volumes and all boundary conditions.