The Abelian sandpile model on a random binary tree

DOI10.1007/S10955-012-0498-6MaRDI QIDQ438758zbMATH OpenOpenAlexFDO

Authors F. Redig, Wioletta Ruszel, Ellen Saada

Publication date 31 July 2012

Published in Journal of Statistical Physics (Search for Journal in Brave)

Copyright license Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International

Full work available at URL https://arxiv.org/abs/1202.5131

zbMATH Keywords

phase transitionrandom binary treessandpile modelsself-organized criticality

Mathematics Subject Classification ID

Phase transitions (general) in equilibrium statistical mechanics (82B26) Critical phenomena in equilibrium statistical mechanics (82B27)

Abstract: We study the abelian sandpile model on a random binary tree. Using a transfer matrix approach introduced by Dhar & Majumdar, we prove exponential decay of correlations, and in a small supercritical region (i.e., where the branching process survives with positive probability) exponential decay of avalanche sizes. This shows a phase transition phenomenon between exponential decay and power law decay of avalanche sizes. Our main technical tools are: (1) A recursion for the ratio between the numbers of weakly and strongly allowed configurations which is proved to have a well-defined stochastic solution; (2) quenched and annealed estimates of the eigenvalues of a product of $n$ random transfer matrices.

Review text

The Abelian sandpile model (ASM) is being discussed both in mathematics and physics under different names. In physics, it is known as the paradigmatic model of self-organized criticality (SOC), while, in mathematics, the ASM is known, for example, as the integrate-and-fire model having applications in neuroscience. The ASM has been studied both on the Bethe lattice (that is, a root-less binary tree) and on random graphs. There are fundamental differences between the treatments of the ASM on Bethe lattices and on random trees. The reviewed paper presents almost a textbook quality treatment of the ASM on random binary trees. It involves the application of random matrices. While on Bethe lattices, it involves the application of products of two-by-two transfer matrices so that the results involve \(n\)-th powers of such matrices, in the case of random binary trees, one has to deal with the products of \(n\) random matrices. The crucial quantity in the last case is the characteristic ratio. It is the ratio between the numbers of weakly and strongly allowed configurations. The authors (a) develop the recursion relation between the numbers of weakly and strongly allowed configurations which is proved to have a well-defined stochastic solution and, (b) obtain quenched and annealed estimates of the eigenvalues of a product of \(n\) random transfer matrices. This allows them to analyse in some detail likely phase transitions in the ASM.

Recommendations

• Mean-field avalanche size exponent for sandpiles on Galton-Watson trees
• Non-criticality criteria for abelian sandpile models with sources and sinks
• The Abelian sandpile model on an infinite tree
• Infinite volume limit for the stationary distribution of Abelian sandpile models
• The abelian sandpile model on randomly rooted graphs and self-similar groups

Cites work

• Abelian sandpile models in infinite volume
• Course 14 Mathematical aspects of the Abelian Sandpile model
• scientific article; zbMATH DE number 1231230 (Why is no real title available?)
• scientific article; zbMATH DE number 1996193 (Why is no real title available?)
• scientific article; zbMATH DE number 884971 (Why is no real title available?)
• scientific article; zbMATH DE number 2205559 (Why is no real title available?)
• scientific article; zbMATH DE number 3375319 (Why is no real title available?)
• Real Analysis and Probability
• Self-organized critical state of sandpile automaton models
• The Abelian sandpile model on an infinite tree
• The abelian sandpile model on randomly rooted graphs and self-similar groups
• The range of random walk on trees and related trapping problem

Cited in

(9)

• The Abelian sandpile model on an infinite tree
• The upper critical dimension of the abelian sandpile model.
• The abelian sandpile model on randomly rooted graphs and self-similar groups
• Convergence of the random abelian sandpile
• Mean-field avalanche size exponent for sandpiles on Galton-Watson trees
• Height probabilities in the abelian sandpile model on the generalized trees.
• scientific article; zbMATH DE number 5295462 (Why is no real title available?)
• Non-criticality criteria for abelian sandpile models with sources and sinks
• Deterministic abelian sandpile models and patterns

This page was built for publication: The Abelian sandpile model on a random binary tree

Report a bug (only for logged in users!)Click here to report a bug for this page (MaRDI item Q438758)