The specific heat anomaly stems from a third-order phase transition in the 2D lattice sine-Gordon model

Loris Di Cairano; Alexandre Tkatchenko

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arXiv · 2504.20766

The specific heat anomaly stems from a third-order phase transition in the 2D lattice sine-Gordon model

Loris Di Cairano·Alexandre Tkatchenko

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Abstract

The specific heat anomaly (SHA) is broadly observed in statistical mechanics, appearing as a smooth, system-size-independent peak in the specific heat, in contrast to the singular behavior typical of second-order phase transitions (PTs). Its origin remains heavily debated: some attribute it to finite-size effects, others to unidentified phase transitions. Here we investigate SHA using the two-dimensional sine-Gordon (2D-sG) model and microcanonical inflection point analysis (MIPA), uncovering two key results. First, we show that the roughening transition in the 2D-sG model is a genuine third-order PT under MIPA, where the standard thermodynamic quantities remain continuous. This clarifies the ambiguity in the literature, where this transition was often, though inconclusively, attributed to a Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless (BKT) transition. Through the use of MIPA and a comprehensive analysis of standard thermodynamic observables, we provide a coherent thermodynamic characterization that redefines the nature of this transition. Second, we find that the SHA is not itself a PT but rather the thermodynamic fingerprint of this third-order transition. These findings clarify the nature of SHA within the 2D-sG model and suggest that similar anomalies in other systems, such as the XY model, may likewise originate from third-order PTs, rather than mere crossovers. Our results provide a consistent thermodynamic interpretation of the SHA and highlight the broader relevance of third-order transitions in systems previously thought to exhibit only low-order or crossover transition.

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Loris Di Cairano, Alexandre Tkatchenko. 2025-04-29. The specific heat anomaly stems from a third-order phase transition in the 2D lattice sine-Gordon model. https://arxiv.org/abs/2504.20766

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