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A. Coniglio

Publications and source records attributed to A. Coniglio.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Statistical Mechanics of segregation in binary granular mixtures

We discuss mixing/segregation phenomena in a schematic hard spheres lattice model for binary mixtures of granular media, by analytical evaluation, within Bethe-Peierls approximation, of Edwards' partition function. The presence of fluid-crystal phase transitions in the system drives segregation as a form of phase separation. Within a pure phase, gravity can also induce a kind of vertical segregation not associated to phase transitions.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

Glass transition in granular media

In the framework of schematic hard spheres lattice models for granular media we investigate the phenomenon of the ``jamming transition''. In particular, using Edwards' approach, by analytical calculations at a mean field level, we derive the system phase diagram and show that ``jamming'' corresponds to a phase transition from a ``fluid'' to a ``glassy'' phase, observed when crystallization is avoided. Interestingly, the nature of such a ``glassy'' phase turns out to be the same found in mean field models for glass formers.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

Pacman percolation: a model for enzyme gel degradation

We study a model for the gel degradation by an enzyme, where the gel is schematized as a cubic lattice, and the enzyme as a random walker, that cuts the bonds over which it passes. The model undergoes a (reverse) percolation transition, which for low density of enzymes falls in a universality class different from random percolation. In particular we have measured a gel fraction critical exponent beta=1.0+-0.1, in excellent agreement with experiments made on the real system.

cond-mat.soft↗

Slow dynamics in gelation phenomena: From chemical gels to colloidal glasses

We here discuss the results of 3d MonteCarlo simulations of a minimal lattice model for gelling systems. We focus on the dynamics, investigated by means of the time autocorrelation function of the density fluctuations and the particle mean square displacement. We start from the case of chemical gelation, i.e. with permanent bonds, we characterize the critical dynamics as determined by the formation of the percolating cluster, as actually observed in polymer gels. By opportunely introducing a finite bond life time $τ_b$ the dynamics displays relevant changes and eventually the onset of a glassy regime. This has been interpreted in terms of a crossover to dynamics more typical of colloidal systems and a novel connection between classical gelation and recent results on colloidal systems is suggested. By systematically comparing the results in the case of permanent bonds to finite bond lifetime, the crossover and the glassy regime can be understood in terms of effective clusters.

cond-mat.soft↗

Statistical Mechanics of jamming and segregation in granular media

In the framework of schematic hard spheres lattice models we discuss Edwards' Statistical Mechanics approach to granular media. As this approach appears to hold here to a very good approximation, by analytical calculations of Edwards' partition function at a mean field level we derive the system phase diagram and show that ``jamming'' corresponds to a phase transition from a ``fluid'' to a ``glassy'' phase, observed when crystallization is avoided. The nature of such a ``glassy'' phase turns out to be the same found in mean field models for glass formers. In the same context, we also briefly discuss mixing/segregation phenomena of binary mixtures: the presence of fluid-crystal phase transitions drives segregation as a form of phase separation and, within a given phase, gravity can also induce a kind of ``vertical'' segregation, usually not associated to phase transitions.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

Phase coexistence and relaxation of the spherical frustrated Blume-Emery-Griffiths model with attractive particles coupling

We study the equilibrium and dynamical properties of a spherical version of the frustrated Blume-Emery-Griffiths model at mean field level for attractive particle-particle coupling (K>0). Beyond a second order transition line from a paramagnetic to a (replica symmetric) spin glass phase, the density-temperature phase diagram is characterized by a tricritical point from which, interestingly, a first order transition line starts with coexistence of the two phases. In the Langevin dynamics the paramagnetic/spin glass discontinuous transition line is found to be dependent on the initial density; close to this line, on the paramagnetic side, the correlation-response plot displays interrupted aging.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

A unifying model for chemical and colloidal gels

We investigate the slow dynamics in gelling systems by means of MonteCarlo simulations on the cubic lattice of a minimal statistical mechanics model. By opportunely varying some model parameter we are able to describe a crossover from the chemical gelation behaviour to dynamics more typical of colloidal systems. The results suggest a novel connection linking classical gelation, as originally described by Flory, to more recent results on colloidal systems.

cond-mat.soft↗

Percolation, Morphogenesis, and Burgers Dynamics in Blood Vessels Formation

Experiments of in vitro formation of blood vessels show that cells randomly spread on a gel matrix autonomously organize to form a connected vascular network. We propose a simple model which reproduces many features of the biological system. We show that both the model and the real system exhibit a fractal behavior at small scales, due to the process of migration and dynamical aggregation, followed at large scale by a random percolation behavior due to the coalescence of aggregates. The results are in good agreement with the analysis performed on the experimental data.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

Dynamics and thermodynamics of the spherical frustrated Blume-Emery-Griffiths model

We introduce a spherical version of the frustrated Blume-Emery-Griffiths model and solve exactly the statics and the Langevin dynamics for zero particle-particle coupling (K=0). In this case the model exhibits an equilibrium transition from a disordered to a spin glass phase which is always continuous for nonzero temperature. The same phase diagram results from the study of the dynamics. Furthermore, we notice the existence of a nonequilibrium time regime in a region of the disordered phase, characterized by aging as occurs in the spin glass phase. Due to a finite equilibration time, the system displays in this region the pattern of interrupted aging.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

A lattice glass model with no tendency to crystallize

We study a lattice model with two body interactions that reproduces in three-dimensions many features of structural glasses, like cage effect and vanishing diffusivity. While having a crystalline state at low temperatures, it does not crystallize when quenched, even at the slowest cooling rate used, which makes it suitable to study the glass transition. We study the model on the Bethe lattice as well, and find a scenario typical of p-spin models, as in the Biroli Mezard model.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

A Geometrical Interpretation of Hyperscaling Breaking in the Ising Model

In random percolation one finds that the mean field regime above the upper critical dimension can simply be explained through the coexistence of infinite percolating clusters at the critical point. Because of the mapping between percolation and critical behaviour in the Ising model, one might check whether the breakdown of hyperscaling in the Ising model can also be intepreted as due to an infinite multiplicity of percolating Fortuin-Kasteleyn clusters at the critical temperature T_c. Preliminary results suggest that the scenario is much more involved than expected due to the fact that the percolation variables behave differently on the two sides of T_c.

hep-lat↗

Spin and density overlaps in the frustrated Ising lattice gas

We perform large scale simulations of the frustrated Ising lattice gas, a three-dimensional lattice model of a structural glass, using the parallel tempering technique. We evaluate the spin and density overlap distributions, and the corresponding non-linear susceptibilities, as a function of the chemical potential. We then evaluate the relaxation functions of the spin and density self-overlap, and study the behavior of the relaxation times. The results suggest that the spin variables undergo a transition very similar to the one of the Ising spin glass, while the density variables do not show any sign of transition at the same chemical potential. It may be that the density variables undergo a transition at a higher chemical potential, inside the phase where the spins are frozen.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

Autocorrelation functions in 3D fully frustrated systems

We present a numerical study of autocorrelation functions of a 3D Fully Frustrated Ising model (FFIM) simulated by spin-flip Monte Carlo dynamics, finding simple exponential decay for all the temperature above the critical temperature T_c for the autocorrelation of squared magnetization, and stretched exponential decay for the energy autocorrelation below a temperature T^* with T_c < T^* =< T_p where T_p is the Kasteleyn-Fortuin and Coniglio-Klein percolation temperature. The results are compared to those on 2D FFIM to give insight on the relevant mechanism in the onset of stretched exponential relaxation functions.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

Comment on ``Two Time Scales and Violation of the Fluctuation-Dissipation Theorem in a Finite Dimensional Model for Structural Glasses''

In cond-mat/0002074 Ricci-Tersenghi et al. find two linear regimes in the fluctuation-dissipation relation between density-density correlations and associated responses of the Frustrated Ising Lattice Gas. Here we show that this result does not seem to correspond to the equilibrium quantities of the model, by measuring the overlap distribution P(q) of the density and comparing the FDR expected on the ground of the P(q) with the one measured in the off-equilibrium experiments.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

Viscosity critical behaviour at the gel point in a 3d lattice model

Within a recently introduced model based on the bond-fluctuation dynamics we study the viscoelastic behaviour of a polymer solution at the gelation threshold. We here present the results of the numerical simulation of the model on a cubic lattice: the percolation transition, the diffusion properties and the time autocorrelation functions have been studied. From both the diffusion coefficients and the relaxation times critical behaviour a critical exponent k for the viscosity coefficient has been extracted: the two results are comparable within the errors and are in close agreement with the Rouse model prediction and with some experimental results. In the critical region below the transition threshold the time autocorrelation functions show a long time tail which is well fitted by a stretched exponential decay.

cond-mat.soft↗

Scaling properties in off equilibrium dynamical processes

In the present paper, we analyze the consequences of scaling hypotheses on dynamic functions, as two times correlations $C(t,t')$. We show, under general conditions, that $C(t,t')$ must obey the following scaling behavior $C(t,t') = ϕ_1(t)^{f(β)}{\cal{S}}(β)$, where the scaling variable is $β=β(ϕ_1(t')/ϕ_1(t))$ and $ϕ_1(t')$, $ϕ_1(t)$ two undetermined functions. The presence of a non constant exponent $f(β)$ signals the appearance of multiscaling properties in the dynamics.

cond-mat↗

Crossover properties from random percolation to frustrated percolation

We investigate the crossover properties of the frustrated percolation model on a two-dimensional square lattice, with asymmetric distribution of ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic interactions. We determine the critical exponents nu, gamma and beta of the percolation transition of the model, for various values of the density of antiferromagnetic interactions pi in the range 0 0.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗