Mean Field Spin Glass Models under Weak External Field

TL;DR

This paper analyzes the fluctuation and distribution of free energy in mean-field spin glass models with weak external fields, identifying three regimes based on external field strength and proving Gaussian CLTs in each.

Contribution

It introduces a new cluster-based approach for analyzing spin glasses with external fields, extending previous methods to regimes previously thought intractable.

Findings

Variance of free energy varies with external field strength regimes.

Gaussian CLTs are proved in all three regimes, including up to the critical temperature.

The approach applies to multiple spin glass models, including multi-species and diluted SK models.

Abstract

We study the fluctuation and limiting distribution of free energy in mean-field spin glass models with Ising spins under weak external fields. We prove that at high temperature, there are three sub-regimes concerning the strength of external field $h \approx \rho N^{-\alpha}$ with $\rho,\alpha\in (0,\infty)$. In the super-critical regime $\alpha < 1/4$, the variance of the log-partition function is $\approx N^{1-4\alpha}$. In the critical regime $\alpha = 1/4$, the fluctuation is of constant order but depends on $\rho$. Whereas, in the sub-critical regime $\alpha>1/4$, the variance is $\Theta(1)$ and does not depend on $\rho$. We explicitly express the asymptotic mean and variance in all three regimes and prove Gaussian central limit theorems. Our proofs mainly follow two approaches. One utilizes quadratic coupling and Guerra's interpolation scheme for Gaussian disorder, extending to many other spin glass models. However, this approach can prove the CLT only at very high temperatures. The other one is a cluster-based approach for general symmetric disorders, first used in the seminal work of Aizenman, Lebowitz, and Ruelle~(Comm.~Math.~Phys.~112 (1987), no.~1, 3--20) for the zero external field case. It was believed that this approach does not work if the external field is present. We show that if the external field is present but not too strong, it still works with a new cluster structure. In particular, we prove the CLT up to the critical temperature in the Sherrington-Kirkpatrick (SK) model when $\alpha \ge 1/4$. We further address the generality of this cluster-based approach. Specifically, we give similar results for the multi-species SK model and diluted SK model.