Transfer Matrices for the Partition Function of the Potts Model on Cyclic and Mobius Lattice Strips

TL;DR

This paper develops a general method to compute transfer matrices for the Potts model's partition function on cyclic and M"obius strips of various lattices, enabling explicit calculations for arbitrary widths and revealing simple formulas for determinants and traces.

Contribution

It introduces a novel, systematic approach for calculating transfer matrices for the Potts model on lattice strips of arbitrary width, including explicit formulas and methods for both cyclic and M"obius boundary conditions.

Findings

Explicit transfer matrices for arbitrary width L_y are derived.

Simple formulas for determinants and traces of transfer matrices are provided.

Results include formulas for Tutte polynomials and self-dual lattice strips.

Abstract

We present a method for calculating transfer matrices for the $q$-state Potts model partition functions $Z(G,q,v)$, for arbitrary $q$ and temperature variable $v$, on cyclic and M\"obius strip graphs $G$ of the square (sq), triangular (tri), and honeycomb (hc) lattices of width $L_y$ vertices and of arbitrarily great length $L_x$ vertices. For the cyclic case we express the partition function as $Z(\Lambda,L_y \times L_x,q,v)=\sum_{d=0}^{L_y} c^{(d)} Tr[(T_{Z,\Lambda,L_y,d})^m]$, where $\Lambda$ denotes lattice type, $c^{(d)}$ are specified polynomials of degree $d$ in $q$, $T_{Z,\Lambda,L_y,d}$ is the transfer matrix in the degree-$d$ subspace, and $m=L_x$ ($L_x/2$) for $\Lambda=sq, tri (hc)$, respectively. An analogous formula is given for M\"obius strips. We exhibit a method for calculating $T_{Z,\Lambda,L_y,d}$ for arbitrary $L_y$. Explicit results for arbitrary $L_y$ are given for $T_{Z,\Lambda,L_y,d}$ with $d=L_y$ and $d=L_y-1$. In particular, we find very simple formulas the determinant $det(T_{Z,\Lambda,L_y,d})$, and trace $Tr(T_{Z,\Lambda,L_y})$. Corresponding results are given for the equivalent Tutte polynomials for these lattice strips and illustrative examples are included. We also present formulas for self-dual cyclic strips of the square lattice.