Universal scaling behavior of non-equilibrium phase transitions

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates how universal scaling functions can be used to analyze and distinguish universality classes in non-equilibrium absorbing phase transitions, focusing on static, dynamical, and finite-size scaling.

Contribution

It provides a systematic analysis and a visual gallery of universal scaling functions for non-equilibrium phase transitions, enhancing classification methods.

Findings

Universal scaling functions effectively identify universality classes.

A comprehensive gallery of scaling functions is presented.

The approach applies to static, dynamical, and finite-size scaling.

Abstract

One of the most impressive features of continuous phase transitions is the concept of universality, that allows to group the great variety of different critical phenomena into a small number of universality classes. All systems belonging to a given universality class have the same critical exponents, and certain scaling functions become identical near the critical point. It is the aim of this work to demonstrate the usefulness of universal scaling functions for the analysis of non-equilibrium phase transitions. In order to limit the coverage of this article, we focus on a particular class of non-equilibrium critical phenomena, the so-called absorbing phase transitions. These phase transitions arise from a competition of opposing processes, usually creation and annihilation processes. The transition point separates an active phase and an absorbing phase in which the dynamics is frozen. A systematic analysis of universal scaling functions of absorbing phase transitions is presented, including static, dynamical, and finite-size scaling measurements. As a result a picture gallery of universal scaling functions is presented which allows to identify and to distinguish universality classes.