Finite size scaling in three-dimensional bootstrap percolation

TL;DR

This paper investigates the finite size scaling behavior of bootstrap percolation on a three-dimensional lattice, specifically for the critical case where the threshold equals the dimension, confirming a conjecture about the scaling function.

Contribution

It provides a detailed analysis of the finite size scaling function for 3D bootstrap percolation at the threshold case, proving a conjecture by van Enter.

Findings

Finite size scaling function is proportional to 1/ln(ln L).

Confirmed the conjecture proposed by van Enter.

Extended understanding of finite size effects in bootstrap percolation.

Abstract

We consider the problem of bootstrap percolation on a three dimensional lattice and we study its finite size scaling behavior. Bootstrap percolation is an example of Cellular Automata defined on the $d$-dimensional lattice $\{1,2,...,L\}^d$ in which each site can be empty or occupied by a single particle; in the starting configuration each site is occupied with probability $p$, occupied sites remain occupied for ever, while empty sites are occupied by a particle if at least $\ell$ among their $2d$ nearest neighbor sites are occupied. When $d$ is fixed, the most interesting case is the one $\ell=d$: this is a sort of threshold, in the sense that the critical probability $p_c$ for the dynamics on the infinite lattice ${\Bbb Z}^d$ switches from zero to one when this limit is crossed. Finite size effects in the three-dimensional case are already known in the cases $\ell\le 2$: in this paper we discuss the case $\ell=3$ and we show that the finite size scaling function for this problem is of the form $f(L)={\mathrm{const}}/\ln\ln L$. We prove a conjecture proposed by A.C.D. van Enter.