2004/03/31 by D. Belitz, T. R. Kirkpatrick, Thomas Vojta · 3 citations
Materials Science · Physics and Astronomy · #Material Dynamics and Properties #Physics of Superconductivity and Magnetism #Theoretical and Computational Physics #cond-mat.stat-mech #cond-mat.str-el
paper · pdf · doi:10.1103/revmodphys.77.579
published as Rev. Mod. Phys. 77, 579 (2005) · 55pp, 25 eps figs; final version, to appear in Rev Mod Phys
arxiv created 2004/10/21 · openalex publication_date 2005/07/01 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
This review discusses a paradigm that has become of increasing importance in the theory of quantum phase transitions, namely, the coupling of the order-parameter fluctuations to other soft modes and the resulting impossibility of constructing a simple Landau-Ginzburg-Wilson theory in terms of the order parameter only. The soft modes in question are manifestations of generic scale invariance, i.e., the appearance of long-range order in whole regions in the phase diagram. The concept of generic scale invariance and its influence on critical behavior is explained using various examples, both classical and quantum mechanical. The peculiarities of quantum phase transitions are discussed, with emphasis on the fact that they are more susceptible to the effects of generic scale invariance than their classical counterparts. Explicit examples include the quantum ferromagnetic transition in metals, with or without quenched disorder; the metal-superconductor transition at zero temperature; and the quantum antiferromagnetic transition. Analogies with classical phase transitions in liquid crystals and classical fluids are pointed out, and a unifying conceptual framework is developed for all transitions that are influenced by generic scale invariance.