Categories
Disordered Systems electrical conductivity Percolation Transport Processes

Correlated Hopping in a Disordered Medium

R. Hilfer

Physical Review B 44, 628 (1991)
10.1103/PhysRevB.44.628

submitted on
Monday, March 6, 1989

This paper discusses random walks with memory on a percolating network as a model of correlated hopping transport through a disordered system. Correlations can arise from such sources as hard-core and Coulomb repulsions, correlated hops of groups of particles, or lattice-relaxation effects. In general these correlations will result in a difference between the hopping probability for return to the previously visited site and the probability to jump to another nearest neighbor of the currently occupied site. Thus the hopping process possesses a memory of its previous hop. Such a random walk is investigated in this paper for the case of bond percolation on a regular lattice. The frequency-dependent conductivity σ(ω) is calculated using a generalized effective-medium approximation. Results are presented for the linear chain and the hexagonal lattice. New features appear in both the real and the imaginary part of σ. These depend on the strength of the correlations and on the concentration of bonds. As an example, the possibility of a pronounced maximum in the real part of σ(ω) at finite frequencies is found, which is sometimes accompanied by a change of sign in the imaginary part. The results are found to agree qualitatively with experimental data on ionic transport in Na+ β-alumina, where both disorder and correlations are known to be important.



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Categories
Disordered Systems electrical conductivity Lattice Models Nonequilibrium Percolation Statistical Physics Transport Processes

Correlated Random Walks in Dynamically Disordered Systems

R. Hilfer, R. Orbach

in: Dynamical Processes in Condensed Molecular Systems
edited by: J. Klafter and J. Jortner and A. Blumen
World Scientific Publ.Co., Singapore, 175 (1989)
https://doi.org/10.1142/9789814434379_0009
ISBN: 978-981-4434-37-9

submitted on
Tuesday, November 22, 1988

We discuss correlated hopping motion in a dynamically disordered environment. Particles of type A with one hopping rate diffuse in a background of B-particles with a different hopping rate. Double occupancy of sites is forbidden. Without correlations the limit in which the ratio of hopping rates diverges corresponds to diffusion on a percolating network, while the case of equal hopping rates is that of self-diffusion in a lattice gas. We consider also the effect of correlations. In general these will change the transition rate of the A-particle to the previously occupied site as compared to the rate for transitions to all other neighbouring sites. We calculate the frequency dependent conductivity for this model with arbitrary ratio of hopping rates and correlation strength. Results are reported for the two dimensional hexagonal lattice and the three dimensional face centered cubic lattice. We obtain our results from a generalization of the effective medium approximation for frozen percolating networks. We predict the appearance of new features in real and imaginary part of the conductivity as a result of correlations. Crossover behaviour resulting from the combined effect of disorder and correlations leads to apparent power laws over roughly one to two decades in frequency. In addition we find a crossover between a low frequency regime where the response is governed by the rearrangements in the geometry and a high frequency regime where the geometry appears frozen. We calculate the correlation factor for the d.c. limit and check our results against Monte Carlo simulations on the hexagonal and face centered cubic lattices. In all cases we find good agreement.



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Categories
Disordered Systems electrical conductivity Percolation Random Walks Stochastic Processes Transport Processes

Continuous Time Random Walk Approach to Dynamic Percolation

R. Hilfer, R. Orbach

Chemical Physics 128, 275 (1988)
https://doi.org/10.1016/0301-0104(88)85076-6

submitted on
Friday, September 16, 1988

We present an approximate solution for time (frequency) dependent response under conditions of dynamic percolation which may be related to excitation transfer in some random structures. In particular, we investigate the dynamics of structures where one random component blocks a second (carrier) component. Finite concentrations of the former create a percolation network for the latter. When the blockers are allowed to move in time, the network seen by the carriers changes with time, allowing for long-range transport even if the instantaneous carrier site availability is less than pc, the critical percolation concentration. A specific example of this situation is electrical transport in sodium β”-alumina. The carriersare Na+ ions which can hop on a two-dimensional honeycomb lattice. The blockers are ions of much higher activation energy, such as Ba++. We study the frequency dependence of the conductivity for such a system. Given a fixed Ba++ hopping rate the Na+ ions experience a frozen site percolation environment for frequencies larger than the inverse hopping rate. At frequencies smaller than the inverse hopping rate, the Na+ ions experience a dynamic environment which allows long-rangetransport, even below the percoltion threshold. A continuous time random walk mode1 combined with an effective medium approximation allows us to arrive at a numerical solution for the frequency-dependent Na+ conductivity which clearly exhibits the crossover from frozen to dynamic environment.



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Categories
Disordered Systems Nonequilibrium Pattern Formation

Theoretical Aspects of Polycrystalline Pattern Growth in Al/Ge Films

R. Hilfer

in: Fluctuation Phenomena and Pattern Growth
edited by: H.E. Stanley and N. Ostrowsky
Kluwer Academic Publishing, Dordrecht, 127 (1988)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-2653-0_23
ISBN 978-94-009-2653-0, ISBN 978-0-7923-0073-1

submitted on
Friday, July 22, 1988

These notes discuss recent theoretical approaches to polycrystalline fingering during annealing of amorphous Al/Ge thin films, and compare the to experiment.



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Categories
diffusion fluid flow Nonequilibrium Pattern Formation

Pattern Formation at Liquid Interfaces

B. Heidel, C. Knobler, R. Hilfer, R. Bruinsma

Physical Review Letters 60, 2492 (1988)
10.1103/PhysRevLett.60.2492

submitted on
Monday, January 11, 1988

Although many examples of pattern formation resulting from chemical reactions at liquid interfaces are known, few have been studied in detail. We report a quantitative study of patterns formed by the photoproduction of Fe++ and its subsequent reaction to form Turnbull’s Blue. The experiment leads to the postulation of a mechanism in which autocatalysis is enhanced by double diffusion. The phase diagram contains a line of phase transitions whose critical behavior is discussed.



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Categories
Fractals Mathematics Stochastic Processes Transport Processes

Probabilistic Interpretation of the Einstein Relation

R. Hilfer, A. Blumen

Physical Review A 37, 578 (1988)
10.1103/PhysRevA.37.578

submitted on
Monday, June 8, 1987

We present a probabilistic picture for the Einstein relation which holds for arbitrarily connected structures. The diffusivity is related to mean first-passage times, while the conductance is given as a direct-passage probability. The fractal Einstein relation is an immediate consequence of our result. In addition, we derive a star-triangle transformation for Markov chains and calculate the exact values of the fracton (spectral) dimension for treelike structures. We point to the relevance of the probabilistic interpretation for simulation and experiment.



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Categories
Disordered Systems Fractals Nonequilibrium Pattern Formation

Phase Separation by Coupled Single-Crystal Growth and Polycrystalline Fingering in Al/Ge: Theory

S. Alexander, R. Bruinsma, R. Hilfer, G. Deutscher, Y. Lereah

Physical Review Letters 60, 1514 (1988)
10.1103/PhysRevLett.60.1514

submitted on
Tuesday, May 26, 1987

We present a theory for a new mode of phase separation discovered recently in thin layers of amorphous Al-Ge alloys. Phase separation and crystallization occurs in colonies developing from Al nuclei. Their growth is controlled by diffusion of atomic Ge inside crystalline Al, and by the nucleation and growth of Ge crystallites on the Al-Ge interface. We find that the growth velocity is constant as a consequence of the interaction between the ramified Al-Ge interface and the smooth boundary of the colony with the amorphous phase. Diffusion occurs only in a narrow strip controlled by a length scale related to the width of the Ge dendrites. Solution of the growth equations leads to a velocity selection mechanism as long as the Ge concentration is above a critical threshold. The basic length scale is argued to be controlled by a competition between nucleation and growth of the Ge crystallites.



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Categories
Disordered Systems Nonequilibrium Pattern Formation

On Dense Branching Phase Separation

R. Hilfer, S. Alexander, R. Bruinsma

in: Time Dependent Effects in Disordered Materials
edited by: R.Pynn and T. Riste
Plenum Press, New York, 417 (1987)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-7476-3_43
ISBN 978-1-4684-7478-7, ISBN 978-1-4684-7476-3

submitted on
Tuesday, March 31, 1987

Recently Deutscher and Lareah discovered a new mode of phase separation in thin films of Al/Ge alloys. They observe the growth of circular “colonies” whose densely packed appearance has been called “dense branching morphology”. The colonies consist of a highly branched starlike “island” of polycrystalline Ge inside a “lake” of monocrystalline Al which is only slightly larger than the Ge island. Thus the Al forms a thin but essentially uninterrupted rim around the Ge peninsulas. The whole colony is embedded in the amorphous phase having an overall composition of 40 percent Al and 60 percent Ge. As these colonies grow into the metastable amorphous surrounding they preserve their more or less circular shape. This immediately raises the question why on the one hand the Al/Ge-interface shows an instability, while on the other the Al/amorphous boundary does not. We investigate this question first. We then present the theoretical description of the new growth morphology. We outline the solution of our equations and indicate how a unique growth velocity is selected. We finally compare our results with experiment.



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Categories
Disordered Systems Lattice Models Renormalisation Stochastic Processes

Fluctuation-Dissipation on Fractals: A Probabilistic Approach

R. Hilfer, A. Blumen

in: Time Dependent Effects in Disordered Materials
edited by: R.Pynn and T. Riste
Plenum Press, New York, 217 (1987)

submitted on
Tuesday, March 31, 1987

The analogies between the diffusion problem and the resistor network problem as witnessed by the Einstein relation have been very important for analytical and numerical investigations of linear problems in disordered geometries (e.g. percolating clusters). This raises the question whether the resistor problem can be identified in a purely probabilistic context. An affirmative answer has recently been given and it was shown that the Einstein relation follows from a simple probabilistic argument. Here we present the results of a more general treatment.



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Categories
Disordered Systems Fractals Lattice Models Renormalisation Stochastic Processes

Renormalisation Group Approach in the Theory of Disordered Systems

R. Hilfer

Verlag Harri Deutsch, Frankfurt, 1986
ISBN-10: 3871449792, ISBN-13: 978-3871449796

submitted on
Wednesday, July 23, 1986



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Categories
Fractals Lattice Models Renormalisation Stochastic Processes

On Finitely Ramified Fractals and Their Extensions

R. Hilfer, A. Blumen

in: Fractals in Physics
edited by: L. Pietronero and E. Tosatti
Elsevier Publishing Co., Amsterdam, 33 (1986)

submitted on
Thursday, July 11, 1985

We construct deterministic fractal lattices using generators with tetrahedral symmetry. From the corresponding master equation we determine the spectral dimension d and prove that d<2. Furthermore we extend our set of fractals (with d dense in [1,2]) by direct multiplication, thus obtaining fractals whose d are dense for all real numbers larger than or equal to 1 .



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Categories
Stochastic Processes

Stochastic Models for Corporate Planning

R. Hilfer

GBI — Verlag, München, 1985
ISBN-10: 3890030157, ISBN-13: 978-3890030159

submitted on
Wednesday, December 5, 1984



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Categories
Critical phenomena Disordered Systems Fractals Lattice Models Random Walks Renormalisation Stochastic Processes

Renormalisation on Symmetric Fractals

R. Hilfer, A. Blumen

J.Phys.A: Math. Gen. 17, L783 (1984)
https://doi.org/10.1088/0305-4470/17/14/011

submitted on
Monday, July 9, 1984

We introduce and investigate new classes of Sierpinski-type fractals. We determine their fractal and spectral dimensions using renormalisation procedures and, for particular classes, we give these dimensions in closed form. The spectral dimensions densely fill the interval [1,2], allowing us to choose flexibly models for applications.



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Categories
Disordered Systems Fractals Lattice Models Renormalisation Stochastic Processes

Renormalisation on Sierpinski-type Fractals

R. Hilfer, A. Blumen

Journal of Physics A: Mathematical and General 17, L573-L545 (1984)
10.1088/0305-4470/17/10/004

submitted on
Friday, April 13, 1984

We present a family of deterministic fractals which generalise the d-dimensional Sierpinski gaskets and we establish their order of ramification and their fractal and spectral dimensions. Random walks on these fractals are renormalisable and lead to rational, not necessarily polynomial, mappings.



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