Anomalous temperature dependence in phase transitions via ballistic coalescence
Abstract
We study kinetics of phase transitions within a single component Lennard-Jones model. For low enough particle densities disconnected clusters form that can move ballistically in an inviscid vapor background. The clusters undergo sticky collisions, thereby forming larger aggregates, which can be of fractal nature at ultra cold temperatures. As the temperature is varied, the exponent of the algebraic growth of average cluster mass changes, exhibiting pronounced nonmonotonic character. We capture this anomalous behavior, in two and three space dimensions, within a ballistic aggregation theory. We show that the scope of the theory is much broader than the typically considered case where cluster motions are uncorrelated. An analysis of the theory shows that ballistic aggregation can even occur exponentially fast. This is in sharp contrast with the conventional algebraic picture, regarding passive matter phase transitions. We discuss scenario where such explosive growth can be realized. In addition, our results are widely relevant in understanding structure and growth in aerosols, cosmic dust and other aggregation processes.
Related
- Crucial role of magnetic dipole and anomalous field dependence in NiPS3
- Anomalous pressure dependence of the bulk modulus and Yb valence in cubic YbPd
- Anomalous Structures of Fisher Zero Lines in Biorthogonal Dynamical Quantum Phase Transitions
- Quantum Phase Transitions and Fractional Quantized Anomalous Hall Insulators in Rhombohedral Graphene
- Pressure-correlation phase diagram unraveling quantum phase transitions in altermagnetic ε-FeOOH and realization of piezo-anomalous Hall effect
BibTeX
@misc{vadakkayil2026anomalous,
title = {{Anomalous temperature dependence in phase transitions via ballistic coalescence}},
author = {Nalina Vadakkayil and Sutapa Roy and Jiarul Midya and Subir K. Das},
howpublished = {arXiv},
year = {2026},
month = aug,
doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2608.30918},
eprint = {2608.30918},
archivePrefix = {arXiv},
url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2608.30918},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Anomalous temperature dependence in phase transitions via ballistic coalescence
AU - Nalina Vadakkayil
AU - Sutapa Roy
AU - Jiarul Midya
AU - Subir K. Das
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/08/31
PB - arXiv
DO - 10.48550/arxiv.2608.30918
UR - https://arxiv.org/abs/2608.30918
AB - We study kinetics of phase transitions within a single component Lennard-Jones model. For low enough particle densities disconnected clusters form that can move ballistically in an inviscid vapor background. The clusters undergo sticky collisions, thereby forming larger aggregates, which can be of fractal nature at ultra cold temperatures. As the temperature is varied, the exponent of the algebraic growth of average cluster mass changes, exhibiting pronounced nonmonotonic character. We capture this anomalous behavior, in two and three space dimensions, within a ballistic aggregation theory. We show that the scope of the theory is much broader than the typically considered case where cluster motions are uncorrelated. An analysis of the theory shows that ballistic aggregation can even occur exponentially fast. This is in sharp contrast with the conventional algebraic picture, regarding passive matter phase transitions. We discuss scenario where such explosive growth can be realized. In addition, our results are widely relevant in understanding structure and growth in aerosols, cosmic dust and other aggregation processes.
ER -