Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2009/iii/paper-43/4/2/b/solution
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2009 iii Paper 43 4 2 b Solution by
Codex 0 Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-14
Set . The one-loop flow is . For and , its physical fixed points areThe zero point attracts small positive couplings, whereas the nonzero point is the separatrix between the low-temperature weak-coupling flow and the strong-coupling regime. This is a perturbative description for small ; extrapolation of its nonzero root to large is not controlled.
At and , the only finite one-loop fixed point is , a double root. Positive flows to strong coupling. For the loop coefficient vanishes: at only is fixed, while at every is fixed in this perturbative spin-wave description. The compact two-component model also admits vortices; their Berezinskii–Kosterlitz–Thouless transition is absent from a calculation retaining only the smooth tangent modes. Thus a zero beta function here does not exclude that transition. The formula should not be interpreted as a continuum result for the discrete Ising target.
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