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Current flow in random resistor networks: the role of percolation in weak and strong disorder
Zhenhua Wu1, Eduardo López, Sergey V Buldyrev
1Center for Polymer Studies, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, USA.
Abstract:
We study the current flow paths between two edges in a random resistor network on a L X L square lattice. Each resistor has resistance e(ax) , where x is a uniformly distributed random variable and a controls the broadness of the distribution. We find that: (a) The scaled variable u identical with u congruent to L/a(nu) , where nu is the percolation connectedness exponent, fully determines the distribution of the current path length l for all values of u . For u >> 1, the behavior corresponds to the weak disorder limit and l scales as l approximately L, while for u << 1 , the behavior corresponds to the strong disorder limit with l approximately L(d(opt) ), where d(opt) =1.22+/-0.01 is the optimal path exponent. (b) In the weak disorder regime, there is a length scale xi approximately a(nu), below which strong disorder and critical percolation characterize the current path.
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