Alternative method to characterize continuous and discontinuous phase transitions in surface reaction models.

Area of Science:

• Statistical Physics
• Computational Physics

Background:

• The Ziff-Gulari-Barshad model is a key model for studying surface catalytic reactions.
• Understanding its phase transitions and critical exponents is crucial for theoretical and experimental validation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate phase transitions and critical exponents of the Ziff-Gulari-Barshad model.
• To apply a novel method for locating nonequilibrium second-order phase transitions.

Main Methods:

• Time-dependent Monte Carlo simulations were employed.
• A recently proposed method optimizing the coefficient of determination of the order parameter was utilized.
• This method was applied to identify continuous phase transitions and pseudocritical points.

Main Results:

• The continuous phase transition of the model was successfully characterized.
• The upper spinodal point, a pseudocritical point, was identified.
• Static critical exponents (β, ν∥, ν⊥) and dynamic critical exponents (θ, z) were estimated.

Conclusions:

• The employed method accurately characterizes continuous phase transitions in the Ziff-Gulari-Barshad model.
• Estimated critical exponents align well with previously reported literature values.
• The study validates the effectiveness of the optimization method for nonequilibrium phase transitions.