Fully and partially frustrated simple cubic ising models: A monte carlo study

The Ising model with frustration covering either only the x-y planes or all three planes of a simple cubic lattice is studied using Monte Carlo methods. In agreement with mean-field and renormalisation group analysis using ε= 4 - dexpansions, we find that the transition in the partially frustrated model is continuous with α< 0, where a is the specific heat exponent. For the fully frustrated model, finite-size scaling analysis suggests that the transition is most likely to be of first order, although a continuous transition with α> 0 cannot be ruled out. In both cases, a second ordered phase is found for very low temperatures. © 1985, IOP Publishing Ltd.