Definition
Given a graph Λ (for example, a d-dimensional lattice), per each lattice site j ∈ Λ there is a discrete variable σj such that σj ∈{+1, −1}. A spin configuration, σ = (σj)j∈Λ is an assignment of spin value to each lattice site.
For any two adjacent sites i, j ∈Λ one has an interaction Jij, and a site i ∈ Λ has an external magnetic field hi. The energy of a configuration σ is given by the Hamiltonian Function
where the first sum is over pairs of adjacent spins (every pair is counted once).
where β = (kBT)-1
and the normalization constant
is the partition function. For a function f of the spins ("observable"), one denotes by
the expectation (mean value) of f.
The configuration probabilities represent the probability of being in a state with configuration σ in equilibrium.
Read more about this topic: Ising Model
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