Phase diagram of a bulk 1d lattice Coulomb gas

V. Démery (1) , R. Monsarrat (1) , David S. Dean (2) , R. Podgornik (3, 4)

1 LPCT - Laboratoire de Physico-Chimie Théorique
2 LOMA - Laboratoire Ondes et Matière d'Aquitaine
3 Department of Physics, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics
4 Department of Theoretical Physics

The exact solution, via transfer matrix, of the simple one dimensional lattice Coulomb gas (1d LCG) model can reproduce peculiar features of ionic liquid capacitors, such as overscreening, layering, and camel- and bell-shaped capacitance curves. Using the same transfer matrix method, we now compute the bulk properties of the 1d LCG in the constant voltage ensemble. We unveil a phase diagram with rich structure exhibiting a low density disordered and high density ordered phases, separated by a first order phase transition at low temperature; the solid state at full packing can be ordered or not, depending on the temperature. This phase diagram, which is strikingly similar to its three dimensional counterpart, also sheds light on the behaviour of the confined system.

Mots clés: Electrolytes; Statistical mechanics of classical fluids; Phas transitions: general studies

Domaines: Mécanique statistique [cond-mat.stat-mech]; Matière Molle [cond-mat.soft]

V. Démery, R. Monsarrat, David S. Dean, R. Podgornik. Phase diagram of a bulk 1d lattice Coulomb gas. EPL - Europhysics Letters, 2016, 113 (1), pp.18008 (1-6). ⟨10.1209/0295-5075/113/18008⟩. ⟨hal-01284082⟩