Mapping phase diagrams with generative classifiers

A research team led by Professor Christoph Bruder at the University of Basel, together with colleagues at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), have developed a new method for calculating phase diagrams of physical systems. Phase diagrams are fundamental in physics. They describe the states in which a material can exist--water, for instance, can be found as ice, liquid, or vapor. Between these phases, phase transitions occur depending on specific quantities such as temperature or pressure. These transitions come in different kinds--for instance, they occur between a regular electric conductor and a superconductor or from a non-magnetic to a ferromagnetic state.