Theory of Dynamic Critical Phenomena

TLDR: The renormalization group theory has been applied to a variety of dynamic critical phenomena, such as the phase separation of a symmetric binary fluid as mentioned in this paper, and it has been shown that it can explain available experimental data at the critical point of pure fluids, and binary mixtures, and at many magnetic phase transitions.

Abstract: An introductory review of the central ideas in the modern theory of dynamic critical phenomena is followed by a more detailed account of recent developments in the field. The concepts of the conventional theory, mode-coupling, scaling, universality, and the renormalization group are introduced and are illustrated in the context of a simple example---the phase separation of a symmetric binary fluid. The renormalization group is then developed in some detail, and applied to a variety of systems. The main dynamic universality classes are identified and characterized. It is found that the mode-coupling and renormalization group theories successfully explain available experimental data at the critical point of pure fluids, and binary mixtures, and at many magnetic phase transitions, but that a number of discrepancies exist with data at the superfluid transition of $^{4}\mathrm{He}$.