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Abstract |
The basic laws governing atoms and electrons are well understood, but it is impossible to make predictions about the behaviour of large systems of condensed matter physics. A popular approach is to introduce simple models and to use notions of statistical mechanics. I will review quantum spin systems and their stochastic representations in terms of random permutations and random loops. I will also describe the *universal* behaviour that is common to loop models in dimensions 3 and more (“Poisson-Dirichlet”). |
