SIMULATIONS OF 2-DIMENSIONAL MELTING ON THE SURFACE OF A SPHERE

We have simulated a system of classical particles confined on the surf ace of a sphere interacting with a repulsive r(-12) potential. The sam e system simulated on a plane with periodic boundary conditions has va n der Waals loops in pressure-density plots that are usually interpret ed as evidence for a first-order melting transition, but on the sphere such loops are absent. We also investigated the structure factor and from the width of the first peak as a function of density we can show that the growth of the correlation length is consistent with Kosterlit z-Thouless-Halperin-Nelson-Young theory. This suggests that simulation s of two-dimensional melting phenomena are best performed on the surfa ce of a sphere. [S0163-1829(98)03535-8].