New phase in the spin-glass model with uniform chemical potential

We re-examined the results of a spin-S (S > 1/2) glass model analogous to t he Blume-Emery-Griffiths spin-glass version, recently studied by da Costa e t al. using the replica approach. Due to the interplay between the quenched randomness of the bends and the annealed disorder induced by the S = 1 spi ns, the model exhibits a weak spin-glass-like behaviour at low temperatures in the sense that this new phase has a larger population of sites with S-i = 0 states. This thermodynamically stable phase has not been observed by d a Costa ct al. The phase diagram and the behaviour of the order parameters are investigated. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.