Classification of phase transitions of finite Bose-Einstein condensates in power-law traps by Fisher zeros

Abstract

We present a detailed description of a classification scheme for phase transitions in finite systems based on the distribution of Fisher zeros of the canonical partition function in the complex temperature plane. We apply this scheme to finite Bose systems in power-law traps within a semi-analytic approach with a continuous one-particle density of states $\ensuremath{\Omega}(E)\ensuremath{\sim}{E}^{d\ensuremath{-}1}$ for different values of d and to a three-dimensional harmonically confined ideal Bose gas with discrete energy levels. Our results indicate that the order of the Bose-Einstein condensation phase transition sensitively depends on the confining potential.