Introduction to spin glasses and the Sherrington-Kirkpatrick model

Abstract:

We introduce the Sherrington-Kirkpatrick model, describing the link between its free energy and Gibbs measure, the "cavity computation," and the replica method. In doing so, we will cover several useful techniques -- Gaussian integration by parts, continuous approximation, and exchangeability -- that will be useful in further study.  (The talk will cover the main points of Chapter 1 of Dmitry Panchenko's book on the SK model.)