Fluctuation-induced first-order transitions and symmetry-breaking fields. II. Systems with no stable fixed points

Abstract
The crossover from first order to continuous transition induced by symmetry-breaking field, g, is analyzed for several models possessing no stable fixed point. Specifically, the (g,T) phase diagram associated with n=6 type-I fcc antiferromagnets (such as UO2) and with n=4 type-II fcc antiferromagnets (such as TbP, TbAs, CeTe, and TbSe) is considered. The symmetry-breaking field g corresponds to a magnetic field or to a uniaxial stress in certain symmetry directions. The phase diagrams are studied using large-g expansions, mean-field calculations, and renormalization-group techniques in d=4ε dimensions. It is found that in both cases the phase diagram is rather complex exhibiting tricritical points and critical end points.