Abstract

A two-dimensional magnetic particle in the presence of an external magnetic field is studied. Equilibrium thermodynamical properties are derived by evaluating analytically the partition function. When the external field is applied perpendicular to the anisotropy axis the system exhibits a second-order phase transition with order parameter being the magnetization parallel to the field. In this case the system is isomorph to a mechanical system consisting of a particle moving without friction in a circle rotating about its vertical diameter. Contrary to a paramagnetic particle, equilibrium magnetization shows a maximum at finite temperature. It is also shown that uniaxial anisotropy in a system of noninteracting particles can be misinterpreted as a ferromagnetic or antiferromagnetic coupling among magnetic particles, depending on the angle between the anisotropy axes and magnetic field.