In an extensive numerical study just published in Physical Review Letters, Boettcher and Emory undergrad Honor student, Ginger E. Lau, explored the properties of ground states of a spin glass with three-body interactions. The corresponding two-body problem, known as the Sherrington-Kirkpatrick model (whose solution earned Parisi the 2021 Nobel prize), is widely recognized as one of the hardest ground-state optimization problems. To address the additional complexity here, the team employed novel algorithms to push the limit in achievable system sizes. The results are consistent with the existing thermodynamic theory and conjecture finite-size corrections that suggest a sharp distinction between that two-body problem and the p-body problem for all p<=3.
Ginger, who graduated in 2024, is currently studying in Germany on a Fulbright Fellowship.