Microcanonical entropy inflection points: Key to systematic understanding of transitions in finite systems

We introduce a systematic classification method for the analogs of phase transitions in finite systems. This completely general analysis, which is applicable to any physical system and extends toward the thermodynamic limit, is based on the microcanonical entropy and its energetic derivative, the inverse caloric temperature. Inflection points of this quantity signal cooperative activity and thus serve as distinct indicators of transitions. We demonstrate the power of this method through application to the long-standing problem of liquid-solid transitions in elastic, flexible homopolymers.