The effect of a local anisotropy of random orientation on a ferromagnetic phase transition is studied. To this end, a model of a random anisotropy magnet is analysed by means of a field theoretical renormalization group approach. The one-loop result of Aharony about the absence of a 2nd order phase transition for isotropic distribution of random anisotropy axis at space dimension d < 4 is corroborated.

The critical behaviour of an m -vector model with a local anisotropy axis of random orientation is studied within the field-theoretical renormalization group approach for cubic distribution of anisotropy axis. Expressions for the renormalization group functions are calculated up to the two-loop order and investigated both by an ε = 4 − d expansion and directly at space dimension d = 3 by means of the Padé-Borel resummation. One accessible stable fixed point indicating a 2nd order ferromagnetic phase transition with dilute Ising-like critical exponents is obtained.

The scaling behavior of star polymers can be calculated in the m → 0 limit of an m -component spin system with an additional composite operator. The resulting scaling exponents describe the effective interaction of such polymer stars, i.e. objects whose behavior interpolates between that of polymer coils and that of hard sphere colloidal particles. We extend the existing renormalization group calculations from the third to the fourth order.

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