Cirillo E.N.M., Lebowitz J.L.
Metastability in the two-dimensional Ising model with free
boundary conditions
(117K, uuencoded and gzipped PostScript file)

ABSTRACT.  We investigate metastability in the two dimensional Ising model
in a square
with free boundary conditions at low temperatures. 
Starting with all spins down in a small positive magnetic
field, we show that the exit from this metastable phase occurs
via the nucleation of a critical droplet in one
of the four corners of the system. We compute the lifetime of the
metastable phase 
analytically in the limit $T\to 0$, $h\to 0$ and 
via Monte Carlo simulations 
at fixed values of $T$ and $h$ and find good agreement. 
This system models the effects of boundary domains 
in magnetic storage systems exiting
from a metastable phase when a small external field is applied.