Diffusion-limited aggregation with power-law pinning.

Using stochastic conformal mapping techniques we study the patterns emerging from Laplacian growth with a power-law decaying threshold for growth R(-gamma)(N) (where R(N) is the radius of the N-particle cluster). For gamma>1 the growth pattern is in the same universality class as diffusion limited aggregation (DLA), while for gamma<1 the resulting patterns have a lower fractal dimension D(gamma) than a DLA cluster due to the enhancement of growth at the hot tips of the developing pattern. Our results indicate that a pinning transition occurs at gamma=1/2, significantly smaller than might be expected from the lower bound alpha(min) approximately 0.67 of multifractal spectrum of DLA. This limiting case shows that the most singular tips in the pruned cluster now correspond to those expected for a purely one-dimensional line. Using multifractal analysis, analytic expressions are established for D(gamma) both close to the breakdown of DLA universality class, i.e., gamma less, similar 1, and close to the pinning transition, i.e., gamma greater, similar 1/2.