Continuum Percolation

This book is the first systematic and rigorous account of continuum percolation. The authors treat two models, the Boolean model and the random connection model, in detail and discuss a number of related continuum models. Where appropriate, they make clear connections between discrete percolation and continuum percolation. All important techniques and methods are explained and applied to obtain results on the existence of phase transitions, equality of certain critical densities, continuity of critical densities with respect to distributions, uniqueness of the unbounded component, covered volume fractions, compression, rarefaction, and so on. The book is self-contained, assuming familiarity only with measure theory and basic probability theory. The approach makes use of simple ergodic theory, but the underlying geometric ideas are always made clear. Continuum Percolation will appeal to students and researchers in probability and stochastic geometry.

Many phenomena in physics, chemistry, and biology can be modeled by spatial random processes. One such process is continuum percolation, which is used when the phenomenon being modeled is made up of individual events that overlap e.g., individual raindrops that eventually make the ground evenly wet. This is a systematic, rigorous account of continuum percolation. The authors treat two models, the Boolean model and the random connection model, in detail, and they discuss related continuum models. Meester and Roy explain all important techniques and methods and apply them to obtain results on the existence of phase transitions, equality and continuity of critical densities, compressions, rarefaction, and other aspects of continuum models.