Phase transition in multiprocessor scheduling.

An "easy-hard" phase transition is shown to characterize the multiprocessor scheduling problem in which one has to distribute the workload on a parallel computer such as to minimize the overall run time. The transition can be analyzed in detail by mapping it on a mean-field antiferromagnetic Potts model. The static phase transition, characterized by a vanishing ground state entropy, corresponds to a transition in the performance of practical scheduling algorithms.