Leading two-point resistances from transfer matrices in cylindrical, spider web, axial and grid resistor networks

Abstract Resistor networks are increasingly being considered in heuristic research as models for natural or artificial matter. The equivalent resistance between two nodes, the Two-Point Resistance (TPR), can be calculated using a variety of methods. The transfer matrix (TM) method was originally considered as a numerical tool for estimating percolation thresholds in random networks with a repeating pattern. The TM method is revisited here as an efficient tool to obtain, in a fast and elegant way, iteration relations and exact explicit expressions for leading TPRs that include a node in the last repeated pattern. Several rotationally invariant networks are studied, such as simple cylindrical networks, spider web networks and cylindrical networks with a central resistive axis, in which case the TM matrices are circulant matrices. Examples of explicit expressions are given for orders of rotation ≤4 or 5, depending on the case. The method can be applied in a similar way to networks with less symmetry, such as grids. The general expressions of TPRs obtained using the TM method can provide quantitative guidelines for resistor networks developed in materials science, environmental issues or industrial applications.