Nucleation and metastability in three-dimensional Ising models

We present Monte Carlo experiments on nucleation theory in the nearest-neighbor three-dimensional Ising model and in Ising models with long-range interactions. For the nearest-neighbor model, our results are compatible with the classical nucleation theory (CNT) for low temperatures, while for the long-range model a breakdown of the CNT was observed near the mean-field spinodal. A new droplet model and a zeroth-order theory of droplet growth are also presented.