Construction and analysis of random networks with explosive percolation

The existence of explosive phase transitions in random (Erdös Rényi-type) networks has been recently documented by Achlioptas, D'Souza, and Spencer [Science 323, 1453 (2009)] via simulations. In this Letter we describe the underlying mechanism behind these first-order phase transitions and develop tools that allow us to identify (and predict) when a random network will exhibit an explosive transition. Several interesting new models displaying explosive transitions are also presented.