Decisions, decisions: Noise and its effects on integral Monte Carlo algorithms

Abstract In the present Letter, we examine the effects of noise on Monte Carlo algorithms, a problem raised previously by Kennedy and Kuti (Phys. Rev. Letters 54 (1985) 2473). We show that the effects of introducing unbiased noise into the acceptance/rejection phase of the conventional Metropolis approach are surprisingly modest, and, to a significant degree, largely controllable. We present model condensed phase numerical applications to support these conclusions.