Monte Carlo simulation of classical spin models with chaotic billiards

Abstract

It has recently been shown that the computing abilities of Boltzmann machines, or Ising spin-glass models, can be implemented by chaotic billiard dynamics without any use of random numbers. In this paper, we further numerically investigate the capabilities of the chaotic billiard dynamics as a deterministic alternative to random Monte Carlo methods by applying it to classical spin models in statistical physics. First, we verify that the billiard dynamics can yield samples that converge to the true distribution of the Ising model on a small lattice, and we show that it appears to have the same convergence rate as random Monte Carlo sampling. Second, we apply the billiard dynamics to finite-size scaling analysis of the critical behavior of the Ising model and show that the phase-transition point and the critical exponents are correctly obtained. Third, we extend the billiard dynamics to spins that take more than two states and show that it can be applied successfully to the Potts model. We also discuss the possibility of extensions to continuous-valued models such as the XY model.