Equivariant Flow-Based Sampling for Lattice Gauge Theory

We define a class of machine-learned flow-based sampling algorithms for lattice gauge theories that are gauge invariant by construction. We demonstrate the application of this framework to U(1) gauge theory in two spacetime dimensions, and find that, at small bare coupling, the approach is orders of...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Kanwar, Gurtej, Albergo, Michael S, Boyda, Denis, Cranmer, Kyle, Hackett, Daniel C, Racanière, Sébastien, Rezende, Danilo Jimenez, Shanahan, Phiala E
Other Authors: Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Center for Theoretical Physics
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: American Physical Society (APS) 2021
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/134400
Description
Summary:We define a class of machine-learned flow-based sampling algorithms for lattice gauge theories that are gauge invariant by construction. We demonstrate the application of this framework to U(1) gauge theory in two spacetime dimensions, and find that, at small bare coupling, the approach is orders of magnitude more efficient at sampling topological quantities than more traditional sampling procedures such as hybrid Monte Carlo and heat bath.