Parallel Tempered Metadynamics for full QCD

Abstract

We present an algorithm that addresses topological freezing in lattice QCD simulations by combining parallel tempering with collective-variable-based enhanced sampling methods, and apply it to a particularly challenging system with $N_f = 2$ staggered fermions. We find that the algorithm unfreezes the system, which is otherwise completely frozen for approximately 40000 Molecular Dynamics Units with the Rational Hybrid Monte Carlo algorithm.