A comparative study of some pseudorandom number generators Original Research Article

We present results of a test program of a group of pseudorandom number generators which are commonly used in the applications of physics, in particular in Monte Carlo simulations. The generators include public domain programs, manufacturer installed routines and a random number sequence produced from physical noise. We start by traditional standard tests, followed by detailed bit level and visual tests. The computational speed of various algorithms is also scrutinized. Our results allow direct comparisons between the properties of different generators, as well as an assessment of the efficiency of various test methods. Together with recently developed application specific tests, this information provides a good criterion to choose the best generator among the tested ones for a given problem.