A quantum inspired gravitational search algorithm for numerical function optimization

Gravitational search algorithm (GSA) is a swarm intelligence optimization algorithm that shares many similarities with evolutionary computation techniques. However, the GSA is driven by the simulation of a collection of masses which interact with each other based on the Newtonian gravity and laws of motion. Inspired by the classical GSA and quantum mechanics theories, this work presents a novel GSA using quantum mechanics theories to generate a quantum-inspired gravitational search algorithm (QIGSA). The application of quantum mechanics theories in the proposed QIGSA provides a powerful strategy to diversify the algorithm's population and improve its performance in preventing premature convergence to local optima. The simulation results and comparison with nine state-of-the-art algorithms confirm the effectiveness of the QIGSA in solving various benchmark optimization functions.(C) 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.