Fermion sign problem in imaginary-time projection continuum quantum Monte Carlo with local interaction

We use the Shadow Wave Function formalism as a convenient model to study the fermion sign problem affecting all projector Quantum Monte Carlo methods in continuum space. We demonstrate that the efficiency of imaginary time projection algorithms decays exponentially with increasing number of particles and/or imaginary-time propagation. Moreover, we derive an analytical expression that connects the localization of the system with the magnitude of the sign problem, illustrating this prediction through some numerical results. Finally, we discuss the fermion sign problem computational complexity and methods for alleviating its severity.