Why it matters

Simulated annealing tackles hard optimization. Understanding shapes NP-hard approach.

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The architecture

Move to neighbor: always if better, probability e^(-ΔE/T) if worse.

Cool T over time.

Simulated annealingNeighbor movealways if betterAccept worseprob e^(-ΔE/T)Cool Tover iterationsCooling schedule critical: too fast = local optimum; too slow = wasted time
SA mechanics.
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How it works end to end

Cooling schedule: geometric (T *= 0.95) or logarithmic.

Neighbor generation: problem-specific.

Termination: fixed iterations or temp threshold.

Applications: TSP, scheduling, layout.