Improvements and considerations for size distribution retrieval from small-angle scattering data by Monte Carlo methods

Monte Carlo (MC) methods, based on random updates and the trial-and-error principle, are well suited to retrieve form-free particle size distributions from small-angle scattering patterns of non-interacting low-concentration scatterers such as particles in solution or precipitates in metals. Improvements are presented to existing MC methods, such as a non-ambiguous convergence criterion, nonlinear scaling of contributions to match their observability in a scattering measurement, and a method for estimating the minimum visibility threshold and uncertainties on the resulting size distributions.