Entropic tempering: A method for overcoming quasiergodicity in simulation

The parallel tempering, multicanonical ensemble, and multiple histogram methods are combined into a powerful technique allowing enhanced sampling of complex energy surfaces. This method is shown to improve significantly the ergodic behavior in simulations of cluster melting. Application to the finite-size effects in folding minimal off-lattice \ensuremath{\beta}-sheet model proteins shows that the collapse and folding transitions both involve some latent heat.