poissonNoise

poissonNoise (num)

The poissonNoise function returns a pseudo-random value from the Poisson distribution whose probability distribution function is

$$\displaystyle f(x ; \lambda)=\frac{e^{-\lambda} \lambda^{x}}{x!}, \quad \begin{array}{c} \lambda>0 \\ x=0,1,2 \ldots \end{array}$$

with mean and variance equal to num (= λ).

The random number generator initializes using the system clock when Igor Pro starts. This almost guarantees that you will never repeat a sequence. For repeatable "random" numbers, use SetRandomSeed. The algorithm uses the Mersenne Twister random number generator.

See Also

SetRandomSeed, Noise Functions, Statistical Analysis