Accurate Calculation of Euclidean Norms Using Double-word Arithmetic

Abstract

We consider the computation of the Euclidean (or L2) norm of an n-dimensional vector in floating-point arithmetic. We review the classical solutions used to avoid spurious overflow or underflow and/or to obtain very accurate results. We modify a recently published algorithm (that uses double-word arithmetic) to allow for a very accurate solution, free of spurious overflows and underflows. To that purpose, we use a double-word square-root algorithm of which we provide a tight error analysis. The returned L2 norm will be within very slightly more than 0.5 ulp from the exact result, which means that we will almost always provide correct rounding.