1 | \chapter[Introduction] |
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2 | {Introduction} |
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3 | |
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4 | \section{Scope of This Manual} |
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5 | |
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6 | The Physics Reference Manual provides detailed explanations of the physics |
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7 | implemented in the Geant4 toolkit. The manual's purpose is threefold: |
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8 | |
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9 | \begin{itemize} |
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10 | |
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11 | \item to present the theoretical formulation, model, or parameterization of |
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12 | the physics interactions included in Geant4, |
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13 | |
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14 | \item to describe the probability of the occurrence of an interaction and the |
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15 | sampling mechanisms required to simulate it, and |
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16 | |
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17 | \item to serve as a reference for toolkit users and developers who wish to |
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18 | consult the underlying physics of an interaction. |
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19 | |
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20 | \end{itemize} |
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21 | |
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22 | This manual does not discuss code implementation or how to use the |
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23 | implemented physics interactions in a simulation. These topics are |
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24 | discussed in the User's Guide for Application Developers. Details |
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25 | of the object-oriented design and functionality of the Geant4 toolkit |
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26 | are given in the User's Guide for Toolkit Developers. The |
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27 | Installation Guide for Setting up Geant4 in Your Computing Environment |
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28 | describes how to get the Geant4 code, install it, and run it. |
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29 | |
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30 | \section{Definition of Terms} |
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31 | |
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32 | Several terms used throughout the Physics Reference Manual have specific |
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33 | meaning within Geant4, but are not well-defined in general usage. The |
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34 | definitions of these terms are given here. |
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35 | |
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36 | \begin{itemize} |
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37 | |
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38 | \item {\bf process} - a C++ class which describes how and when a specific |
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39 | kind of physical interaction takes place along a |
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40 | particle track. A given particle type typically |
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41 | has several processes assigned to it. |
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42 | Occaisionally ``process'' refers to the interaction |
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43 | which the process class describes. |
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44 | |
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45 | \item {\bf model} - a C++ class whose methods implement the details of an |
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46 | interaction, such as its kinematics. One or more |
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47 | models may be assigned to each process. In sections |
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48 | discussing the theory of an interaction, ``model'' may |
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49 | refer to the formulae or parameterization on which |
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50 | the model class is based. |
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51 | |
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52 | \item {\bf Geant3} - a physics simulation tool written in Fortran, |
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53 | and the predecessor of Geant4. Although many |
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54 | references are made to Geant3, no knowledge |
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55 | of it is required to understand this manual. |
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56 | |
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57 | \end{itemize} |
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58 | |
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59 | \section{Status of this document} |
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60 | 4.12.01 created by D.H. Wright |
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61 | |
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62 | |
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