The Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data (EXFOR): Extended ...The EXchange FORmat (EXFOR) experimental...
Transcript of The Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data (EXFOR): Extended ...The EXchange FORmat (EXFOR) experimental...
The Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data (EXFOR)
Extended Computer Database and Web Retrieval
System
V VZerkina B Pritychenkoblowast
aNuclear Data Section International Atomic Energy AgencyVienna International Centre PO Box 100 A-1400 Vienna Austria
bNational Nuclear Data Center Brookhaven National LaboratoryUpton NY 11973-5000 USA
Abstract
The EXchange FORmat (EXFOR) experimental nuclear reaction databaseand the associated Web interface provide access to the wealth of low- andintermediate-energy nuclear reaction physics data This resource is basedon numerical data sets and bibliographical information of sim22000 experi-ments since the beginning of nuclear science The principles of the Web anddatabase applications development are described New capabilities for thedata sets uploads renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reactioncalculations are presentedThe EXFOR database updated monthly provides an essential support fornuclear data evaluation application development and research activitiesIt is publicly available at the websites of the International Atomic EnergyAgency Nuclear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor the US Na-tional Nuclear Data Center httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor and the mirrorsites in China India and Russian Federation
Keywords Nuclear reaction data Nuclear databases Web dissemination
lowastCorresponding authorEmail address pritychenkobnlgov (B Pritychenko)
Preprint submitted to Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section AFebruary 19 2018
arX
iv1
802
0571
4v1
[ph
ysic
sco
mp-
ph]
15
Feb
2018
1 Introduction
Since the dawn of the nuclear age access to the most recent nuclear dataplayed a crucial role in nuclear physics research and application develop-ment These data were originally disseminated as paper copies for designatedusers and eventually evolved into the present-day computer files distributedover the World Wide Web The National Nuclear Data Center (NNDC)Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) and Nuclear Data Section (NDS)International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have always been pioneers innuclear data collection evaluation and dissemination They have been pro-viding remote electronic access to their databases and other information since1986 In this work the authors will concentrate on the present state of storageanalysis and worldwide distribution of low- and intermediate-energy nuclearreaction data
EXFOR experimental nuclear reaction database [1 2] is the worldrsquos primerepository for reaction data compilations The EXFOR library was estab-lished in 1967 at a meeting of the four major nuclear data centers BrookhavenNational Laboratory Upton NY (Area 1 USA Canada) Nuclear EnergyAgency (NEA) Databank Paris France (Area 2 Western Europe andJapan) International Atomic Energy Agency Vienna Austria (Area 3Asia Eastern Europe Latin America Africa Australia and Oceania) andInstitute of Physics and Power Engineering (IPPE) Obninsk USSR (Area4 Soviet Union) [1] This project was based on previously-existing ef-forts such as the NNDC predecessorrsquos Sigma Center Information Storageand Retrieval System (SCISRS) and the associated format Currently theEXFOR project is an international collaboration under the auspices of theInternational Atomic Energy Agency and 13 nuclear data centers from theUSA OECDData Bank (France) IAEANDS (Austria) Russian Federa-tion China Hungary India Japan Kazakhstan Korea and Ukraine regu-larly contribute to it
2 EXFOR Database
The exchange format library was created in support of nuclear energyfundamental research and application development activities The initialdatabase scope was limited to neutron-induced reaction quantities Later thescope was extended to charged-particle and photon-induced reactions withenergies below the pion production threshold Presently neutron- proton-
2
1 9 6 0 1 9 7 0 1 9 8 0 1 9 9 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 2 0 2 0
1 0
1 0 0
1 k
1 0 ko
fExp
erime
ntsin
EXFO
R
Y e a r
A l p h aG a m m aN e u t r o nP r o t o n
Figure 1 Content evolution of the EXFOR database Neutron reactions have been com-piled systematically since the initiation of the EXFOR project while charged particle andphoton (gamma) reactions have been covered less extensively Complementary details areavailable in Ref [3]
alpha- and photon-induced reactions constitute 479 198 736 and 62 ofdatabase contents respectively The historic evolution of EXFOR contentsis shown in Fig 1 In addition to cross section data the EXFOR libraryincludes information on incoming particle spectra such as 252Cf spontaneousfission and β-delayed neutrons Heavy ion- electron- and pion-induced reac-tions with energies up to 1 GeV are compiled by the responsible centers ona voluntary basis
The present database is the largest low- and intermediate-energy nuclearreaction library as of November 27 2017 it includes 21885 experiments170088 data sets and 15213129 data points The database contains infor-mation on 968 targets 386 incident projectiles and 2606 nuclear reactionsTo further illustrate the volume and diversity of the database and associatedcomputer programming challenges we will provide a list of compiled nuclearphysics quantities in Table 1 The table data show that cross section datasets represent approximately half of the database contents It also includessubstantial contributions from differential data with respect to angle par-tial cross sections resonance parameters polarization data fission product
3
yields and double differential cross section measurements The total numberof Table 1 compilations exceeds the overall number of experiments due to acomplex structure of compiled entries a single entry often contains multipledata subentries reaction strings and reaction combinations
Figure 1 data highlight the fact that neutron-induced reactions represent abackbone of EXFOR and these data are essential for many applications Theneutron reactions constitute a perfect case of mutually-beneficial relationsbetween the fundamental and applied sciences For demonstration purposesthe authors will analyze neutron capture and inverse photoneutron reactionsand the historical evolution of experimental nuclear reaction activities Thesedirect and inverse reactions play an essential role in computer modeling ofastrophysical s r and p processes and they are crucial in nuclear reactorcalculations Data shown in the left panels of Fig 2 demonstrate that themost frequently-used neutron capture targets are gold (Au) uranium (U)and tin (Sn) while neutron-rich tin gold and uranium are materials of choicefor photo-neutron reaction studies Subsequent examination of the rightpanels provides indication of two trends large numbers of nuclear reactionmeasurements in the 1970rsquos [3] and a recent increase in number of (nγ) and(γn) reactions Further analysis of the last finding reveals a substantialcontribution of Maxwellian-averaged cross section measurements in recentyears These experiments tackle nuclear astrophysics problems and providecomplementary benchmarks for nuclear reactor modeling
21 EXFOR Data Compilation
In the early 1950rsquos data compilations have been pioneered at the BrookhavenNational Laboratory in support of nuclear science and reactor research ac-tivities [1 4] Since 1964 Brookhaven compilations have been stored in theSCISRS computer system that predated the EXFOR database These exper-imental data compilation efforts have always had an important internationalcomponent The IAEA Nuclear Data Section has been involved in this worksince its creation in 1964 Other early contributors include NEA Data BankParis France and the Institute of Physics and Power Engineering ObninskUSSR which were founded in 1964 and 1963 respectively [1] In 1969 anagreement on an exchange format was reached between four centers and July1970 was chosen as the starting date for transmission of neutron data be-tween the partners in the EXFOR format The effort to translate all of theexisting experimental nuclear reaction data sets which were coded in theSCISRS system format would be done later [1]
4
Table 1 List of EXFOR database compiled nuclear physics quantities
EXFOR Code Description Compilations
1 CS Cross section data 112042 DAP Partial differential data with respect to angle 42483 DA Differential data with respect to angle 42344 RP Resonance parameters 19615 CSP Partial cross section data 18746 POL Polarization data 11087 FY Fission product yields 10948 DAE Differential data with respect to angle and energy 10649 MFQ Fission neutron quantities 50910 SP Gamma spectra 46111 RI Resonance integrals 45112 DE Differential data with respect to energy 37213 TT Thick target yields 35914 E Kinetic energies 33315 L Scattering amplitudes 19616 INT Cross section integral over incident energy 18517 PY Product yields 16618 NQ Nuclear quantities 13719 MLT Outgoing particle multiplicities 10220 RR Reaction rates 9821 TTD Differential thick target yields 5122 CST Temperature dependent cross section data 3023 SQ Special quantities 1624 DEP Partial differential data with respect to energy 1225 TTP Partial thick target yields 726 COR Secondary particle correlations 5
5
5 01 0 01 5 02 0 02 5 03 0 03 5 04 0 0
0 2 0 4 0 6 0 8 0 1 0 0
1 0
2 0
3 0
4 0
5 0
6 0
7 0
1 9 2 0 1 9 4 0 1 9 6 0 1 9 8 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 2 0
S nU
Cros
sSec
tionM
easu
remen
ts
N G
N G
U
S n
A u
Z
G N
Y e a r
G N
A u
Figure 2 EXFOR compilations of nuclear astrophysics relevant neutron capture (nγ) andphoto-neutron (γn) production reactions vs target material (z) and historical distribu-tion of experimental results are shown in left and right panels respectively
In recent years the EXFOR compilations became even more popularworldwide and a large number of institutions have joined In fact EXFORrepresents one of the oldest continuously-operated scientific collaborationsSince its creation the EXFOR project has relied heavily on computer tech-nologies available at the time Historically the data compilations were per-formed using pencil and paper and they have gradually developed into thepresent day computer operation that includes modern relational databaseand Web servers EXFOR compilation editors plot digitizers and opticalcharacter recognition technologies Since the beginning reaction data com-pilations were performed on a timely basis and archived in close cooperationwith the researchers Many scientists have contributed their original datasets to the EXFOR library Unfortunately this mode of operation has notalways worked perfectly and several important data sets were missed andthe NRDC network members are working on their recovery In addition theNRDC community has addressed the issues with the problematic and incor-rectly entered data compilations The database contents were reanalyzed andcorrected by the members of the Subgroup 30 of the Working Party on In-ternational Evaluation Co-operation of the NEA Nuclear Science Committee[5]
6
Data recovery (eg nuclear archeology) is one of the important functionsof the EXFOR operation Here the authors consider EXFOR entry 14329based on the PhD dissertation of JL Kammerdiener [6] University of Cal-ifornia Davis This thesis represents cost and time-expensive measurementswith unique target materials 239Pu 238U 235U Pb Nb Ni Al and C Thesethesis data were preserved as a paper copy only where results were shown asplots A new measurement with these targets would require lengthy delaycontingent on a program advisory committee approval process and may re-sult in a few million dollars of additional expenses Therefore this thesis andassociated graphic data were reanalyzed and digitized forty one years laterat the National Nuclear Data Center In this endeavor the EXFOR editor [7]and Java digitizer [8] developed in Sarov Russian Federation and SapporoJapan respectively were used The Fig 3 example illustrates the first 2 ofKammerdienerrsquos 171 thesis data records (subentries) The present compila-tion beginning subentry contains bibliographical and general information forall subentries such as 14 MeV incident neutrons energy in the common sec-tion while experimental data are compiled in the following subentries Thecompilation second subentry reaction field (13-AL-27(NEL)13-AL-27DA)indicates elastic neutron scattering differential data with respect to angle(DA) and the subentry status field (CURVE) reveals digitized data All ex-perimental data sets are placed within DATA and ENDDATA tags and theoriginal article units are preserved The well-structured compilation formatwas intentionally designed for further usage in computer systems It repre-sents a typical input file for the current Web and database system that willbe discussed in the following section
22 EXFOR Format
The EXFOR database format was introduced for data storage and in-formation exchanges between major data centers as a replacement of theSCISRS format [1] The present format is human-readable is 80 characterslong and includes opening and closing tags for all data and metadata setsEfforts to improve the EXFOR format are currently underway [9] and theseattempts will provide additional avenues for application developments Inthe present work the authors will adopt the EXFOR Basics publication [10]as an introductory guide to EXFOR format for advanced users the LEX-FOR manual is recommended [11] The EXFOR format is currently used forexperimental nuclear data archiving and dissemination and its file structureis shown in Fig 4 The experimental nuclear reaction data library consists of
7
ENTRY 14329 20130820 20131120 20131111 1393
SUBENT 14329001 20130820 20131120 20131111 1393
BIB 15 72
TITLE Neutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235U Pb Nb
Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutrons
AUTHOR (JLKammerdiener)
INSTITUTE (1USADAV)
REFERENCE (RUCRL-512321972) PhDthesis
REL-REF (O10423001LFHansen+PUSNDC-984197311) Ni data
(OV1004001TKawanoWKAWANO2013)
Angle-integrated spectra derived from present
experiment
FACILITY (ICTR1USALRL) Insulated core transformer accelerator
INC-SOURCE (D-T) Deuteron on tritium
DETECTOR (SCINGLASD) NE-213 scintillator 6Li glass detector
PART-DET (NG)
METHOD (TOFPSDRINGR) Time of flight pulse shape
ANALYSIS (REDUC) The entire data reduction process was
CORRECTION The data were corrected for effects due to
ERR-ANALYS (DATA-ERR) Data which has been corrected
(ERR-S100) less than 10
COMMENT From conversation of MB Chadwick with John
HISTORY (20121207C) BP
(20130712A) BP added reference to Los Alamos estimate
by T Kawano
ENDBIB 72
COMMON 1 3
EN
MEV
140
ENDCOMMON 3
ENDSUBENT 79
SUBENT 14329002 20121207 20130502 20130429 1388
BIB 3 3
REACTION (13-AL-27(NEL)13-AL-27DA)
STATUS (CURVE) Fig42
REL-REF (A11322001JHCoon+JPR1112501958)
ENDBIB 3
NOCOMMON 0 0
DATA 3 13
ANG-CM DATA-CM DATA-ERR
ADEG MBSR MBSR
2500E+01 2238E+02
3000E+01 1018E+02 6049E+00
3500E+01 3094E+01 3807E+00
4000E+01 1407E+01 2260E+00
4500E+01 1736E+01 1867E+00
5500E+01 3784E+01
6500E+01 4469E+01
7500E+01 2810E+01
8500E+01 1181E+01 6043E-01
1000E+02 1000E+01 5117E-01
1150E+02 1181E+01 7988E-01
1350E+02 1082E+01 9070E-01
1550E+02 1121E+01 1379E+00
ENDDATA 15
ENDSUBENT 23 ENDENTRY 2
Figure 3 Fragment of EXFOR entry 14329 based on the 1972 University of CaliforniaDavis thesis by JL Kammerdiener [6]
8
AUTHOR
TITLE
REFERENCE
DETECTOR
METHOD
MONITOR
FACILITY
REACTION
EXFOR
ENTRY
ENTRY
ENTRY
SUBENT-1
SUBENT-2
SUBENT-n
BIB
KEYWORD-1
KEYWORD-2
KEYWORD-n
CODE[s]
Free text
CODE[s]
Free text
Header
Units
value
value
Header
Units
value
value
Header
Units
value
value
n n n
n
n
k+
2
m
KEYWORD =
DATAk timesm
COMMON1 times m (k=1)
COMMON DATA
Figure 4 Manifold structure of the EXFOR library Each database entry consists ofbibliographical and data subentries
data entries that contain complete records of individual experiments Eachexperiment may include multiple nuclear reaction data sets (subentries) andseveral research papers because EXFOR compilers group multiple publica-tions from a particular experiment into a single entry Another importantfeature of the library is that all experimental data are compiled as publishedonly obvious errors are corrected
Each entry is assigned a unique accession number each subentry is as-signed a subaccession number (the accession number plus a subentry num-ber) The subaccession numbers are associated with a data table throughoutthe life of the EXFOR system The subentries are further divided into thefollowing categories
bull Bibliographic descriptive and bookkeeping information (hereafter calledBIB information)
bull Common data that applies to all data throughout the entry or subentry
9
bull Data tables
In order to avoid repetition of information that is common to all subentrieswithin an entry or to all lines within a subentry information may be asso-ciated with an entire entry or with an entire subentry To accomplish thisthe first subentry of each work contains only information that applies to allother subentries Within each subentry the information common to all linesof the table precedes the table
EXFOR format was originally designed for data storage and interchangebetween the four data centers and it serves well for these purposes Howeverthe compilation format [12] may represent a problem for application devel-opers and other users who are not familiar with format specifics To over-come this obstacle a simplified computational format (C4) was introducedThe code X4TOC4 [13] converts EXFOR data sets to the easy-to-read datacolumns in C4 format The C4 format is used in the current system for dataplotting and further dissemination
23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
Compilation databases often contain an extensive collection of dictionar-ies The EXFOR dictionaries list details for database keywords and codesand their identification numbers range between 1 and 999 [14] These dictio-naries are periodically updated with new keywords and codes and could besubdivided into three groups
bull The Archive dictionaries are the source of the contents of all forms ofthe dictionaries They contain all keys their expansions and additionalcodes as well as free text explanations for compilers
bull The DANIEL backup dictionaries contain all keys additional codesneeded for programs and most of the expansions These dictionariesare designed for interacting with computer programs
bull The EXFOR transmission dictionaries contain all keys (except for Dic-tionary 26 Unit families [14]) their expansions and free text expla-nations but not all additional codes needed for the checking and otherprograms
10
24 EXFOR Manual
EXFOR database its formats structures and relevant procedures areextensively described in the manual Historically it was maintained by theUS National Nuclear Data Center and recently it was transferred to theIAEA Nuclear Data section [10 11] The manual is absolutely essential forEXFOR database compilations and application developments
3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
The development of nuclear reaction data storage and dissemination sys-tems has a very rich history There have been previous efforts to disseminatenuclear reaction data such as the Brookhaven Cross Section Information Stor-age and Retrieval System (CSISRS) that was introduced in 1971 based onthe VAX-VMS computer system This dissemination system was a revisedversion of the original SCISRS
The VMS platform became obsolete in the 90s due to the rapid progressof modern computing and introduction of World Wide Web technologies Inorder to improve the quality of nuclear data services and take advantageof the latest software and hardware developments the NNDC BNL andNDS IAEA started to work on a data migration project in 1999 followinga basic assessment of future options [15] This exploratory work culminatedat an International Workshop on Relational Database and Java Technolo-gies for Nuclear Data held at BNL September 11-15 2000 [16] As a re-sult of the workshop the two partners embarked on a project to migrateits databases to a UNIX-based relational database environment and signif-icantly upgrade Web Services employing the latest computer technologies[15 17] The migration project was successfully completed and the new nu-clear data Web service made available beginning in 2004 [18] General systemdesign and several distinct elements of the system such as Nuclear ScienceReferences (NSR httpwwwnndcbnlgovnsr) and Sigma Web Interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovsigma) have been described previously [19 20] Atthe same time other popular features such as the very advanced and con-stantly evolving experimental nuclear reaction Web and data services werenever comprehensively described in the literature This publication is in-tended to fulfill this task and provide an extensive description of nuclearreaction data services
In the present work the authors describe the current status of the EXFORdatabase project which creates one of the foundations for the modern nuclear
11
data Web services The current system has been designed as multiuser andplatform independent environment [21] The cross platform capabilities havebeen achieved by extensive usage of Java technologies Java codes can bedeveloped on any device compiled into a standard bytecode and run on anydevice equipped with a Java virtual machine The current system includesJava Web servlets database connectivity and wrapper classes for a ZVViewplotting package [22] and legacy FORTRAN and C codes It is based oncommercially available software and hardware and contains many featuresof enterprise computer portals dealt with on a daily basis Two versions ofthe EXFOR database and Web retrieval systems are presently distributedserver and personal computer (portable) for multiple and individual clientsrespectively The server installation is briefly described in Ref [18] whilethe personal computer version is build on a standard compact disk thatis available from the IAEA upon request In subsequent subsections theauthors will describe hardware and software computer environments followedby software application developments careful analysis of Web features anda worldwide impact on nuclear data users
31 EXFOR Relational Database
The EXFOR database contains nuclear data sets for sim22000 experi-ments Rapid access to these data is of paramount importance for nuclearscience and technology professionals The first modern EXFOR Web dis-semination and data storage system was developed at the NDS IAEA incooperation with the NNDC BNL [21] It is a multi-platform product thatwas developed for the nuclear data services migration project to a TomcatWeb and SybaseMySQL database servers environment [18] Later the nu-clear databases were transferred from Sybase to MySQL servers The mod-ern relational database servers allow access to data using Structured QueryLanguage (SQL) The SQL language is easy to learn and use it allowingmanagement of the databases and building Web interfaces for data searchesmanagement and updates The underlying software converts these requestsinto corresponding SQL statements that are passed to the database to harvestdatabase outputs
MySQL server is a robust database system that can be operated on mul-tiple computer platforms using community or enterprise licenses Initiallythe NDS IAEA service was based on MySQL while the NNDC operatedenterprise Sybase servers and later transferred to MySQL enterprise serversIn recent years both centers migrated to MySQL community edition servers
12
The EXFOR database has been successfully integrated with the Evalu-ated Nuclear Data File (ENDF) libraries [23 24 25 26 27 28 29] bibli-ographical Computer Index of Nuclear (reaction) DAta (CINDA) [30 31]and Nuclear Science References databases [19] Its contents are also used inSigma Web Interface [20] some of its components are used in JANIS (JAva-based Nuclear data Information System independently developed by the NEADatabank) [32] The EXFOR relational database project has evolved andmatured substantially in the last fifteen years compared to its initial version[21 18] and an extensive description of its latest features is presented below
311 EXFOR Database Schema
The schema describes a database structure in a formal language supportedby the database management system In a relational database the schemadefines the tables fields relationships views indexes procedures and otherelements
The simplified version of EXFOR relational database schema is shown inFig 5 The EXFOR schema includes tables that contain data metadataand dictionaries such as X4SRC ENTRIES and AUTHORS respectively Itincludes relationships between data tables eg ENTRY and SUBENT metadata tables are linked using an EntryID relationship The current databaseschema provides a glimpse into the present system storage of experimentalnuclear reaction data sets
312 Database System Operation
The EXFOR operation includes contributions from the data groups affil-iated with the network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) [33] andNon-EXFOR data sources The NRDC supplies the database with new andrevised data compilations dictionaries and manual updates Bibliographicalmetadata original publication PDF files and data renormalization informa-tion are provided through separate channels All of these nuclear science andbibliographical data are processed and stored in a relational database thatincorporates text compilation and articledocument PDF files for the major-ity of EXFOR entries Due to major publishersrsquo subscription rules the PDFfiles are not available for external users The Java-based computer programsprocess contributions and fetch data retrievals as EXFOR-formatted filesZVView plots PDF files and many other custom formats for remote Weband local users The EXFOR database operation workflow diagram is shownin Fig 6
13
SubentID= EntryID=
ReacodeID=
ReacodeID=
SubentID=
HEADER
DatasetID
SubentID iCol
Pointer
flagCD Header
Units
KEYWORD
SubentID
iKeyword EntryID
Entry
SubAcc
SubAccNum KeyWord
Pointer Code
FreeText
REACSTR
ReacstrID
SubentID ReacodeID
iReacstr
Pointer
nCodes Code
Target Reaction
Product Projectile
Category
Quant SF1SF9
SF58
ZTarg
elTarg aTarg
sTarg zProd elProd
sProd
ztProd
atProd
TransID=
ENTRY
EntryID
Entry TransID
UpdateNo
Area
DateDebut FileSrc
nInstitutes
Institute1 nAuthors
Author1Ini Author1
nReferences Reference1
YearRef1
X4TRANS
TransID
UpdateNo
TransDate TransFile
nEntries
nSubentries
nDatalines
EntryID=EntryID
X4UPDATE
UpdateNo
UpdateDate UpdateFlag
UpdateNo=
PRODUCT SubentID
ReacodeID
Fld Element
Mass
Isomer Product
Prod
X4SRC
SubentID SubAcc
Entry Coding
Source
Relations
Many to one
One to one
SubentID=
SUBENT
SubentID
SubAcc EntryID
Entry
TransID
UpdateNo SubAcc1
StatusSPSDD DateUpd
nReac nReacstr
EnMin
EnMax CdatasetID
CnCol
CnRow
DdatasetId DnCol
DnRow
REACODE
ReacodeID
SubentID
SubAcc
Pointer nReacstr
nDataLines
eMin eMax
fullCode
AUTHORS EntryID
Entry
iAuthor AuthorIni
Author
INSTITUT EntryID
Entry
iInstitute Institute
Code
Area Country
REFERS EntryID
Entry
iReference Reference
Ref
Title DateRef
NsrKeyno
AuthorsList
DOI
Figure 5 The EXFOR database schema
14
Non-EXFOR sources
EXFOR (NRDC)
Dictionaries
Manual
PDF files
BibTeX files
Expert corrections
So
ftw
are
EXFOR X4+ X4plusmn
Plots ZVD R33
T4 C4 C5 C5M XC4
PDF Web-Journals
X4xml X4html
Links to ENDF NSR
C4renormalized
EXFOR
Database
EXFOR files
Web-
User
EXFOR-Master
EXFOR-Uploading
Compiler
Temp-files
Input-files
SG30
Isolated
User
So
ftw
are
NSR
Database We
b R
etr
ieva
l sy
ste
m
pro
gra
ms
fil
es
(CD
F
TP
)
Figure 6 The EXFOR operation workflow
32 EXFOR Web Interface
Since introduction of the World Wide Web it is essential for data and re-search centers to provide direct access to nuclear databases [18 34 35 36 37]The EXFOR Web retrieval interface is an integral part of both IAEA andNNDC Web Services [18 34] To provide more robust scalable architecturesatisfy cyber security requirements and protect nuclear data services from asingle-point failure the Web and database servers are physically separatedThe Web server has the ApacheTomcat [38 39] Web production environ-ment installed All servers are running the Linux (Red Hat SUSE etc)operating system The initial version of the present interface became opera-tional fifteen years ago and eventually grew to its current state The interfaceis based on current computer technologies and provides retrieval of databasecontent in HTML Text BibTex and PDF formats It also produces special-ized outputs in C4C5 Application Programing Interface (API)XML andR33 for nuclear model codes application developers and Ion Beam AnalysisNuclear Data Library (IBANDL) [40] users community respectively
Data plotting is performed using the ZVView software package that hasbeen written in C and designed for evaluators of nuclear reaction data toperform efficient interactive analyses of cross section data retrieved from thenuclear data libraries [22] The main function of ZVView is to plot these data
15
for comparison using a variety of options to study graphical numerical andbibliographic information along with the possibility of analyzing the resultsof the userrsquos evaluations Since 2010 the ZVView program has been extendedto plot 2-dimensional arrays Z(XY) with the main purpose of displaying cor-relation matrices The package allows users to change plotting parameterssuch as type of data view (curve histogram map 3D animation symbolsof points colors error bars) logarithmic and linear scales zoom split plotto sub-windows smoothing by least-squares method choice of data and au-thors to be plotted scans of their points and changing language on the flyThe Web-ZVView program implements the majority of these functions asintegrated part of EXFOR and ENDF Web retrieval systems
The current Web interface is a very sophisticated product that reflectsthe overall complexity of nuclear reaction data The immense variety andvolume of the archived quantities require advanced data retrieval capabilitiesat the same time a large number of EXFOR users are still looking for simpleretrievals of reaction cross sections To accommodate these different usergroups four levels of EXFOR retrievals have been introduced basic (simple)extended keywords and expert
321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
The majority of EXFOR users are not familiar with the databasersquos ad-vanced structure or its philosophy This user group includes nuclear scien-tists engineers and graduate students that need direct access to the latestnuclear reaction data sets To satisfy their needs the authors have developedsimple EXFOR retrievals that are based on target reaction experimentalquantity product energy range authors publication year and accessionnumber search parameters All search fields are based on a logical ldquoORrdquooperator () that returns the Boolean value true if either of the operandsis true and returns false otherwise Therefore empty fields are ignored by adata search query and users can easily construct database queries using Webinterface search fields To demonstrate the present Web interface graphic anddata capabilities the authors will consider a case of 235U(nf) reaction crosssections Fig 7 shows a simple retrieval for the following input parameterstarget = 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs
To improve user experience a simple text string Google-like search hasbeen recently added to the EXFOR Web interface It is located on the topright side of the EXFOR front page This search is intended for less sophis-ticated EXFOR users who prefer to mine experimental data using common
16
Figure 7 An example of simple cross section retrieval for 235U(nf) reaction data in-puts for the EXFOR front and data selection pages were magnified The EXFOR WebInterface is publicly available at the websites of the Nuclear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor the National Nuclear Data Center httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor
nuclear physics concepts The EXFOR interface also contains online helpdisplayed as question mark buttons on the right side of the search boxesThese buttons produce pop-up windows that have information on text boxinput parameters and provide access to EXFOR dictionaries
322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
EXFOR is the only nuclear physics database that stores extensive de-scriptions of experimental results and facilities In fact these data representa treasure trove for investigation of research trends in nuclear physics [3] andprovide complementary background for nuclear data evaluations These datacan be extracted using extended keywords and expert requests
The extended retrieval provides additional capabilities for creating sophis-ticated database queries that include bibliographical metadata geographicalorigin (area country institute) NSR keynumbers (NSR database analoguesof EXFOR accession numbers) and compilation timing information
Keyword retrieval allows queries for experimental quantities that cannotbe easily found anywhere else detector method monitor facility incomingsource and spectrum data analysis detected particles and radiations and
17
experimental data originsThe expert retrieval supplies capabilities for searching for outgoing parti-
cle parameters data units ranges for experimental data points and EXFORcompilation centers individual compilers and data transmissions As it wasmentioned previously all text box search fields are implemented as a logicalldquoORrdquo operator and therefore missing search fields are ignored by SQL dataqueries
33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
The EXFOR system has matured over the years into a very advancedproduct and several complex features represent a challenge for new users Toovercome these issues the webpage News display box numerical and plottingexamples of requests and video guides (httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4guide)have been prepared These resources provide constant updates on new EX-FOR system features and share best user practices The EXFOR examplesare intended for user education purposes and supply additional insights on in-terface capabilities The broad scope of examples helped to improve EXFORuser experiences and such policies contributed to the worldwide popularityof the service
34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
The EXFOR interface is a gateway to the latest experimental nuclearreaction data stored at the IAEA and NNDC databases and it has a verybroad spectrum of usage worldwide In order to provide the best qualityof services the authors monitor the interface operation [18 41] Monitor-ing includes collection of web statistics geographical coverage network dataanalysis and estimates of database usage The EXFOR database retrievalstatistics are very conservative and completely based on a count of success-ful database retrievals any Web browser hits are ignored Retrievals fornon-existing entities in the database (eg author reaction target) whichproduce an empty output file are rejected Complete information for eachretrieval is recorded in separate Web statistic data files and usually sim300retrievalsday are observed from the IAEA and NNDC websites
The absolute number of Web retrievals provides only a partial estimateof product usage To further estimate the impact of the current productretrieval statistics can be complimented with the Google Scholar data TheScholar Web application allows retrieval of information on the EXFOR Webapplication usage from research articles A simple Google Scholar search for
18
2 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 50
5 0
1 0 0
1 5 0
2 0 0
2 5 0
3 0 0
Goog
le Sc
holar
Citat
ions
Y e a r
w w w n n d c b n l g o v e x f o r w w w - n d s i a e a o r g e x f o r
Figure 8 The worldwide impact of EXFOR Web application based on the NDS IAEAand NNDC BNL citation statistics The plot shows an incremental growth of websiteGoogle Scholar citations over the years
the NDS httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor and NNDC httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfortext strings results in sim1100 and sim770 citations respectively These cita-tions originate from research papers where the EXFOR interface address wasmentioned The growth curve shown in Fig 8 is well matched with the Webretrieval statistics [41] The agreement between these trends provides a ver-ification of the present analysis and confirms a broad usage of the EXFORWeb interface
Complementary insights on EXFOR usage can be obtained from the Webinterface usage pattern pie chart shown in Fig 9 The chart is based on aGoogle Analytics analysis of NNDC and NDS Web traffic sim100000 interac-tions per year (data searches are not included) and sim2500 unique users permonth The EXFOR plot X4plusmn interactive tree (iTree) X4+ interpretedT4 simplified and original format retrievals constitute 232 206 185 125and 88 of total operations respectively Other noticeable contributionsinclude access of publisher Digital Object Identifier (DOI) links and NSRdatabase downloads of plotted data and PDF files and covariance matrixcalculation using experimental uncertainties Usage of the retrieval system
19
2 3 2 P l o t2 0 6 X 4 i T r e e1 8 5 X 4 + I n t e r p r e t e d1 2 5 T 4 S i m p l i f i e d
8 8 X 4 O r i g i n a l6 4 P u b l i s h e r L i n k s3 9 D o w n l o a d P l o t t e d2 1 P D F1 3 C r e a t e C o v M a t r i x1 1 N S R - k e y n o1 6 O t h e r s
Figure 9 Google Analytics statistical analysis for EXFOR Web interface
can be summarized as follows
bull EXFOR data downloads in various interpreted formats (iTree X4+T4 - sim50) These data transfers exceed the original EXFOR formatretrievals (lt9)
bull EXFOR plotting with the subsequent download of plotted data as textor html tables (sim27) and construction of covariance matrices usingexperimental uncertainties (sim1)
bull DOI access of publisher web sites (64) and NSR web retrieval system(sim1) and download of PDF copies (sim2) The last option is availablefor authorized users only due to copyright restrictions
bull Other tools and operations (lt2) for example extremely valuablefor nuclear physicist or engineer EXFOR cross section renormalization(fifty-two unique clients in 2016 represent sim01 of all operations)
4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
The EXFOR computer database is an integral part of nuclear data Webservices is firmly related to nuclear reaction data evaluations and requiresaccess to nuclear bibliography The combined development of the experi-mental evaluated and bibliographical nuclear reaction databases was a costeffective solution that allowed reuse of Java classes Web implementation of
20
plotting packages and reduction of overall time for application developmentand testing
41 ENDF
ENDF is a core nuclear reaction database containing evaluated (recom-mended) cross sections spectra angular distributions fission product yieldsthermal neutron scattering and photo-atomic and other data with an em-phasis on neutron-induced reactions ENDF library evaluations are basedon theoretical calculations normalized to experimental data with an excep-tion of neutron resonance region where priority is given to experimentaldata ENDF evaluations consist of complete neutron reaction data setsfor particular isotope or element (ENDF material) They cover all neu-tron reaction channels within the 10minus5 eV - 20 MeV energy range Nowa-days in many evaluated data libraries this energy range is extended tohigher energies All these data sets are stored in the internationally-adoptedENDF-6 format that is maintained by the Cross Section Evaluation Work-ing Group (CSEWG) and publicly available at the NNDC and NDS web-sites httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf and httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf re-spectively Cross section evaluations are of great importance for nuclearenergy and science applications and they are performed internationally forENDF JEFF TENDL JENDL ROSFOND and CENDL libraries [24 2526 27 28 29] in the USA Europe Japan Russian Federation and Chinarespectively
The EXFOR project is a primary source of experimental nuclear reac-tion data for neutron cross section evaluations In practice many ENDFevaluations are produced using nuclear reaction model codes EMPIRE orTALYS [42 43] that contain EXFOR database connectivity modules Thecomputer codes are used for calculation neutron-induced reaction theoreticalcurves data analysis and comparison with experimental data These eval-uations are critically important for many applications because they provideevaluated neutron cross sections for operation of nuclear power plants andGEANT and MCNP computer codes [44 45]
The ENDF Web interface takes its contents from a separate ENDF re-lational database It contains the most complete international collection ofevaluated nuclear reaction libraries includes data analysis capabilities andintegrated with experimental data The interface shown in Fig 10 servesevaluated data in many output formats and incorporates the ZVView pro-gram [22] The IAEA and NNDC interfaces are slightly different on a client
21
ENDF
Figure 10 ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated and experimental cross sectionsfor 235U(nf) reaction data inputs for the ENDF data selection pages were magni-fied The visualized evaluated data have been processed with the PREPRO code [46]at T=29316 K ENDF Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovendf
side and completely identical on the server side These differences have beenintroduced to reflect different user requirements Both interfaces allow usersto search a large number of evaluated libraries for relevant evaluations us-ing target reaction quantity product and other parameters For exampleconsider ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated nuclear data retrieval for235U(nf) reaction cross sections in conjunction with experimental data li-brary = ENDFB-VII1 JEFF-32 target = 235U reaction = nf and quan-tity = cs This retrieval can be accomplished from the main ENDF interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf) or as shown here by clicking an ENDF but-ton next to the experimental cross sections plotted in Fig 7 The ENDFdatabase output demonstrates that ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluatedcross sections agree well with experimental values
42 CINDA
Nuclear bibliography is essential for nuclear reaction data compilationsCINDA contains many historic publications that are not available in anyother database These publications are grouped by experiment and thedatabase allows application of energy range criteria for data searches Theseunique capabilities are still in demand by nuclear data evaluators Currently
22
CINDA
Figure 11 Nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf) reaction experimental cross sec-tions The CINDA Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovcinda
separate CINDA data compilations are terminated and CINDA contents areextended by new information from the EXFOR and NSR databases
CINDA contains the most extensive nuclear reaction bibliography it isintegrated with the EXFOR Web retrieval system and allows users to searchfor information that is not available in EXFOR The database interface in-cludes all major EXFOR search fields and provides data outputs in text andHTML formats For example to retrieve nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf)reaction cross sections the following input parameters are assumed target= 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs As shown in Fig 11 CINDAdatabase output consists of 2406 publications and 2736 reactions
5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
Originally EXFOR Web Interface was created to perform only basic op-erations data search retrieval and presentation It is now part of a largeand developed Web System including extended functionality and tools forregular [external or traditional] users EXFOR compilers and ENDF andENSDF [47] evaluators There are many interesting EXFOR Web interface
23
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
1 Introduction
Since the dawn of the nuclear age access to the most recent nuclear dataplayed a crucial role in nuclear physics research and application develop-ment These data were originally disseminated as paper copies for designatedusers and eventually evolved into the present-day computer files distributedover the World Wide Web The National Nuclear Data Center (NNDC)Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) and Nuclear Data Section (NDS)International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have always been pioneers innuclear data collection evaluation and dissemination They have been pro-viding remote electronic access to their databases and other information since1986 In this work the authors will concentrate on the present state of storageanalysis and worldwide distribution of low- and intermediate-energy nuclearreaction data
EXFOR experimental nuclear reaction database [1 2] is the worldrsquos primerepository for reaction data compilations The EXFOR library was estab-lished in 1967 at a meeting of the four major nuclear data centers BrookhavenNational Laboratory Upton NY (Area 1 USA Canada) Nuclear EnergyAgency (NEA) Databank Paris France (Area 2 Western Europe andJapan) International Atomic Energy Agency Vienna Austria (Area 3Asia Eastern Europe Latin America Africa Australia and Oceania) andInstitute of Physics and Power Engineering (IPPE) Obninsk USSR (Area4 Soviet Union) [1] This project was based on previously-existing ef-forts such as the NNDC predecessorrsquos Sigma Center Information Storageand Retrieval System (SCISRS) and the associated format Currently theEXFOR project is an international collaboration under the auspices of theInternational Atomic Energy Agency and 13 nuclear data centers from theUSA OECDData Bank (France) IAEANDS (Austria) Russian Federa-tion China Hungary India Japan Kazakhstan Korea and Ukraine regu-larly contribute to it
2 EXFOR Database
The exchange format library was created in support of nuclear energyfundamental research and application development activities The initialdatabase scope was limited to neutron-induced reaction quantities Later thescope was extended to charged-particle and photon-induced reactions withenergies below the pion production threshold Presently neutron- proton-
2
1 9 6 0 1 9 7 0 1 9 8 0 1 9 9 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 2 0 2 0
1 0
1 0 0
1 k
1 0 ko
fExp
erime
ntsin
EXFO
R
Y e a r
A l p h aG a m m aN e u t r o nP r o t o n
Figure 1 Content evolution of the EXFOR database Neutron reactions have been com-piled systematically since the initiation of the EXFOR project while charged particle andphoton (gamma) reactions have been covered less extensively Complementary details areavailable in Ref [3]
alpha- and photon-induced reactions constitute 479 198 736 and 62 ofdatabase contents respectively The historic evolution of EXFOR contentsis shown in Fig 1 In addition to cross section data the EXFOR libraryincludes information on incoming particle spectra such as 252Cf spontaneousfission and β-delayed neutrons Heavy ion- electron- and pion-induced reac-tions with energies up to 1 GeV are compiled by the responsible centers ona voluntary basis
The present database is the largest low- and intermediate-energy nuclearreaction library as of November 27 2017 it includes 21885 experiments170088 data sets and 15213129 data points The database contains infor-mation on 968 targets 386 incident projectiles and 2606 nuclear reactionsTo further illustrate the volume and diversity of the database and associatedcomputer programming challenges we will provide a list of compiled nuclearphysics quantities in Table 1 The table data show that cross section datasets represent approximately half of the database contents It also includessubstantial contributions from differential data with respect to angle par-tial cross sections resonance parameters polarization data fission product
3
yields and double differential cross section measurements The total numberof Table 1 compilations exceeds the overall number of experiments due to acomplex structure of compiled entries a single entry often contains multipledata subentries reaction strings and reaction combinations
Figure 1 data highlight the fact that neutron-induced reactions represent abackbone of EXFOR and these data are essential for many applications Theneutron reactions constitute a perfect case of mutually-beneficial relationsbetween the fundamental and applied sciences For demonstration purposesthe authors will analyze neutron capture and inverse photoneutron reactionsand the historical evolution of experimental nuclear reaction activities Thesedirect and inverse reactions play an essential role in computer modeling ofastrophysical s r and p processes and they are crucial in nuclear reactorcalculations Data shown in the left panels of Fig 2 demonstrate that themost frequently-used neutron capture targets are gold (Au) uranium (U)and tin (Sn) while neutron-rich tin gold and uranium are materials of choicefor photo-neutron reaction studies Subsequent examination of the rightpanels provides indication of two trends large numbers of nuclear reactionmeasurements in the 1970rsquos [3] and a recent increase in number of (nγ) and(γn) reactions Further analysis of the last finding reveals a substantialcontribution of Maxwellian-averaged cross section measurements in recentyears These experiments tackle nuclear astrophysics problems and providecomplementary benchmarks for nuclear reactor modeling
21 EXFOR Data Compilation
In the early 1950rsquos data compilations have been pioneered at the BrookhavenNational Laboratory in support of nuclear science and reactor research ac-tivities [1 4] Since 1964 Brookhaven compilations have been stored in theSCISRS computer system that predated the EXFOR database These exper-imental data compilation efforts have always had an important internationalcomponent The IAEA Nuclear Data Section has been involved in this worksince its creation in 1964 Other early contributors include NEA Data BankParis France and the Institute of Physics and Power Engineering ObninskUSSR which were founded in 1964 and 1963 respectively [1] In 1969 anagreement on an exchange format was reached between four centers and July1970 was chosen as the starting date for transmission of neutron data be-tween the partners in the EXFOR format The effort to translate all of theexisting experimental nuclear reaction data sets which were coded in theSCISRS system format would be done later [1]
4
Table 1 List of EXFOR database compiled nuclear physics quantities
EXFOR Code Description Compilations
1 CS Cross section data 112042 DAP Partial differential data with respect to angle 42483 DA Differential data with respect to angle 42344 RP Resonance parameters 19615 CSP Partial cross section data 18746 POL Polarization data 11087 FY Fission product yields 10948 DAE Differential data with respect to angle and energy 10649 MFQ Fission neutron quantities 50910 SP Gamma spectra 46111 RI Resonance integrals 45112 DE Differential data with respect to energy 37213 TT Thick target yields 35914 E Kinetic energies 33315 L Scattering amplitudes 19616 INT Cross section integral over incident energy 18517 PY Product yields 16618 NQ Nuclear quantities 13719 MLT Outgoing particle multiplicities 10220 RR Reaction rates 9821 TTD Differential thick target yields 5122 CST Temperature dependent cross section data 3023 SQ Special quantities 1624 DEP Partial differential data with respect to energy 1225 TTP Partial thick target yields 726 COR Secondary particle correlations 5
5
5 01 0 01 5 02 0 02 5 03 0 03 5 04 0 0
0 2 0 4 0 6 0 8 0 1 0 0
1 0
2 0
3 0
4 0
5 0
6 0
7 0
1 9 2 0 1 9 4 0 1 9 6 0 1 9 8 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 2 0
S nU
Cros
sSec
tionM
easu
remen
ts
N G
N G
U
S n
A u
Z
G N
Y e a r
G N
A u
Figure 2 EXFOR compilations of nuclear astrophysics relevant neutron capture (nγ) andphoto-neutron (γn) production reactions vs target material (z) and historical distribu-tion of experimental results are shown in left and right panels respectively
In recent years the EXFOR compilations became even more popularworldwide and a large number of institutions have joined In fact EXFORrepresents one of the oldest continuously-operated scientific collaborationsSince its creation the EXFOR project has relied heavily on computer tech-nologies available at the time Historically the data compilations were per-formed using pencil and paper and they have gradually developed into thepresent day computer operation that includes modern relational databaseand Web servers EXFOR compilation editors plot digitizers and opticalcharacter recognition technologies Since the beginning reaction data com-pilations were performed on a timely basis and archived in close cooperationwith the researchers Many scientists have contributed their original datasets to the EXFOR library Unfortunately this mode of operation has notalways worked perfectly and several important data sets were missed andthe NRDC network members are working on their recovery In addition theNRDC community has addressed the issues with the problematic and incor-rectly entered data compilations The database contents were reanalyzed andcorrected by the members of the Subgroup 30 of the Working Party on In-ternational Evaluation Co-operation of the NEA Nuclear Science Committee[5]
6
Data recovery (eg nuclear archeology) is one of the important functionsof the EXFOR operation Here the authors consider EXFOR entry 14329based on the PhD dissertation of JL Kammerdiener [6] University of Cal-ifornia Davis This thesis represents cost and time-expensive measurementswith unique target materials 239Pu 238U 235U Pb Nb Ni Al and C Thesethesis data were preserved as a paper copy only where results were shown asplots A new measurement with these targets would require lengthy delaycontingent on a program advisory committee approval process and may re-sult in a few million dollars of additional expenses Therefore this thesis andassociated graphic data were reanalyzed and digitized forty one years laterat the National Nuclear Data Center In this endeavor the EXFOR editor [7]and Java digitizer [8] developed in Sarov Russian Federation and SapporoJapan respectively were used The Fig 3 example illustrates the first 2 ofKammerdienerrsquos 171 thesis data records (subentries) The present compila-tion beginning subentry contains bibliographical and general information forall subentries such as 14 MeV incident neutrons energy in the common sec-tion while experimental data are compiled in the following subentries Thecompilation second subentry reaction field (13-AL-27(NEL)13-AL-27DA)indicates elastic neutron scattering differential data with respect to angle(DA) and the subentry status field (CURVE) reveals digitized data All ex-perimental data sets are placed within DATA and ENDDATA tags and theoriginal article units are preserved The well-structured compilation formatwas intentionally designed for further usage in computer systems It repre-sents a typical input file for the current Web and database system that willbe discussed in the following section
22 EXFOR Format
The EXFOR database format was introduced for data storage and in-formation exchanges between major data centers as a replacement of theSCISRS format [1] The present format is human-readable is 80 characterslong and includes opening and closing tags for all data and metadata setsEfforts to improve the EXFOR format are currently underway [9] and theseattempts will provide additional avenues for application developments Inthe present work the authors will adopt the EXFOR Basics publication [10]as an introductory guide to EXFOR format for advanced users the LEX-FOR manual is recommended [11] The EXFOR format is currently used forexperimental nuclear data archiving and dissemination and its file structureis shown in Fig 4 The experimental nuclear reaction data library consists of
7
ENTRY 14329 20130820 20131120 20131111 1393
SUBENT 14329001 20130820 20131120 20131111 1393
BIB 15 72
TITLE Neutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235U Pb Nb
Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutrons
AUTHOR (JLKammerdiener)
INSTITUTE (1USADAV)
REFERENCE (RUCRL-512321972) PhDthesis
REL-REF (O10423001LFHansen+PUSNDC-984197311) Ni data
(OV1004001TKawanoWKAWANO2013)
Angle-integrated spectra derived from present
experiment
FACILITY (ICTR1USALRL) Insulated core transformer accelerator
INC-SOURCE (D-T) Deuteron on tritium
DETECTOR (SCINGLASD) NE-213 scintillator 6Li glass detector
PART-DET (NG)
METHOD (TOFPSDRINGR) Time of flight pulse shape
ANALYSIS (REDUC) The entire data reduction process was
CORRECTION The data were corrected for effects due to
ERR-ANALYS (DATA-ERR) Data which has been corrected
(ERR-S100) less than 10
COMMENT From conversation of MB Chadwick with John
HISTORY (20121207C) BP
(20130712A) BP added reference to Los Alamos estimate
by T Kawano
ENDBIB 72
COMMON 1 3
EN
MEV
140
ENDCOMMON 3
ENDSUBENT 79
SUBENT 14329002 20121207 20130502 20130429 1388
BIB 3 3
REACTION (13-AL-27(NEL)13-AL-27DA)
STATUS (CURVE) Fig42
REL-REF (A11322001JHCoon+JPR1112501958)
ENDBIB 3
NOCOMMON 0 0
DATA 3 13
ANG-CM DATA-CM DATA-ERR
ADEG MBSR MBSR
2500E+01 2238E+02
3000E+01 1018E+02 6049E+00
3500E+01 3094E+01 3807E+00
4000E+01 1407E+01 2260E+00
4500E+01 1736E+01 1867E+00
5500E+01 3784E+01
6500E+01 4469E+01
7500E+01 2810E+01
8500E+01 1181E+01 6043E-01
1000E+02 1000E+01 5117E-01
1150E+02 1181E+01 7988E-01
1350E+02 1082E+01 9070E-01
1550E+02 1121E+01 1379E+00
ENDDATA 15
ENDSUBENT 23 ENDENTRY 2
Figure 3 Fragment of EXFOR entry 14329 based on the 1972 University of CaliforniaDavis thesis by JL Kammerdiener [6]
8
AUTHOR
TITLE
REFERENCE
DETECTOR
METHOD
MONITOR
FACILITY
REACTION
EXFOR
ENTRY
ENTRY
ENTRY
SUBENT-1
SUBENT-2
SUBENT-n
BIB
KEYWORD-1
KEYWORD-2
KEYWORD-n
CODE[s]
Free text
CODE[s]
Free text
Header
Units
value
value
Header
Units
value
value
Header
Units
value
value
n n n
n
n
k+
2
m
KEYWORD =
DATAk timesm
COMMON1 times m (k=1)
COMMON DATA
Figure 4 Manifold structure of the EXFOR library Each database entry consists ofbibliographical and data subentries
data entries that contain complete records of individual experiments Eachexperiment may include multiple nuclear reaction data sets (subentries) andseveral research papers because EXFOR compilers group multiple publica-tions from a particular experiment into a single entry Another importantfeature of the library is that all experimental data are compiled as publishedonly obvious errors are corrected
Each entry is assigned a unique accession number each subentry is as-signed a subaccession number (the accession number plus a subentry num-ber) The subaccession numbers are associated with a data table throughoutthe life of the EXFOR system The subentries are further divided into thefollowing categories
bull Bibliographic descriptive and bookkeeping information (hereafter calledBIB information)
bull Common data that applies to all data throughout the entry or subentry
9
bull Data tables
In order to avoid repetition of information that is common to all subentrieswithin an entry or to all lines within a subentry information may be asso-ciated with an entire entry or with an entire subentry To accomplish thisthe first subentry of each work contains only information that applies to allother subentries Within each subentry the information common to all linesof the table precedes the table
EXFOR format was originally designed for data storage and interchangebetween the four data centers and it serves well for these purposes Howeverthe compilation format [12] may represent a problem for application devel-opers and other users who are not familiar with format specifics To over-come this obstacle a simplified computational format (C4) was introducedThe code X4TOC4 [13] converts EXFOR data sets to the easy-to-read datacolumns in C4 format The C4 format is used in the current system for dataplotting and further dissemination
23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
Compilation databases often contain an extensive collection of dictionar-ies The EXFOR dictionaries list details for database keywords and codesand their identification numbers range between 1 and 999 [14] These dictio-naries are periodically updated with new keywords and codes and could besubdivided into three groups
bull The Archive dictionaries are the source of the contents of all forms ofthe dictionaries They contain all keys their expansions and additionalcodes as well as free text explanations for compilers
bull The DANIEL backup dictionaries contain all keys additional codesneeded for programs and most of the expansions These dictionariesare designed for interacting with computer programs
bull The EXFOR transmission dictionaries contain all keys (except for Dic-tionary 26 Unit families [14]) their expansions and free text expla-nations but not all additional codes needed for the checking and otherprograms
10
24 EXFOR Manual
EXFOR database its formats structures and relevant procedures areextensively described in the manual Historically it was maintained by theUS National Nuclear Data Center and recently it was transferred to theIAEA Nuclear Data section [10 11] The manual is absolutely essential forEXFOR database compilations and application developments
3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
The development of nuclear reaction data storage and dissemination sys-tems has a very rich history There have been previous efforts to disseminatenuclear reaction data such as the Brookhaven Cross Section Information Stor-age and Retrieval System (CSISRS) that was introduced in 1971 based onthe VAX-VMS computer system This dissemination system was a revisedversion of the original SCISRS
The VMS platform became obsolete in the 90s due to the rapid progressof modern computing and introduction of World Wide Web technologies Inorder to improve the quality of nuclear data services and take advantageof the latest software and hardware developments the NNDC BNL andNDS IAEA started to work on a data migration project in 1999 followinga basic assessment of future options [15] This exploratory work culminatedat an International Workshop on Relational Database and Java Technolo-gies for Nuclear Data held at BNL September 11-15 2000 [16] As a re-sult of the workshop the two partners embarked on a project to migrateits databases to a UNIX-based relational database environment and signif-icantly upgrade Web Services employing the latest computer technologies[15 17] The migration project was successfully completed and the new nu-clear data Web service made available beginning in 2004 [18] General systemdesign and several distinct elements of the system such as Nuclear ScienceReferences (NSR httpwwwnndcbnlgovnsr) and Sigma Web Interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovsigma) have been described previously [19 20] Atthe same time other popular features such as the very advanced and con-stantly evolving experimental nuclear reaction Web and data services werenever comprehensively described in the literature This publication is in-tended to fulfill this task and provide an extensive description of nuclearreaction data services
In the present work the authors describe the current status of the EXFORdatabase project which creates one of the foundations for the modern nuclear
11
data Web services The current system has been designed as multiuser andplatform independent environment [21] The cross platform capabilities havebeen achieved by extensive usage of Java technologies Java codes can bedeveloped on any device compiled into a standard bytecode and run on anydevice equipped with a Java virtual machine The current system includesJava Web servlets database connectivity and wrapper classes for a ZVViewplotting package [22] and legacy FORTRAN and C codes It is based oncommercially available software and hardware and contains many featuresof enterprise computer portals dealt with on a daily basis Two versions ofthe EXFOR database and Web retrieval systems are presently distributedserver and personal computer (portable) for multiple and individual clientsrespectively The server installation is briefly described in Ref [18] whilethe personal computer version is build on a standard compact disk thatis available from the IAEA upon request In subsequent subsections theauthors will describe hardware and software computer environments followedby software application developments careful analysis of Web features anda worldwide impact on nuclear data users
31 EXFOR Relational Database
The EXFOR database contains nuclear data sets for sim22000 experi-ments Rapid access to these data is of paramount importance for nuclearscience and technology professionals The first modern EXFOR Web dis-semination and data storage system was developed at the NDS IAEA incooperation with the NNDC BNL [21] It is a multi-platform product thatwas developed for the nuclear data services migration project to a TomcatWeb and SybaseMySQL database servers environment [18] Later the nu-clear databases were transferred from Sybase to MySQL servers The mod-ern relational database servers allow access to data using Structured QueryLanguage (SQL) The SQL language is easy to learn and use it allowingmanagement of the databases and building Web interfaces for data searchesmanagement and updates The underlying software converts these requestsinto corresponding SQL statements that are passed to the database to harvestdatabase outputs
MySQL server is a robust database system that can be operated on mul-tiple computer platforms using community or enterprise licenses Initiallythe NDS IAEA service was based on MySQL while the NNDC operatedenterprise Sybase servers and later transferred to MySQL enterprise serversIn recent years both centers migrated to MySQL community edition servers
12
The EXFOR database has been successfully integrated with the Evalu-ated Nuclear Data File (ENDF) libraries [23 24 25 26 27 28 29] bibli-ographical Computer Index of Nuclear (reaction) DAta (CINDA) [30 31]and Nuclear Science References databases [19] Its contents are also used inSigma Web Interface [20] some of its components are used in JANIS (JAva-based Nuclear data Information System independently developed by the NEADatabank) [32] The EXFOR relational database project has evolved andmatured substantially in the last fifteen years compared to its initial version[21 18] and an extensive description of its latest features is presented below
311 EXFOR Database Schema
The schema describes a database structure in a formal language supportedby the database management system In a relational database the schemadefines the tables fields relationships views indexes procedures and otherelements
The simplified version of EXFOR relational database schema is shown inFig 5 The EXFOR schema includes tables that contain data metadataand dictionaries such as X4SRC ENTRIES and AUTHORS respectively Itincludes relationships between data tables eg ENTRY and SUBENT metadata tables are linked using an EntryID relationship The current databaseschema provides a glimpse into the present system storage of experimentalnuclear reaction data sets
312 Database System Operation
The EXFOR operation includes contributions from the data groups affil-iated with the network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) [33] andNon-EXFOR data sources The NRDC supplies the database with new andrevised data compilations dictionaries and manual updates Bibliographicalmetadata original publication PDF files and data renormalization informa-tion are provided through separate channels All of these nuclear science andbibliographical data are processed and stored in a relational database thatincorporates text compilation and articledocument PDF files for the major-ity of EXFOR entries Due to major publishersrsquo subscription rules the PDFfiles are not available for external users The Java-based computer programsprocess contributions and fetch data retrievals as EXFOR-formatted filesZVView plots PDF files and many other custom formats for remote Weband local users The EXFOR database operation workflow diagram is shownin Fig 6
13
SubentID= EntryID=
ReacodeID=
ReacodeID=
SubentID=
HEADER
DatasetID
SubentID iCol
Pointer
flagCD Header
Units
KEYWORD
SubentID
iKeyword EntryID
Entry
SubAcc
SubAccNum KeyWord
Pointer Code
FreeText
REACSTR
ReacstrID
SubentID ReacodeID
iReacstr
Pointer
nCodes Code
Target Reaction
Product Projectile
Category
Quant SF1SF9
SF58
ZTarg
elTarg aTarg
sTarg zProd elProd
sProd
ztProd
atProd
TransID=
ENTRY
EntryID
Entry TransID
UpdateNo
Area
DateDebut FileSrc
nInstitutes
Institute1 nAuthors
Author1Ini Author1
nReferences Reference1
YearRef1
X4TRANS
TransID
UpdateNo
TransDate TransFile
nEntries
nSubentries
nDatalines
EntryID=EntryID
X4UPDATE
UpdateNo
UpdateDate UpdateFlag
UpdateNo=
PRODUCT SubentID
ReacodeID
Fld Element
Mass
Isomer Product
Prod
X4SRC
SubentID SubAcc
Entry Coding
Source
Relations
Many to one
One to one
SubentID=
SUBENT
SubentID
SubAcc EntryID
Entry
TransID
UpdateNo SubAcc1
StatusSPSDD DateUpd
nReac nReacstr
EnMin
EnMax CdatasetID
CnCol
CnRow
DdatasetId DnCol
DnRow
REACODE
ReacodeID
SubentID
SubAcc
Pointer nReacstr
nDataLines
eMin eMax
fullCode
AUTHORS EntryID
Entry
iAuthor AuthorIni
Author
INSTITUT EntryID
Entry
iInstitute Institute
Code
Area Country
REFERS EntryID
Entry
iReference Reference
Ref
Title DateRef
NsrKeyno
AuthorsList
DOI
Figure 5 The EXFOR database schema
14
Non-EXFOR sources
EXFOR (NRDC)
Dictionaries
Manual
PDF files
BibTeX files
Expert corrections
So
ftw
are
EXFOR X4+ X4plusmn
Plots ZVD R33
T4 C4 C5 C5M XC4
PDF Web-Journals
X4xml X4html
Links to ENDF NSR
C4renormalized
EXFOR
Database
EXFOR files
Web-
User
EXFOR-Master
EXFOR-Uploading
Compiler
Temp-files
Input-files
SG30
Isolated
User
So
ftw
are
NSR
Database We
b R
etr
ieva
l sy
ste
m
pro
gra
ms
fil
es
(CD
F
TP
)
Figure 6 The EXFOR operation workflow
32 EXFOR Web Interface
Since introduction of the World Wide Web it is essential for data and re-search centers to provide direct access to nuclear databases [18 34 35 36 37]The EXFOR Web retrieval interface is an integral part of both IAEA andNNDC Web Services [18 34] To provide more robust scalable architecturesatisfy cyber security requirements and protect nuclear data services from asingle-point failure the Web and database servers are physically separatedThe Web server has the ApacheTomcat [38 39] Web production environ-ment installed All servers are running the Linux (Red Hat SUSE etc)operating system The initial version of the present interface became opera-tional fifteen years ago and eventually grew to its current state The interfaceis based on current computer technologies and provides retrieval of databasecontent in HTML Text BibTex and PDF formats It also produces special-ized outputs in C4C5 Application Programing Interface (API)XML andR33 for nuclear model codes application developers and Ion Beam AnalysisNuclear Data Library (IBANDL) [40] users community respectively
Data plotting is performed using the ZVView software package that hasbeen written in C and designed for evaluators of nuclear reaction data toperform efficient interactive analyses of cross section data retrieved from thenuclear data libraries [22] The main function of ZVView is to plot these data
15
for comparison using a variety of options to study graphical numerical andbibliographic information along with the possibility of analyzing the resultsof the userrsquos evaluations Since 2010 the ZVView program has been extendedto plot 2-dimensional arrays Z(XY) with the main purpose of displaying cor-relation matrices The package allows users to change plotting parameterssuch as type of data view (curve histogram map 3D animation symbolsof points colors error bars) logarithmic and linear scales zoom split plotto sub-windows smoothing by least-squares method choice of data and au-thors to be plotted scans of their points and changing language on the flyThe Web-ZVView program implements the majority of these functions asintegrated part of EXFOR and ENDF Web retrieval systems
The current Web interface is a very sophisticated product that reflectsthe overall complexity of nuclear reaction data The immense variety andvolume of the archived quantities require advanced data retrieval capabilitiesat the same time a large number of EXFOR users are still looking for simpleretrievals of reaction cross sections To accommodate these different usergroups four levels of EXFOR retrievals have been introduced basic (simple)extended keywords and expert
321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
The majority of EXFOR users are not familiar with the databasersquos ad-vanced structure or its philosophy This user group includes nuclear scien-tists engineers and graduate students that need direct access to the latestnuclear reaction data sets To satisfy their needs the authors have developedsimple EXFOR retrievals that are based on target reaction experimentalquantity product energy range authors publication year and accessionnumber search parameters All search fields are based on a logical ldquoORrdquooperator () that returns the Boolean value true if either of the operandsis true and returns false otherwise Therefore empty fields are ignored by adata search query and users can easily construct database queries using Webinterface search fields To demonstrate the present Web interface graphic anddata capabilities the authors will consider a case of 235U(nf) reaction crosssections Fig 7 shows a simple retrieval for the following input parameterstarget = 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs
To improve user experience a simple text string Google-like search hasbeen recently added to the EXFOR Web interface It is located on the topright side of the EXFOR front page This search is intended for less sophis-ticated EXFOR users who prefer to mine experimental data using common
16
Figure 7 An example of simple cross section retrieval for 235U(nf) reaction data in-puts for the EXFOR front and data selection pages were magnified The EXFOR WebInterface is publicly available at the websites of the Nuclear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor the National Nuclear Data Center httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor
nuclear physics concepts The EXFOR interface also contains online helpdisplayed as question mark buttons on the right side of the search boxesThese buttons produce pop-up windows that have information on text boxinput parameters and provide access to EXFOR dictionaries
322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
EXFOR is the only nuclear physics database that stores extensive de-scriptions of experimental results and facilities In fact these data representa treasure trove for investigation of research trends in nuclear physics [3] andprovide complementary background for nuclear data evaluations These datacan be extracted using extended keywords and expert requests
The extended retrieval provides additional capabilities for creating sophis-ticated database queries that include bibliographical metadata geographicalorigin (area country institute) NSR keynumbers (NSR database analoguesof EXFOR accession numbers) and compilation timing information
Keyword retrieval allows queries for experimental quantities that cannotbe easily found anywhere else detector method monitor facility incomingsource and spectrum data analysis detected particles and radiations and
17
experimental data originsThe expert retrieval supplies capabilities for searching for outgoing parti-
cle parameters data units ranges for experimental data points and EXFORcompilation centers individual compilers and data transmissions As it wasmentioned previously all text box search fields are implemented as a logicalldquoORrdquo operator and therefore missing search fields are ignored by SQL dataqueries
33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
The EXFOR system has matured over the years into a very advancedproduct and several complex features represent a challenge for new users Toovercome these issues the webpage News display box numerical and plottingexamples of requests and video guides (httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4guide)have been prepared These resources provide constant updates on new EX-FOR system features and share best user practices The EXFOR examplesare intended for user education purposes and supply additional insights on in-terface capabilities The broad scope of examples helped to improve EXFORuser experiences and such policies contributed to the worldwide popularityof the service
34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
The EXFOR interface is a gateway to the latest experimental nuclearreaction data stored at the IAEA and NNDC databases and it has a verybroad spectrum of usage worldwide In order to provide the best qualityof services the authors monitor the interface operation [18 41] Monitor-ing includes collection of web statistics geographical coverage network dataanalysis and estimates of database usage The EXFOR database retrievalstatistics are very conservative and completely based on a count of success-ful database retrievals any Web browser hits are ignored Retrievals fornon-existing entities in the database (eg author reaction target) whichproduce an empty output file are rejected Complete information for eachretrieval is recorded in separate Web statistic data files and usually sim300retrievalsday are observed from the IAEA and NNDC websites
The absolute number of Web retrievals provides only a partial estimateof product usage To further estimate the impact of the current productretrieval statistics can be complimented with the Google Scholar data TheScholar Web application allows retrieval of information on the EXFOR Webapplication usage from research articles A simple Google Scholar search for
18
2 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 50
5 0
1 0 0
1 5 0
2 0 0
2 5 0
3 0 0
Goog
le Sc
holar
Citat
ions
Y e a r
w w w n n d c b n l g o v e x f o r w w w - n d s i a e a o r g e x f o r
Figure 8 The worldwide impact of EXFOR Web application based on the NDS IAEAand NNDC BNL citation statistics The plot shows an incremental growth of websiteGoogle Scholar citations over the years
the NDS httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor and NNDC httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfortext strings results in sim1100 and sim770 citations respectively These cita-tions originate from research papers where the EXFOR interface address wasmentioned The growth curve shown in Fig 8 is well matched with the Webretrieval statistics [41] The agreement between these trends provides a ver-ification of the present analysis and confirms a broad usage of the EXFORWeb interface
Complementary insights on EXFOR usage can be obtained from the Webinterface usage pattern pie chart shown in Fig 9 The chart is based on aGoogle Analytics analysis of NNDC and NDS Web traffic sim100000 interac-tions per year (data searches are not included) and sim2500 unique users permonth The EXFOR plot X4plusmn interactive tree (iTree) X4+ interpretedT4 simplified and original format retrievals constitute 232 206 185 125and 88 of total operations respectively Other noticeable contributionsinclude access of publisher Digital Object Identifier (DOI) links and NSRdatabase downloads of plotted data and PDF files and covariance matrixcalculation using experimental uncertainties Usage of the retrieval system
19
2 3 2 P l o t2 0 6 X 4 i T r e e1 8 5 X 4 + I n t e r p r e t e d1 2 5 T 4 S i m p l i f i e d
8 8 X 4 O r i g i n a l6 4 P u b l i s h e r L i n k s3 9 D o w n l o a d P l o t t e d2 1 P D F1 3 C r e a t e C o v M a t r i x1 1 N S R - k e y n o1 6 O t h e r s
Figure 9 Google Analytics statistical analysis for EXFOR Web interface
can be summarized as follows
bull EXFOR data downloads in various interpreted formats (iTree X4+T4 - sim50) These data transfers exceed the original EXFOR formatretrievals (lt9)
bull EXFOR plotting with the subsequent download of plotted data as textor html tables (sim27) and construction of covariance matrices usingexperimental uncertainties (sim1)
bull DOI access of publisher web sites (64) and NSR web retrieval system(sim1) and download of PDF copies (sim2) The last option is availablefor authorized users only due to copyright restrictions
bull Other tools and operations (lt2) for example extremely valuablefor nuclear physicist or engineer EXFOR cross section renormalization(fifty-two unique clients in 2016 represent sim01 of all operations)
4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
The EXFOR computer database is an integral part of nuclear data Webservices is firmly related to nuclear reaction data evaluations and requiresaccess to nuclear bibliography The combined development of the experi-mental evaluated and bibliographical nuclear reaction databases was a costeffective solution that allowed reuse of Java classes Web implementation of
20
plotting packages and reduction of overall time for application developmentand testing
41 ENDF
ENDF is a core nuclear reaction database containing evaluated (recom-mended) cross sections spectra angular distributions fission product yieldsthermal neutron scattering and photo-atomic and other data with an em-phasis on neutron-induced reactions ENDF library evaluations are basedon theoretical calculations normalized to experimental data with an excep-tion of neutron resonance region where priority is given to experimentaldata ENDF evaluations consist of complete neutron reaction data setsfor particular isotope or element (ENDF material) They cover all neu-tron reaction channels within the 10minus5 eV - 20 MeV energy range Nowa-days in many evaluated data libraries this energy range is extended tohigher energies All these data sets are stored in the internationally-adoptedENDF-6 format that is maintained by the Cross Section Evaluation Work-ing Group (CSEWG) and publicly available at the NNDC and NDS web-sites httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf and httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf re-spectively Cross section evaluations are of great importance for nuclearenergy and science applications and they are performed internationally forENDF JEFF TENDL JENDL ROSFOND and CENDL libraries [24 2526 27 28 29] in the USA Europe Japan Russian Federation and Chinarespectively
The EXFOR project is a primary source of experimental nuclear reac-tion data for neutron cross section evaluations In practice many ENDFevaluations are produced using nuclear reaction model codes EMPIRE orTALYS [42 43] that contain EXFOR database connectivity modules Thecomputer codes are used for calculation neutron-induced reaction theoreticalcurves data analysis and comparison with experimental data These eval-uations are critically important for many applications because they provideevaluated neutron cross sections for operation of nuclear power plants andGEANT and MCNP computer codes [44 45]
The ENDF Web interface takes its contents from a separate ENDF re-lational database It contains the most complete international collection ofevaluated nuclear reaction libraries includes data analysis capabilities andintegrated with experimental data The interface shown in Fig 10 servesevaluated data in many output formats and incorporates the ZVView pro-gram [22] The IAEA and NNDC interfaces are slightly different on a client
21
ENDF
Figure 10 ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated and experimental cross sectionsfor 235U(nf) reaction data inputs for the ENDF data selection pages were magni-fied The visualized evaluated data have been processed with the PREPRO code [46]at T=29316 K ENDF Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovendf
side and completely identical on the server side These differences have beenintroduced to reflect different user requirements Both interfaces allow usersto search a large number of evaluated libraries for relevant evaluations us-ing target reaction quantity product and other parameters For exampleconsider ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated nuclear data retrieval for235U(nf) reaction cross sections in conjunction with experimental data li-brary = ENDFB-VII1 JEFF-32 target = 235U reaction = nf and quan-tity = cs This retrieval can be accomplished from the main ENDF interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf) or as shown here by clicking an ENDF but-ton next to the experimental cross sections plotted in Fig 7 The ENDFdatabase output demonstrates that ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluatedcross sections agree well with experimental values
42 CINDA
Nuclear bibliography is essential for nuclear reaction data compilationsCINDA contains many historic publications that are not available in anyother database These publications are grouped by experiment and thedatabase allows application of energy range criteria for data searches Theseunique capabilities are still in demand by nuclear data evaluators Currently
22
CINDA
Figure 11 Nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf) reaction experimental cross sec-tions The CINDA Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovcinda
separate CINDA data compilations are terminated and CINDA contents areextended by new information from the EXFOR and NSR databases
CINDA contains the most extensive nuclear reaction bibliography it isintegrated with the EXFOR Web retrieval system and allows users to searchfor information that is not available in EXFOR The database interface in-cludes all major EXFOR search fields and provides data outputs in text andHTML formats For example to retrieve nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf)reaction cross sections the following input parameters are assumed target= 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs As shown in Fig 11 CINDAdatabase output consists of 2406 publications and 2736 reactions
5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
Originally EXFOR Web Interface was created to perform only basic op-erations data search retrieval and presentation It is now part of a largeand developed Web System including extended functionality and tools forregular [external or traditional] users EXFOR compilers and ENDF andENSDF [47] evaluators There are many interesting EXFOR Web interface
23
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
1 9 6 0 1 9 7 0 1 9 8 0 1 9 9 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 2 0 2 0
1 0
1 0 0
1 k
1 0 ko
fExp
erime
ntsin
EXFO
R
Y e a r
A l p h aG a m m aN e u t r o nP r o t o n
Figure 1 Content evolution of the EXFOR database Neutron reactions have been com-piled systematically since the initiation of the EXFOR project while charged particle andphoton (gamma) reactions have been covered less extensively Complementary details areavailable in Ref [3]
alpha- and photon-induced reactions constitute 479 198 736 and 62 ofdatabase contents respectively The historic evolution of EXFOR contentsis shown in Fig 1 In addition to cross section data the EXFOR libraryincludes information on incoming particle spectra such as 252Cf spontaneousfission and β-delayed neutrons Heavy ion- electron- and pion-induced reac-tions with energies up to 1 GeV are compiled by the responsible centers ona voluntary basis
The present database is the largest low- and intermediate-energy nuclearreaction library as of November 27 2017 it includes 21885 experiments170088 data sets and 15213129 data points The database contains infor-mation on 968 targets 386 incident projectiles and 2606 nuclear reactionsTo further illustrate the volume and diversity of the database and associatedcomputer programming challenges we will provide a list of compiled nuclearphysics quantities in Table 1 The table data show that cross section datasets represent approximately half of the database contents It also includessubstantial contributions from differential data with respect to angle par-tial cross sections resonance parameters polarization data fission product
3
yields and double differential cross section measurements The total numberof Table 1 compilations exceeds the overall number of experiments due to acomplex structure of compiled entries a single entry often contains multipledata subentries reaction strings and reaction combinations
Figure 1 data highlight the fact that neutron-induced reactions represent abackbone of EXFOR and these data are essential for many applications Theneutron reactions constitute a perfect case of mutually-beneficial relationsbetween the fundamental and applied sciences For demonstration purposesthe authors will analyze neutron capture and inverse photoneutron reactionsand the historical evolution of experimental nuclear reaction activities Thesedirect and inverse reactions play an essential role in computer modeling ofastrophysical s r and p processes and they are crucial in nuclear reactorcalculations Data shown in the left panels of Fig 2 demonstrate that themost frequently-used neutron capture targets are gold (Au) uranium (U)and tin (Sn) while neutron-rich tin gold and uranium are materials of choicefor photo-neutron reaction studies Subsequent examination of the rightpanels provides indication of two trends large numbers of nuclear reactionmeasurements in the 1970rsquos [3] and a recent increase in number of (nγ) and(γn) reactions Further analysis of the last finding reveals a substantialcontribution of Maxwellian-averaged cross section measurements in recentyears These experiments tackle nuclear astrophysics problems and providecomplementary benchmarks for nuclear reactor modeling
21 EXFOR Data Compilation
In the early 1950rsquos data compilations have been pioneered at the BrookhavenNational Laboratory in support of nuclear science and reactor research ac-tivities [1 4] Since 1964 Brookhaven compilations have been stored in theSCISRS computer system that predated the EXFOR database These exper-imental data compilation efforts have always had an important internationalcomponent The IAEA Nuclear Data Section has been involved in this worksince its creation in 1964 Other early contributors include NEA Data BankParis France and the Institute of Physics and Power Engineering ObninskUSSR which were founded in 1964 and 1963 respectively [1] In 1969 anagreement on an exchange format was reached between four centers and July1970 was chosen as the starting date for transmission of neutron data be-tween the partners in the EXFOR format The effort to translate all of theexisting experimental nuclear reaction data sets which were coded in theSCISRS system format would be done later [1]
4
Table 1 List of EXFOR database compiled nuclear physics quantities
EXFOR Code Description Compilations
1 CS Cross section data 112042 DAP Partial differential data with respect to angle 42483 DA Differential data with respect to angle 42344 RP Resonance parameters 19615 CSP Partial cross section data 18746 POL Polarization data 11087 FY Fission product yields 10948 DAE Differential data with respect to angle and energy 10649 MFQ Fission neutron quantities 50910 SP Gamma spectra 46111 RI Resonance integrals 45112 DE Differential data with respect to energy 37213 TT Thick target yields 35914 E Kinetic energies 33315 L Scattering amplitudes 19616 INT Cross section integral over incident energy 18517 PY Product yields 16618 NQ Nuclear quantities 13719 MLT Outgoing particle multiplicities 10220 RR Reaction rates 9821 TTD Differential thick target yields 5122 CST Temperature dependent cross section data 3023 SQ Special quantities 1624 DEP Partial differential data with respect to energy 1225 TTP Partial thick target yields 726 COR Secondary particle correlations 5
5
5 01 0 01 5 02 0 02 5 03 0 03 5 04 0 0
0 2 0 4 0 6 0 8 0 1 0 0
1 0
2 0
3 0
4 0
5 0
6 0
7 0
1 9 2 0 1 9 4 0 1 9 6 0 1 9 8 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 2 0
S nU
Cros
sSec
tionM
easu
remen
ts
N G
N G
U
S n
A u
Z
G N
Y e a r
G N
A u
Figure 2 EXFOR compilations of nuclear astrophysics relevant neutron capture (nγ) andphoto-neutron (γn) production reactions vs target material (z) and historical distribu-tion of experimental results are shown in left and right panels respectively
In recent years the EXFOR compilations became even more popularworldwide and a large number of institutions have joined In fact EXFORrepresents one of the oldest continuously-operated scientific collaborationsSince its creation the EXFOR project has relied heavily on computer tech-nologies available at the time Historically the data compilations were per-formed using pencil and paper and they have gradually developed into thepresent day computer operation that includes modern relational databaseand Web servers EXFOR compilation editors plot digitizers and opticalcharacter recognition technologies Since the beginning reaction data com-pilations were performed on a timely basis and archived in close cooperationwith the researchers Many scientists have contributed their original datasets to the EXFOR library Unfortunately this mode of operation has notalways worked perfectly and several important data sets were missed andthe NRDC network members are working on their recovery In addition theNRDC community has addressed the issues with the problematic and incor-rectly entered data compilations The database contents were reanalyzed andcorrected by the members of the Subgroup 30 of the Working Party on In-ternational Evaluation Co-operation of the NEA Nuclear Science Committee[5]
6
Data recovery (eg nuclear archeology) is one of the important functionsof the EXFOR operation Here the authors consider EXFOR entry 14329based on the PhD dissertation of JL Kammerdiener [6] University of Cal-ifornia Davis This thesis represents cost and time-expensive measurementswith unique target materials 239Pu 238U 235U Pb Nb Ni Al and C Thesethesis data were preserved as a paper copy only where results were shown asplots A new measurement with these targets would require lengthy delaycontingent on a program advisory committee approval process and may re-sult in a few million dollars of additional expenses Therefore this thesis andassociated graphic data were reanalyzed and digitized forty one years laterat the National Nuclear Data Center In this endeavor the EXFOR editor [7]and Java digitizer [8] developed in Sarov Russian Federation and SapporoJapan respectively were used The Fig 3 example illustrates the first 2 ofKammerdienerrsquos 171 thesis data records (subentries) The present compila-tion beginning subentry contains bibliographical and general information forall subentries such as 14 MeV incident neutrons energy in the common sec-tion while experimental data are compiled in the following subentries Thecompilation second subentry reaction field (13-AL-27(NEL)13-AL-27DA)indicates elastic neutron scattering differential data with respect to angle(DA) and the subentry status field (CURVE) reveals digitized data All ex-perimental data sets are placed within DATA and ENDDATA tags and theoriginal article units are preserved The well-structured compilation formatwas intentionally designed for further usage in computer systems It repre-sents a typical input file for the current Web and database system that willbe discussed in the following section
22 EXFOR Format
The EXFOR database format was introduced for data storage and in-formation exchanges between major data centers as a replacement of theSCISRS format [1] The present format is human-readable is 80 characterslong and includes opening and closing tags for all data and metadata setsEfforts to improve the EXFOR format are currently underway [9] and theseattempts will provide additional avenues for application developments Inthe present work the authors will adopt the EXFOR Basics publication [10]as an introductory guide to EXFOR format for advanced users the LEX-FOR manual is recommended [11] The EXFOR format is currently used forexperimental nuclear data archiving and dissemination and its file structureis shown in Fig 4 The experimental nuclear reaction data library consists of
7
ENTRY 14329 20130820 20131120 20131111 1393
SUBENT 14329001 20130820 20131120 20131111 1393
BIB 15 72
TITLE Neutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235U Pb Nb
Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutrons
AUTHOR (JLKammerdiener)
INSTITUTE (1USADAV)
REFERENCE (RUCRL-512321972) PhDthesis
REL-REF (O10423001LFHansen+PUSNDC-984197311) Ni data
(OV1004001TKawanoWKAWANO2013)
Angle-integrated spectra derived from present
experiment
FACILITY (ICTR1USALRL) Insulated core transformer accelerator
INC-SOURCE (D-T) Deuteron on tritium
DETECTOR (SCINGLASD) NE-213 scintillator 6Li glass detector
PART-DET (NG)
METHOD (TOFPSDRINGR) Time of flight pulse shape
ANALYSIS (REDUC) The entire data reduction process was
CORRECTION The data were corrected for effects due to
ERR-ANALYS (DATA-ERR) Data which has been corrected
(ERR-S100) less than 10
COMMENT From conversation of MB Chadwick with John
HISTORY (20121207C) BP
(20130712A) BP added reference to Los Alamos estimate
by T Kawano
ENDBIB 72
COMMON 1 3
EN
MEV
140
ENDCOMMON 3
ENDSUBENT 79
SUBENT 14329002 20121207 20130502 20130429 1388
BIB 3 3
REACTION (13-AL-27(NEL)13-AL-27DA)
STATUS (CURVE) Fig42
REL-REF (A11322001JHCoon+JPR1112501958)
ENDBIB 3
NOCOMMON 0 0
DATA 3 13
ANG-CM DATA-CM DATA-ERR
ADEG MBSR MBSR
2500E+01 2238E+02
3000E+01 1018E+02 6049E+00
3500E+01 3094E+01 3807E+00
4000E+01 1407E+01 2260E+00
4500E+01 1736E+01 1867E+00
5500E+01 3784E+01
6500E+01 4469E+01
7500E+01 2810E+01
8500E+01 1181E+01 6043E-01
1000E+02 1000E+01 5117E-01
1150E+02 1181E+01 7988E-01
1350E+02 1082E+01 9070E-01
1550E+02 1121E+01 1379E+00
ENDDATA 15
ENDSUBENT 23 ENDENTRY 2
Figure 3 Fragment of EXFOR entry 14329 based on the 1972 University of CaliforniaDavis thesis by JL Kammerdiener [6]
8
AUTHOR
TITLE
REFERENCE
DETECTOR
METHOD
MONITOR
FACILITY
REACTION
EXFOR
ENTRY
ENTRY
ENTRY
SUBENT-1
SUBENT-2
SUBENT-n
BIB
KEYWORD-1
KEYWORD-2
KEYWORD-n
CODE[s]
Free text
CODE[s]
Free text
Header
Units
value
value
Header
Units
value
value
Header
Units
value
value
n n n
n
n
k+
2
m
KEYWORD =
DATAk timesm
COMMON1 times m (k=1)
COMMON DATA
Figure 4 Manifold structure of the EXFOR library Each database entry consists ofbibliographical and data subentries
data entries that contain complete records of individual experiments Eachexperiment may include multiple nuclear reaction data sets (subentries) andseveral research papers because EXFOR compilers group multiple publica-tions from a particular experiment into a single entry Another importantfeature of the library is that all experimental data are compiled as publishedonly obvious errors are corrected
Each entry is assigned a unique accession number each subentry is as-signed a subaccession number (the accession number plus a subentry num-ber) The subaccession numbers are associated with a data table throughoutthe life of the EXFOR system The subentries are further divided into thefollowing categories
bull Bibliographic descriptive and bookkeeping information (hereafter calledBIB information)
bull Common data that applies to all data throughout the entry or subentry
9
bull Data tables
In order to avoid repetition of information that is common to all subentrieswithin an entry or to all lines within a subentry information may be asso-ciated with an entire entry or with an entire subentry To accomplish thisthe first subentry of each work contains only information that applies to allother subentries Within each subentry the information common to all linesof the table precedes the table
EXFOR format was originally designed for data storage and interchangebetween the four data centers and it serves well for these purposes Howeverthe compilation format [12] may represent a problem for application devel-opers and other users who are not familiar with format specifics To over-come this obstacle a simplified computational format (C4) was introducedThe code X4TOC4 [13] converts EXFOR data sets to the easy-to-read datacolumns in C4 format The C4 format is used in the current system for dataplotting and further dissemination
23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
Compilation databases often contain an extensive collection of dictionar-ies The EXFOR dictionaries list details for database keywords and codesand their identification numbers range between 1 and 999 [14] These dictio-naries are periodically updated with new keywords and codes and could besubdivided into three groups
bull The Archive dictionaries are the source of the contents of all forms ofthe dictionaries They contain all keys their expansions and additionalcodes as well as free text explanations for compilers
bull The DANIEL backup dictionaries contain all keys additional codesneeded for programs and most of the expansions These dictionariesare designed for interacting with computer programs
bull The EXFOR transmission dictionaries contain all keys (except for Dic-tionary 26 Unit families [14]) their expansions and free text expla-nations but not all additional codes needed for the checking and otherprograms
10
24 EXFOR Manual
EXFOR database its formats structures and relevant procedures areextensively described in the manual Historically it was maintained by theUS National Nuclear Data Center and recently it was transferred to theIAEA Nuclear Data section [10 11] The manual is absolutely essential forEXFOR database compilations and application developments
3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
The development of nuclear reaction data storage and dissemination sys-tems has a very rich history There have been previous efforts to disseminatenuclear reaction data such as the Brookhaven Cross Section Information Stor-age and Retrieval System (CSISRS) that was introduced in 1971 based onthe VAX-VMS computer system This dissemination system was a revisedversion of the original SCISRS
The VMS platform became obsolete in the 90s due to the rapid progressof modern computing and introduction of World Wide Web technologies Inorder to improve the quality of nuclear data services and take advantageof the latest software and hardware developments the NNDC BNL andNDS IAEA started to work on a data migration project in 1999 followinga basic assessment of future options [15] This exploratory work culminatedat an International Workshop on Relational Database and Java Technolo-gies for Nuclear Data held at BNL September 11-15 2000 [16] As a re-sult of the workshop the two partners embarked on a project to migrateits databases to a UNIX-based relational database environment and signif-icantly upgrade Web Services employing the latest computer technologies[15 17] The migration project was successfully completed and the new nu-clear data Web service made available beginning in 2004 [18] General systemdesign and several distinct elements of the system such as Nuclear ScienceReferences (NSR httpwwwnndcbnlgovnsr) and Sigma Web Interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovsigma) have been described previously [19 20] Atthe same time other popular features such as the very advanced and con-stantly evolving experimental nuclear reaction Web and data services werenever comprehensively described in the literature This publication is in-tended to fulfill this task and provide an extensive description of nuclearreaction data services
In the present work the authors describe the current status of the EXFORdatabase project which creates one of the foundations for the modern nuclear
11
data Web services The current system has been designed as multiuser andplatform independent environment [21] The cross platform capabilities havebeen achieved by extensive usage of Java technologies Java codes can bedeveloped on any device compiled into a standard bytecode and run on anydevice equipped with a Java virtual machine The current system includesJava Web servlets database connectivity and wrapper classes for a ZVViewplotting package [22] and legacy FORTRAN and C codes It is based oncommercially available software and hardware and contains many featuresof enterprise computer portals dealt with on a daily basis Two versions ofthe EXFOR database and Web retrieval systems are presently distributedserver and personal computer (portable) for multiple and individual clientsrespectively The server installation is briefly described in Ref [18] whilethe personal computer version is build on a standard compact disk thatis available from the IAEA upon request In subsequent subsections theauthors will describe hardware and software computer environments followedby software application developments careful analysis of Web features anda worldwide impact on nuclear data users
31 EXFOR Relational Database
The EXFOR database contains nuclear data sets for sim22000 experi-ments Rapid access to these data is of paramount importance for nuclearscience and technology professionals The first modern EXFOR Web dis-semination and data storage system was developed at the NDS IAEA incooperation with the NNDC BNL [21] It is a multi-platform product thatwas developed for the nuclear data services migration project to a TomcatWeb and SybaseMySQL database servers environment [18] Later the nu-clear databases were transferred from Sybase to MySQL servers The mod-ern relational database servers allow access to data using Structured QueryLanguage (SQL) The SQL language is easy to learn and use it allowingmanagement of the databases and building Web interfaces for data searchesmanagement and updates The underlying software converts these requestsinto corresponding SQL statements that are passed to the database to harvestdatabase outputs
MySQL server is a robust database system that can be operated on mul-tiple computer platforms using community or enterprise licenses Initiallythe NDS IAEA service was based on MySQL while the NNDC operatedenterprise Sybase servers and later transferred to MySQL enterprise serversIn recent years both centers migrated to MySQL community edition servers
12
The EXFOR database has been successfully integrated with the Evalu-ated Nuclear Data File (ENDF) libraries [23 24 25 26 27 28 29] bibli-ographical Computer Index of Nuclear (reaction) DAta (CINDA) [30 31]and Nuclear Science References databases [19] Its contents are also used inSigma Web Interface [20] some of its components are used in JANIS (JAva-based Nuclear data Information System independently developed by the NEADatabank) [32] The EXFOR relational database project has evolved andmatured substantially in the last fifteen years compared to its initial version[21 18] and an extensive description of its latest features is presented below
311 EXFOR Database Schema
The schema describes a database structure in a formal language supportedby the database management system In a relational database the schemadefines the tables fields relationships views indexes procedures and otherelements
The simplified version of EXFOR relational database schema is shown inFig 5 The EXFOR schema includes tables that contain data metadataand dictionaries such as X4SRC ENTRIES and AUTHORS respectively Itincludes relationships between data tables eg ENTRY and SUBENT metadata tables are linked using an EntryID relationship The current databaseschema provides a glimpse into the present system storage of experimentalnuclear reaction data sets
312 Database System Operation
The EXFOR operation includes contributions from the data groups affil-iated with the network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) [33] andNon-EXFOR data sources The NRDC supplies the database with new andrevised data compilations dictionaries and manual updates Bibliographicalmetadata original publication PDF files and data renormalization informa-tion are provided through separate channels All of these nuclear science andbibliographical data are processed and stored in a relational database thatincorporates text compilation and articledocument PDF files for the major-ity of EXFOR entries Due to major publishersrsquo subscription rules the PDFfiles are not available for external users The Java-based computer programsprocess contributions and fetch data retrievals as EXFOR-formatted filesZVView plots PDF files and many other custom formats for remote Weband local users The EXFOR database operation workflow diagram is shownin Fig 6
13
SubentID= EntryID=
ReacodeID=
ReacodeID=
SubentID=
HEADER
DatasetID
SubentID iCol
Pointer
flagCD Header
Units
KEYWORD
SubentID
iKeyword EntryID
Entry
SubAcc
SubAccNum KeyWord
Pointer Code
FreeText
REACSTR
ReacstrID
SubentID ReacodeID
iReacstr
Pointer
nCodes Code
Target Reaction
Product Projectile
Category
Quant SF1SF9
SF58
ZTarg
elTarg aTarg
sTarg zProd elProd
sProd
ztProd
atProd
TransID=
ENTRY
EntryID
Entry TransID
UpdateNo
Area
DateDebut FileSrc
nInstitutes
Institute1 nAuthors
Author1Ini Author1
nReferences Reference1
YearRef1
X4TRANS
TransID
UpdateNo
TransDate TransFile
nEntries
nSubentries
nDatalines
EntryID=EntryID
X4UPDATE
UpdateNo
UpdateDate UpdateFlag
UpdateNo=
PRODUCT SubentID
ReacodeID
Fld Element
Mass
Isomer Product
Prod
X4SRC
SubentID SubAcc
Entry Coding
Source
Relations
Many to one
One to one
SubentID=
SUBENT
SubentID
SubAcc EntryID
Entry
TransID
UpdateNo SubAcc1
StatusSPSDD DateUpd
nReac nReacstr
EnMin
EnMax CdatasetID
CnCol
CnRow
DdatasetId DnCol
DnRow
REACODE
ReacodeID
SubentID
SubAcc
Pointer nReacstr
nDataLines
eMin eMax
fullCode
AUTHORS EntryID
Entry
iAuthor AuthorIni
Author
INSTITUT EntryID
Entry
iInstitute Institute
Code
Area Country
REFERS EntryID
Entry
iReference Reference
Ref
Title DateRef
NsrKeyno
AuthorsList
DOI
Figure 5 The EXFOR database schema
14
Non-EXFOR sources
EXFOR (NRDC)
Dictionaries
Manual
PDF files
BibTeX files
Expert corrections
So
ftw
are
EXFOR X4+ X4plusmn
Plots ZVD R33
T4 C4 C5 C5M XC4
PDF Web-Journals
X4xml X4html
Links to ENDF NSR
C4renormalized
EXFOR
Database
EXFOR files
Web-
User
EXFOR-Master
EXFOR-Uploading
Compiler
Temp-files
Input-files
SG30
Isolated
User
So
ftw
are
NSR
Database We
b R
etr
ieva
l sy
ste
m
pro
gra
ms
fil
es
(CD
F
TP
)
Figure 6 The EXFOR operation workflow
32 EXFOR Web Interface
Since introduction of the World Wide Web it is essential for data and re-search centers to provide direct access to nuclear databases [18 34 35 36 37]The EXFOR Web retrieval interface is an integral part of both IAEA andNNDC Web Services [18 34] To provide more robust scalable architecturesatisfy cyber security requirements and protect nuclear data services from asingle-point failure the Web and database servers are physically separatedThe Web server has the ApacheTomcat [38 39] Web production environ-ment installed All servers are running the Linux (Red Hat SUSE etc)operating system The initial version of the present interface became opera-tional fifteen years ago and eventually grew to its current state The interfaceis based on current computer technologies and provides retrieval of databasecontent in HTML Text BibTex and PDF formats It also produces special-ized outputs in C4C5 Application Programing Interface (API)XML andR33 for nuclear model codes application developers and Ion Beam AnalysisNuclear Data Library (IBANDL) [40] users community respectively
Data plotting is performed using the ZVView software package that hasbeen written in C and designed for evaluators of nuclear reaction data toperform efficient interactive analyses of cross section data retrieved from thenuclear data libraries [22] The main function of ZVView is to plot these data
15
for comparison using a variety of options to study graphical numerical andbibliographic information along with the possibility of analyzing the resultsof the userrsquos evaluations Since 2010 the ZVView program has been extendedto plot 2-dimensional arrays Z(XY) with the main purpose of displaying cor-relation matrices The package allows users to change plotting parameterssuch as type of data view (curve histogram map 3D animation symbolsof points colors error bars) logarithmic and linear scales zoom split plotto sub-windows smoothing by least-squares method choice of data and au-thors to be plotted scans of their points and changing language on the flyThe Web-ZVView program implements the majority of these functions asintegrated part of EXFOR and ENDF Web retrieval systems
The current Web interface is a very sophisticated product that reflectsthe overall complexity of nuclear reaction data The immense variety andvolume of the archived quantities require advanced data retrieval capabilitiesat the same time a large number of EXFOR users are still looking for simpleretrievals of reaction cross sections To accommodate these different usergroups four levels of EXFOR retrievals have been introduced basic (simple)extended keywords and expert
321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
The majority of EXFOR users are not familiar with the databasersquos ad-vanced structure or its philosophy This user group includes nuclear scien-tists engineers and graduate students that need direct access to the latestnuclear reaction data sets To satisfy their needs the authors have developedsimple EXFOR retrievals that are based on target reaction experimentalquantity product energy range authors publication year and accessionnumber search parameters All search fields are based on a logical ldquoORrdquooperator () that returns the Boolean value true if either of the operandsis true and returns false otherwise Therefore empty fields are ignored by adata search query and users can easily construct database queries using Webinterface search fields To demonstrate the present Web interface graphic anddata capabilities the authors will consider a case of 235U(nf) reaction crosssections Fig 7 shows a simple retrieval for the following input parameterstarget = 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs
To improve user experience a simple text string Google-like search hasbeen recently added to the EXFOR Web interface It is located on the topright side of the EXFOR front page This search is intended for less sophis-ticated EXFOR users who prefer to mine experimental data using common
16
Figure 7 An example of simple cross section retrieval for 235U(nf) reaction data in-puts for the EXFOR front and data selection pages were magnified The EXFOR WebInterface is publicly available at the websites of the Nuclear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor the National Nuclear Data Center httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor
nuclear physics concepts The EXFOR interface also contains online helpdisplayed as question mark buttons on the right side of the search boxesThese buttons produce pop-up windows that have information on text boxinput parameters and provide access to EXFOR dictionaries
322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
EXFOR is the only nuclear physics database that stores extensive de-scriptions of experimental results and facilities In fact these data representa treasure trove for investigation of research trends in nuclear physics [3] andprovide complementary background for nuclear data evaluations These datacan be extracted using extended keywords and expert requests
The extended retrieval provides additional capabilities for creating sophis-ticated database queries that include bibliographical metadata geographicalorigin (area country institute) NSR keynumbers (NSR database analoguesof EXFOR accession numbers) and compilation timing information
Keyword retrieval allows queries for experimental quantities that cannotbe easily found anywhere else detector method monitor facility incomingsource and spectrum data analysis detected particles and radiations and
17
experimental data originsThe expert retrieval supplies capabilities for searching for outgoing parti-
cle parameters data units ranges for experimental data points and EXFORcompilation centers individual compilers and data transmissions As it wasmentioned previously all text box search fields are implemented as a logicalldquoORrdquo operator and therefore missing search fields are ignored by SQL dataqueries
33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
The EXFOR system has matured over the years into a very advancedproduct and several complex features represent a challenge for new users Toovercome these issues the webpage News display box numerical and plottingexamples of requests and video guides (httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4guide)have been prepared These resources provide constant updates on new EX-FOR system features and share best user practices The EXFOR examplesare intended for user education purposes and supply additional insights on in-terface capabilities The broad scope of examples helped to improve EXFORuser experiences and such policies contributed to the worldwide popularityof the service
34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
The EXFOR interface is a gateway to the latest experimental nuclearreaction data stored at the IAEA and NNDC databases and it has a verybroad spectrum of usage worldwide In order to provide the best qualityof services the authors monitor the interface operation [18 41] Monitor-ing includes collection of web statistics geographical coverage network dataanalysis and estimates of database usage The EXFOR database retrievalstatistics are very conservative and completely based on a count of success-ful database retrievals any Web browser hits are ignored Retrievals fornon-existing entities in the database (eg author reaction target) whichproduce an empty output file are rejected Complete information for eachretrieval is recorded in separate Web statistic data files and usually sim300retrievalsday are observed from the IAEA and NNDC websites
The absolute number of Web retrievals provides only a partial estimateof product usage To further estimate the impact of the current productretrieval statistics can be complimented with the Google Scholar data TheScholar Web application allows retrieval of information on the EXFOR Webapplication usage from research articles A simple Google Scholar search for
18
2 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 50
5 0
1 0 0
1 5 0
2 0 0
2 5 0
3 0 0
Goog
le Sc
holar
Citat
ions
Y e a r
w w w n n d c b n l g o v e x f o r w w w - n d s i a e a o r g e x f o r
Figure 8 The worldwide impact of EXFOR Web application based on the NDS IAEAand NNDC BNL citation statistics The plot shows an incremental growth of websiteGoogle Scholar citations over the years
the NDS httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor and NNDC httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfortext strings results in sim1100 and sim770 citations respectively These cita-tions originate from research papers where the EXFOR interface address wasmentioned The growth curve shown in Fig 8 is well matched with the Webretrieval statistics [41] The agreement between these trends provides a ver-ification of the present analysis and confirms a broad usage of the EXFORWeb interface
Complementary insights on EXFOR usage can be obtained from the Webinterface usage pattern pie chart shown in Fig 9 The chart is based on aGoogle Analytics analysis of NNDC and NDS Web traffic sim100000 interac-tions per year (data searches are not included) and sim2500 unique users permonth The EXFOR plot X4plusmn interactive tree (iTree) X4+ interpretedT4 simplified and original format retrievals constitute 232 206 185 125and 88 of total operations respectively Other noticeable contributionsinclude access of publisher Digital Object Identifier (DOI) links and NSRdatabase downloads of plotted data and PDF files and covariance matrixcalculation using experimental uncertainties Usage of the retrieval system
19
2 3 2 P l o t2 0 6 X 4 i T r e e1 8 5 X 4 + I n t e r p r e t e d1 2 5 T 4 S i m p l i f i e d
8 8 X 4 O r i g i n a l6 4 P u b l i s h e r L i n k s3 9 D o w n l o a d P l o t t e d2 1 P D F1 3 C r e a t e C o v M a t r i x1 1 N S R - k e y n o1 6 O t h e r s
Figure 9 Google Analytics statistical analysis for EXFOR Web interface
can be summarized as follows
bull EXFOR data downloads in various interpreted formats (iTree X4+T4 - sim50) These data transfers exceed the original EXFOR formatretrievals (lt9)
bull EXFOR plotting with the subsequent download of plotted data as textor html tables (sim27) and construction of covariance matrices usingexperimental uncertainties (sim1)
bull DOI access of publisher web sites (64) and NSR web retrieval system(sim1) and download of PDF copies (sim2) The last option is availablefor authorized users only due to copyright restrictions
bull Other tools and operations (lt2) for example extremely valuablefor nuclear physicist or engineer EXFOR cross section renormalization(fifty-two unique clients in 2016 represent sim01 of all operations)
4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
The EXFOR computer database is an integral part of nuclear data Webservices is firmly related to nuclear reaction data evaluations and requiresaccess to nuclear bibliography The combined development of the experi-mental evaluated and bibliographical nuclear reaction databases was a costeffective solution that allowed reuse of Java classes Web implementation of
20
plotting packages and reduction of overall time for application developmentand testing
41 ENDF
ENDF is a core nuclear reaction database containing evaluated (recom-mended) cross sections spectra angular distributions fission product yieldsthermal neutron scattering and photo-atomic and other data with an em-phasis on neutron-induced reactions ENDF library evaluations are basedon theoretical calculations normalized to experimental data with an excep-tion of neutron resonance region where priority is given to experimentaldata ENDF evaluations consist of complete neutron reaction data setsfor particular isotope or element (ENDF material) They cover all neu-tron reaction channels within the 10minus5 eV - 20 MeV energy range Nowa-days in many evaluated data libraries this energy range is extended tohigher energies All these data sets are stored in the internationally-adoptedENDF-6 format that is maintained by the Cross Section Evaluation Work-ing Group (CSEWG) and publicly available at the NNDC and NDS web-sites httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf and httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf re-spectively Cross section evaluations are of great importance for nuclearenergy and science applications and they are performed internationally forENDF JEFF TENDL JENDL ROSFOND and CENDL libraries [24 2526 27 28 29] in the USA Europe Japan Russian Federation and Chinarespectively
The EXFOR project is a primary source of experimental nuclear reac-tion data for neutron cross section evaluations In practice many ENDFevaluations are produced using nuclear reaction model codes EMPIRE orTALYS [42 43] that contain EXFOR database connectivity modules Thecomputer codes are used for calculation neutron-induced reaction theoreticalcurves data analysis and comparison with experimental data These eval-uations are critically important for many applications because they provideevaluated neutron cross sections for operation of nuclear power plants andGEANT and MCNP computer codes [44 45]
The ENDF Web interface takes its contents from a separate ENDF re-lational database It contains the most complete international collection ofevaluated nuclear reaction libraries includes data analysis capabilities andintegrated with experimental data The interface shown in Fig 10 servesevaluated data in many output formats and incorporates the ZVView pro-gram [22] The IAEA and NNDC interfaces are slightly different on a client
21
ENDF
Figure 10 ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated and experimental cross sectionsfor 235U(nf) reaction data inputs for the ENDF data selection pages were magni-fied The visualized evaluated data have been processed with the PREPRO code [46]at T=29316 K ENDF Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovendf
side and completely identical on the server side These differences have beenintroduced to reflect different user requirements Both interfaces allow usersto search a large number of evaluated libraries for relevant evaluations us-ing target reaction quantity product and other parameters For exampleconsider ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated nuclear data retrieval for235U(nf) reaction cross sections in conjunction with experimental data li-brary = ENDFB-VII1 JEFF-32 target = 235U reaction = nf and quan-tity = cs This retrieval can be accomplished from the main ENDF interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf) or as shown here by clicking an ENDF but-ton next to the experimental cross sections plotted in Fig 7 The ENDFdatabase output demonstrates that ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluatedcross sections agree well with experimental values
42 CINDA
Nuclear bibliography is essential for nuclear reaction data compilationsCINDA contains many historic publications that are not available in anyother database These publications are grouped by experiment and thedatabase allows application of energy range criteria for data searches Theseunique capabilities are still in demand by nuclear data evaluators Currently
22
CINDA
Figure 11 Nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf) reaction experimental cross sec-tions The CINDA Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovcinda
separate CINDA data compilations are terminated and CINDA contents areextended by new information from the EXFOR and NSR databases
CINDA contains the most extensive nuclear reaction bibliography it isintegrated with the EXFOR Web retrieval system and allows users to searchfor information that is not available in EXFOR The database interface in-cludes all major EXFOR search fields and provides data outputs in text andHTML formats For example to retrieve nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf)reaction cross sections the following input parameters are assumed target= 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs As shown in Fig 11 CINDAdatabase output consists of 2406 publications and 2736 reactions
5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
Originally EXFOR Web Interface was created to perform only basic op-erations data search retrieval and presentation It is now part of a largeand developed Web System including extended functionality and tools forregular [external or traditional] users EXFOR compilers and ENDF andENSDF [47] evaluators There are many interesting EXFOR Web interface
23
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
yields and double differential cross section measurements The total numberof Table 1 compilations exceeds the overall number of experiments due to acomplex structure of compiled entries a single entry often contains multipledata subentries reaction strings and reaction combinations
Figure 1 data highlight the fact that neutron-induced reactions represent abackbone of EXFOR and these data are essential for many applications Theneutron reactions constitute a perfect case of mutually-beneficial relationsbetween the fundamental and applied sciences For demonstration purposesthe authors will analyze neutron capture and inverse photoneutron reactionsand the historical evolution of experimental nuclear reaction activities Thesedirect and inverse reactions play an essential role in computer modeling ofastrophysical s r and p processes and they are crucial in nuclear reactorcalculations Data shown in the left panels of Fig 2 demonstrate that themost frequently-used neutron capture targets are gold (Au) uranium (U)and tin (Sn) while neutron-rich tin gold and uranium are materials of choicefor photo-neutron reaction studies Subsequent examination of the rightpanels provides indication of two trends large numbers of nuclear reactionmeasurements in the 1970rsquos [3] and a recent increase in number of (nγ) and(γn) reactions Further analysis of the last finding reveals a substantialcontribution of Maxwellian-averaged cross section measurements in recentyears These experiments tackle nuclear astrophysics problems and providecomplementary benchmarks for nuclear reactor modeling
21 EXFOR Data Compilation
In the early 1950rsquos data compilations have been pioneered at the BrookhavenNational Laboratory in support of nuclear science and reactor research ac-tivities [1 4] Since 1964 Brookhaven compilations have been stored in theSCISRS computer system that predated the EXFOR database These exper-imental data compilation efforts have always had an important internationalcomponent The IAEA Nuclear Data Section has been involved in this worksince its creation in 1964 Other early contributors include NEA Data BankParis France and the Institute of Physics and Power Engineering ObninskUSSR which were founded in 1964 and 1963 respectively [1] In 1969 anagreement on an exchange format was reached between four centers and July1970 was chosen as the starting date for transmission of neutron data be-tween the partners in the EXFOR format The effort to translate all of theexisting experimental nuclear reaction data sets which were coded in theSCISRS system format would be done later [1]
4
Table 1 List of EXFOR database compiled nuclear physics quantities
EXFOR Code Description Compilations
1 CS Cross section data 112042 DAP Partial differential data with respect to angle 42483 DA Differential data with respect to angle 42344 RP Resonance parameters 19615 CSP Partial cross section data 18746 POL Polarization data 11087 FY Fission product yields 10948 DAE Differential data with respect to angle and energy 10649 MFQ Fission neutron quantities 50910 SP Gamma spectra 46111 RI Resonance integrals 45112 DE Differential data with respect to energy 37213 TT Thick target yields 35914 E Kinetic energies 33315 L Scattering amplitudes 19616 INT Cross section integral over incident energy 18517 PY Product yields 16618 NQ Nuclear quantities 13719 MLT Outgoing particle multiplicities 10220 RR Reaction rates 9821 TTD Differential thick target yields 5122 CST Temperature dependent cross section data 3023 SQ Special quantities 1624 DEP Partial differential data with respect to energy 1225 TTP Partial thick target yields 726 COR Secondary particle correlations 5
5
5 01 0 01 5 02 0 02 5 03 0 03 5 04 0 0
0 2 0 4 0 6 0 8 0 1 0 0
1 0
2 0
3 0
4 0
5 0
6 0
7 0
1 9 2 0 1 9 4 0 1 9 6 0 1 9 8 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 2 0
S nU
Cros
sSec
tionM
easu
remen
ts
N G
N G
U
S n
A u
Z
G N
Y e a r
G N
A u
Figure 2 EXFOR compilations of nuclear astrophysics relevant neutron capture (nγ) andphoto-neutron (γn) production reactions vs target material (z) and historical distribu-tion of experimental results are shown in left and right panels respectively
In recent years the EXFOR compilations became even more popularworldwide and a large number of institutions have joined In fact EXFORrepresents one of the oldest continuously-operated scientific collaborationsSince its creation the EXFOR project has relied heavily on computer tech-nologies available at the time Historically the data compilations were per-formed using pencil and paper and they have gradually developed into thepresent day computer operation that includes modern relational databaseand Web servers EXFOR compilation editors plot digitizers and opticalcharacter recognition technologies Since the beginning reaction data com-pilations were performed on a timely basis and archived in close cooperationwith the researchers Many scientists have contributed their original datasets to the EXFOR library Unfortunately this mode of operation has notalways worked perfectly and several important data sets were missed andthe NRDC network members are working on their recovery In addition theNRDC community has addressed the issues with the problematic and incor-rectly entered data compilations The database contents were reanalyzed andcorrected by the members of the Subgroup 30 of the Working Party on In-ternational Evaluation Co-operation of the NEA Nuclear Science Committee[5]
6
Data recovery (eg nuclear archeology) is one of the important functionsof the EXFOR operation Here the authors consider EXFOR entry 14329based on the PhD dissertation of JL Kammerdiener [6] University of Cal-ifornia Davis This thesis represents cost and time-expensive measurementswith unique target materials 239Pu 238U 235U Pb Nb Ni Al and C Thesethesis data were preserved as a paper copy only where results were shown asplots A new measurement with these targets would require lengthy delaycontingent on a program advisory committee approval process and may re-sult in a few million dollars of additional expenses Therefore this thesis andassociated graphic data were reanalyzed and digitized forty one years laterat the National Nuclear Data Center In this endeavor the EXFOR editor [7]and Java digitizer [8] developed in Sarov Russian Federation and SapporoJapan respectively were used The Fig 3 example illustrates the first 2 ofKammerdienerrsquos 171 thesis data records (subentries) The present compila-tion beginning subentry contains bibliographical and general information forall subentries such as 14 MeV incident neutrons energy in the common sec-tion while experimental data are compiled in the following subentries Thecompilation second subentry reaction field (13-AL-27(NEL)13-AL-27DA)indicates elastic neutron scattering differential data with respect to angle(DA) and the subentry status field (CURVE) reveals digitized data All ex-perimental data sets are placed within DATA and ENDDATA tags and theoriginal article units are preserved The well-structured compilation formatwas intentionally designed for further usage in computer systems It repre-sents a typical input file for the current Web and database system that willbe discussed in the following section
22 EXFOR Format
The EXFOR database format was introduced for data storage and in-formation exchanges between major data centers as a replacement of theSCISRS format [1] The present format is human-readable is 80 characterslong and includes opening and closing tags for all data and metadata setsEfforts to improve the EXFOR format are currently underway [9] and theseattempts will provide additional avenues for application developments Inthe present work the authors will adopt the EXFOR Basics publication [10]as an introductory guide to EXFOR format for advanced users the LEX-FOR manual is recommended [11] The EXFOR format is currently used forexperimental nuclear data archiving and dissemination and its file structureis shown in Fig 4 The experimental nuclear reaction data library consists of
7
ENTRY 14329 20130820 20131120 20131111 1393
SUBENT 14329001 20130820 20131120 20131111 1393
BIB 15 72
TITLE Neutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235U Pb Nb
Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutrons
AUTHOR (JLKammerdiener)
INSTITUTE (1USADAV)
REFERENCE (RUCRL-512321972) PhDthesis
REL-REF (O10423001LFHansen+PUSNDC-984197311) Ni data
(OV1004001TKawanoWKAWANO2013)
Angle-integrated spectra derived from present
experiment
FACILITY (ICTR1USALRL) Insulated core transformer accelerator
INC-SOURCE (D-T) Deuteron on tritium
DETECTOR (SCINGLASD) NE-213 scintillator 6Li glass detector
PART-DET (NG)
METHOD (TOFPSDRINGR) Time of flight pulse shape
ANALYSIS (REDUC) The entire data reduction process was
CORRECTION The data were corrected for effects due to
ERR-ANALYS (DATA-ERR) Data which has been corrected
(ERR-S100) less than 10
COMMENT From conversation of MB Chadwick with John
HISTORY (20121207C) BP
(20130712A) BP added reference to Los Alamos estimate
by T Kawano
ENDBIB 72
COMMON 1 3
EN
MEV
140
ENDCOMMON 3
ENDSUBENT 79
SUBENT 14329002 20121207 20130502 20130429 1388
BIB 3 3
REACTION (13-AL-27(NEL)13-AL-27DA)
STATUS (CURVE) Fig42
REL-REF (A11322001JHCoon+JPR1112501958)
ENDBIB 3
NOCOMMON 0 0
DATA 3 13
ANG-CM DATA-CM DATA-ERR
ADEG MBSR MBSR
2500E+01 2238E+02
3000E+01 1018E+02 6049E+00
3500E+01 3094E+01 3807E+00
4000E+01 1407E+01 2260E+00
4500E+01 1736E+01 1867E+00
5500E+01 3784E+01
6500E+01 4469E+01
7500E+01 2810E+01
8500E+01 1181E+01 6043E-01
1000E+02 1000E+01 5117E-01
1150E+02 1181E+01 7988E-01
1350E+02 1082E+01 9070E-01
1550E+02 1121E+01 1379E+00
ENDDATA 15
ENDSUBENT 23 ENDENTRY 2
Figure 3 Fragment of EXFOR entry 14329 based on the 1972 University of CaliforniaDavis thesis by JL Kammerdiener [6]
8
AUTHOR
TITLE
REFERENCE
DETECTOR
METHOD
MONITOR
FACILITY
REACTION
EXFOR
ENTRY
ENTRY
ENTRY
SUBENT-1
SUBENT-2
SUBENT-n
BIB
KEYWORD-1
KEYWORD-2
KEYWORD-n
CODE[s]
Free text
CODE[s]
Free text
Header
Units
value
value
Header
Units
value
value
Header
Units
value
value
n n n
n
n
k+
2
m
KEYWORD =
DATAk timesm
COMMON1 times m (k=1)
COMMON DATA
Figure 4 Manifold structure of the EXFOR library Each database entry consists ofbibliographical and data subentries
data entries that contain complete records of individual experiments Eachexperiment may include multiple nuclear reaction data sets (subentries) andseveral research papers because EXFOR compilers group multiple publica-tions from a particular experiment into a single entry Another importantfeature of the library is that all experimental data are compiled as publishedonly obvious errors are corrected
Each entry is assigned a unique accession number each subentry is as-signed a subaccession number (the accession number plus a subentry num-ber) The subaccession numbers are associated with a data table throughoutthe life of the EXFOR system The subentries are further divided into thefollowing categories
bull Bibliographic descriptive and bookkeeping information (hereafter calledBIB information)
bull Common data that applies to all data throughout the entry or subentry
9
bull Data tables
In order to avoid repetition of information that is common to all subentrieswithin an entry or to all lines within a subentry information may be asso-ciated with an entire entry or with an entire subentry To accomplish thisthe first subentry of each work contains only information that applies to allother subentries Within each subentry the information common to all linesof the table precedes the table
EXFOR format was originally designed for data storage and interchangebetween the four data centers and it serves well for these purposes Howeverthe compilation format [12] may represent a problem for application devel-opers and other users who are not familiar with format specifics To over-come this obstacle a simplified computational format (C4) was introducedThe code X4TOC4 [13] converts EXFOR data sets to the easy-to-read datacolumns in C4 format The C4 format is used in the current system for dataplotting and further dissemination
23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
Compilation databases often contain an extensive collection of dictionar-ies The EXFOR dictionaries list details for database keywords and codesand their identification numbers range between 1 and 999 [14] These dictio-naries are periodically updated with new keywords and codes and could besubdivided into three groups
bull The Archive dictionaries are the source of the contents of all forms ofthe dictionaries They contain all keys their expansions and additionalcodes as well as free text explanations for compilers
bull The DANIEL backup dictionaries contain all keys additional codesneeded for programs and most of the expansions These dictionariesare designed for interacting with computer programs
bull The EXFOR transmission dictionaries contain all keys (except for Dic-tionary 26 Unit families [14]) their expansions and free text expla-nations but not all additional codes needed for the checking and otherprograms
10
24 EXFOR Manual
EXFOR database its formats structures and relevant procedures areextensively described in the manual Historically it was maintained by theUS National Nuclear Data Center and recently it was transferred to theIAEA Nuclear Data section [10 11] The manual is absolutely essential forEXFOR database compilations and application developments
3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
The development of nuclear reaction data storage and dissemination sys-tems has a very rich history There have been previous efforts to disseminatenuclear reaction data such as the Brookhaven Cross Section Information Stor-age and Retrieval System (CSISRS) that was introduced in 1971 based onthe VAX-VMS computer system This dissemination system was a revisedversion of the original SCISRS
The VMS platform became obsolete in the 90s due to the rapid progressof modern computing and introduction of World Wide Web technologies Inorder to improve the quality of nuclear data services and take advantageof the latest software and hardware developments the NNDC BNL andNDS IAEA started to work on a data migration project in 1999 followinga basic assessment of future options [15] This exploratory work culminatedat an International Workshop on Relational Database and Java Technolo-gies for Nuclear Data held at BNL September 11-15 2000 [16] As a re-sult of the workshop the two partners embarked on a project to migrateits databases to a UNIX-based relational database environment and signif-icantly upgrade Web Services employing the latest computer technologies[15 17] The migration project was successfully completed and the new nu-clear data Web service made available beginning in 2004 [18] General systemdesign and several distinct elements of the system such as Nuclear ScienceReferences (NSR httpwwwnndcbnlgovnsr) and Sigma Web Interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovsigma) have been described previously [19 20] Atthe same time other popular features such as the very advanced and con-stantly evolving experimental nuclear reaction Web and data services werenever comprehensively described in the literature This publication is in-tended to fulfill this task and provide an extensive description of nuclearreaction data services
In the present work the authors describe the current status of the EXFORdatabase project which creates one of the foundations for the modern nuclear
11
data Web services The current system has been designed as multiuser andplatform independent environment [21] The cross platform capabilities havebeen achieved by extensive usage of Java technologies Java codes can bedeveloped on any device compiled into a standard bytecode and run on anydevice equipped with a Java virtual machine The current system includesJava Web servlets database connectivity and wrapper classes for a ZVViewplotting package [22] and legacy FORTRAN and C codes It is based oncommercially available software and hardware and contains many featuresof enterprise computer portals dealt with on a daily basis Two versions ofthe EXFOR database and Web retrieval systems are presently distributedserver and personal computer (portable) for multiple and individual clientsrespectively The server installation is briefly described in Ref [18] whilethe personal computer version is build on a standard compact disk thatis available from the IAEA upon request In subsequent subsections theauthors will describe hardware and software computer environments followedby software application developments careful analysis of Web features anda worldwide impact on nuclear data users
31 EXFOR Relational Database
The EXFOR database contains nuclear data sets for sim22000 experi-ments Rapid access to these data is of paramount importance for nuclearscience and technology professionals The first modern EXFOR Web dis-semination and data storage system was developed at the NDS IAEA incooperation with the NNDC BNL [21] It is a multi-platform product thatwas developed for the nuclear data services migration project to a TomcatWeb and SybaseMySQL database servers environment [18] Later the nu-clear databases were transferred from Sybase to MySQL servers The mod-ern relational database servers allow access to data using Structured QueryLanguage (SQL) The SQL language is easy to learn and use it allowingmanagement of the databases and building Web interfaces for data searchesmanagement and updates The underlying software converts these requestsinto corresponding SQL statements that are passed to the database to harvestdatabase outputs
MySQL server is a robust database system that can be operated on mul-tiple computer platforms using community or enterprise licenses Initiallythe NDS IAEA service was based on MySQL while the NNDC operatedenterprise Sybase servers and later transferred to MySQL enterprise serversIn recent years both centers migrated to MySQL community edition servers
12
The EXFOR database has been successfully integrated with the Evalu-ated Nuclear Data File (ENDF) libraries [23 24 25 26 27 28 29] bibli-ographical Computer Index of Nuclear (reaction) DAta (CINDA) [30 31]and Nuclear Science References databases [19] Its contents are also used inSigma Web Interface [20] some of its components are used in JANIS (JAva-based Nuclear data Information System independently developed by the NEADatabank) [32] The EXFOR relational database project has evolved andmatured substantially in the last fifteen years compared to its initial version[21 18] and an extensive description of its latest features is presented below
311 EXFOR Database Schema
The schema describes a database structure in a formal language supportedby the database management system In a relational database the schemadefines the tables fields relationships views indexes procedures and otherelements
The simplified version of EXFOR relational database schema is shown inFig 5 The EXFOR schema includes tables that contain data metadataand dictionaries such as X4SRC ENTRIES and AUTHORS respectively Itincludes relationships between data tables eg ENTRY and SUBENT metadata tables are linked using an EntryID relationship The current databaseschema provides a glimpse into the present system storage of experimentalnuclear reaction data sets
312 Database System Operation
The EXFOR operation includes contributions from the data groups affil-iated with the network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) [33] andNon-EXFOR data sources The NRDC supplies the database with new andrevised data compilations dictionaries and manual updates Bibliographicalmetadata original publication PDF files and data renormalization informa-tion are provided through separate channels All of these nuclear science andbibliographical data are processed and stored in a relational database thatincorporates text compilation and articledocument PDF files for the major-ity of EXFOR entries Due to major publishersrsquo subscription rules the PDFfiles are not available for external users The Java-based computer programsprocess contributions and fetch data retrievals as EXFOR-formatted filesZVView plots PDF files and many other custom formats for remote Weband local users The EXFOR database operation workflow diagram is shownin Fig 6
13
SubentID= EntryID=
ReacodeID=
ReacodeID=
SubentID=
HEADER
DatasetID
SubentID iCol
Pointer
flagCD Header
Units
KEYWORD
SubentID
iKeyword EntryID
Entry
SubAcc
SubAccNum KeyWord
Pointer Code
FreeText
REACSTR
ReacstrID
SubentID ReacodeID
iReacstr
Pointer
nCodes Code
Target Reaction
Product Projectile
Category
Quant SF1SF9
SF58
ZTarg
elTarg aTarg
sTarg zProd elProd
sProd
ztProd
atProd
TransID=
ENTRY
EntryID
Entry TransID
UpdateNo
Area
DateDebut FileSrc
nInstitutes
Institute1 nAuthors
Author1Ini Author1
nReferences Reference1
YearRef1
X4TRANS
TransID
UpdateNo
TransDate TransFile
nEntries
nSubentries
nDatalines
EntryID=EntryID
X4UPDATE
UpdateNo
UpdateDate UpdateFlag
UpdateNo=
PRODUCT SubentID
ReacodeID
Fld Element
Mass
Isomer Product
Prod
X4SRC
SubentID SubAcc
Entry Coding
Source
Relations
Many to one
One to one
SubentID=
SUBENT
SubentID
SubAcc EntryID
Entry
TransID
UpdateNo SubAcc1
StatusSPSDD DateUpd
nReac nReacstr
EnMin
EnMax CdatasetID
CnCol
CnRow
DdatasetId DnCol
DnRow
REACODE
ReacodeID
SubentID
SubAcc
Pointer nReacstr
nDataLines
eMin eMax
fullCode
AUTHORS EntryID
Entry
iAuthor AuthorIni
Author
INSTITUT EntryID
Entry
iInstitute Institute
Code
Area Country
REFERS EntryID
Entry
iReference Reference
Ref
Title DateRef
NsrKeyno
AuthorsList
DOI
Figure 5 The EXFOR database schema
14
Non-EXFOR sources
EXFOR (NRDC)
Dictionaries
Manual
PDF files
BibTeX files
Expert corrections
So
ftw
are
EXFOR X4+ X4plusmn
Plots ZVD R33
T4 C4 C5 C5M XC4
PDF Web-Journals
X4xml X4html
Links to ENDF NSR
C4renormalized
EXFOR
Database
EXFOR files
Web-
User
EXFOR-Master
EXFOR-Uploading
Compiler
Temp-files
Input-files
SG30
Isolated
User
So
ftw
are
NSR
Database We
b R
etr
ieva
l sy
ste
m
pro
gra
ms
fil
es
(CD
F
TP
)
Figure 6 The EXFOR operation workflow
32 EXFOR Web Interface
Since introduction of the World Wide Web it is essential for data and re-search centers to provide direct access to nuclear databases [18 34 35 36 37]The EXFOR Web retrieval interface is an integral part of both IAEA andNNDC Web Services [18 34] To provide more robust scalable architecturesatisfy cyber security requirements and protect nuclear data services from asingle-point failure the Web and database servers are physically separatedThe Web server has the ApacheTomcat [38 39] Web production environ-ment installed All servers are running the Linux (Red Hat SUSE etc)operating system The initial version of the present interface became opera-tional fifteen years ago and eventually grew to its current state The interfaceis based on current computer technologies and provides retrieval of databasecontent in HTML Text BibTex and PDF formats It also produces special-ized outputs in C4C5 Application Programing Interface (API)XML andR33 for nuclear model codes application developers and Ion Beam AnalysisNuclear Data Library (IBANDL) [40] users community respectively
Data plotting is performed using the ZVView software package that hasbeen written in C and designed for evaluators of nuclear reaction data toperform efficient interactive analyses of cross section data retrieved from thenuclear data libraries [22] The main function of ZVView is to plot these data
15
for comparison using a variety of options to study graphical numerical andbibliographic information along with the possibility of analyzing the resultsof the userrsquos evaluations Since 2010 the ZVView program has been extendedto plot 2-dimensional arrays Z(XY) with the main purpose of displaying cor-relation matrices The package allows users to change plotting parameterssuch as type of data view (curve histogram map 3D animation symbolsof points colors error bars) logarithmic and linear scales zoom split plotto sub-windows smoothing by least-squares method choice of data and au-thors to be plotted scans of their points and changing language on the flyThe Web-ZVView program implements the majority of these functions asintegrated part of EXFOR and ENDF Web retrieval systems
The current Web interface is a very sophisticated product that reflectsthe overall complexity of nuclear reaction data The immense variety andvolume of the archived quantities require advanced data retrieval capabilitiesat the same time a large number of EXFOR users are still looking for simpleretrievals of reaction cross sections To accommodate these different usergroups four levels of EXFOR retrievals have been introduced basic (simple)extended keywords and expert
321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
The majority of EXFOR users are not familiar with the databasersquos ad-vanced structure or its philosophy This user group includes nuclear scien-tists engineers and graduate students that need direct access to the latestnuclear reaction data sets To satisfy their needs the authors have developedsimple EXFOR retrievals that are based on target reaction experimentalquantity product energy range authors publication year and accessionnumber search parameters All search fields are based on a logical ldquoORrdquooperator () that returns the Boolean value true if either of the operandsis true and returns false otherwise Therefore empty fields are ignored by adata search query and users can easily construct database queries using Webinterface search fields To demonstrate the present Web interface graphic anddata capabilities the authors will consider a case of 235U(nf) reaction crosssections Fig 7 shows a simple retrieval for the following input parameterstarget = 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs
To improve user experience a simple text string Google-like search hasbeen recently added to the EXFOR Web interface It is located on the topright side of the EXFOR front page This search is intended for less sophis-ticated EXFOR users who prefer to mine experimental data using common
16
Figure 7 An example of simple cross section retrieval for 235U(nf) reaction data in-puts for the EXFOR front and data selection pages were magnified The EXFOR WebInterface is publicly available at the websites of the Nuclear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor the National Nuclear Data Center httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor
nuclear physics concepts The EXFOR interface also contains online helpdisplayed as question mark buttons on the right side of the search boxesThese buttons produce pop-up windows that have information on text boxinput parameters and provide access to EXFOR dictionaries
322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
EXFOR is the only nuclear physics database that stores extensive de-scriptions of experimental results and facilities In fact these data representa treasure trove for investigation of research trends in nuclear physics [3] andprovide complementary background for nuclear data evaluations These datacan be extracted using extended keywords and expert requests
The extended retrieval provides additional capabilities for creating sophis-ticated database queries that include bibliographical metadata geographicalorigin (area country institute) NSR keynumbers (NSR database analoguesof EXFOR accession numbers) and compilation timing information
Keyword retrieval allows queries for experimental quantities that cannotbe easily found anywhere else detector method monitor facility incomingsource and spectrum data analysis detected particles and radiations and
17
experimental data originsThe expert retrieval supplies capabilities for searching for outgoing parti-
cle parameters data units ranges for experimental data points and EXFORcompilation centers individual compilers and data transmissions As it wasmentioned previously all text box search fields are implemented as a logicalldquoORrdquo operator and therefore missing search fields are ignored by SQL dataqueries
33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
The EXFOR system has matured over the years into a very advancedproduct and several complex features represent a challenge for new users Toovercome these issues the webpage News display box numerical and plottingexamples of requests and video guides (httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4guide)have been prepared These resources provide constant updates on new EX-FOR system features and share best user practices The EXFOR examplesare intended for user education purposes and supply additional insights on in-terface capabilities The broad scope of examples helped to improve EXFORuser experiences and such policies contributed to the worldwide popularityof the service
34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
The EXFOR interface is a gateway to the latest experimental nuclearreaction data stored at the IAEA and NNDC databases and it has a verybroad spectrum of usage worldwide In order to provide the best qualityof services the authors monitor the interface operation [18 41] Monitor-ing includes collection of web statistics geographical coverage network dataanalysis and estimates of database usage The EXFOR database retrievalstatistics are very conservative and completely based on a count of success-ful database retrievals any Web browser hits are ignored Retrievals fornon-existing entities in the database (eg author reaction target) whichproduce an empty output file are rejected Complete information for eachretrieval is recorded in separate Web statistic data files and usually sim300retrievalsday are observed from the IAEA and NNDC websites
The absolute number of Web retrievals provides only a partial estimateof product usage To further estimate the impact of the current productretrieval statistics can be complimented with the Google Scholar data TheScholar Web application allows retrieval of information on the EXFOR Webapplication usage from research articles A simple Google Scholar search for
18
2 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 50
5 0
1 0 0
1 5 0
2 0 0
2 5 0
3 0 0
Goog
le Sc
holar
Citat
ions
Y e a r
w w w n n d c b n l g o v e x f o r w w w - n d s i a e a o r g e x f o r
Figure 8 The worldwide impact of EXFOR Web application based on the NDS IAEAand NNDC BNL citation statistics The plot shows an incremental growth of websiteGoogle Scholar citations over the years
the NDS httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor and NNDC httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfortext strings results in sim1100 and sim770 citations respectively These cita-tions originate from research papers where the EXFOR interface address wasmentioned The growth curve shown in Fig 8 is well matched with the Webretrieval statistics [41] The agreement between these trends provides a ver-ification of the present analysis and confirms a broad usage of the EXFORWeb interface
Complementary insights on EXFOR usage can be obtained from the Webinterface usage pattern pie chart shown in Fig 9 The chart is based on aGoogle Analytics analysis of NNDC and NDS Web traffic sim100000 interac-tions per year (data searches are not included) and sim2500 unique users permonth The EXFOR plot X4plusmn interactive tree (iTree) X4+ interpretedT4 simplified and original format retrievals constitute 232 206 185 125and 88 of total operations respectively Other noticeable contributionsinclude access of publisher Digital Object Identifier (DOI) links and NSRdatabase downloads of plotted data and PDF files and covariance matrixcalculation using experimental uncertainties Usage of the retrieval system
19
2 3 2 P l o t2 0 6 X 4 i T r e e1 8 5 X 4 + I n t e r p r e t e d1 2 5 T 4 S i m p l i f i e d
8 8 X 4 O r i g i n a l6 4 P u b l i s h e r L i n k s3 9 D o w n l o a d P l o t t e d2 1 P D F1 3 C r e a t e C o v M a t r i x1 1 N S R - k e y n o1 6 O t h e r s
Figure 9 Google Analytics statistical analysis for EXFOR Web interface
can be summarized as follows
bull EXFOR data downloads in various interpreted formats (iTree X4+T4 - sim50) These data transfers exceed the original EXFOR formatretrievals (lt9)
bull EXFOR plotting with the subsequent download of plotted data as textor html tables (sim27) and construction of covariance matrices usingexperimental uncertainties (sim1)
bull DOI access of publisher web sites (64) and NSR web retrieval system(sim1) and download of PDF copies (sim2) The last option is availablefor authorized users only due to copyright restrictions
bull Other tools and operations (lt2) for example extremely valuablefor nuclear physicist or engineer EXFOR cross section renormalization(fifty-two unique clients in 2016 represent sim01 of all operations)
4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
The EXFOR computer database is an integral part of nuclear data Webservices is firmly related to nuclear reaction data evaluations and requiresaccess to nuclear bibliography The combined development of the experi-mental evaluated and bibliographical nuclear reaction databases was a costeffective solution that allowed reuse of Java classes Web implementation of
20
plotting packages and reduction of overall time for application developmentand testing
41 ENDF
ENDF is a core nuclear reaction database containing evaluated (recom-mended) cross sections spectra angular distributions fission product yieldsthermal neutron scattering and photo-atomic and other data with an em-phasis on neutron-induced reactions ENDF library evaluations are basedon theoretical calculations normalized to experimental data with an excep-tion of neutron resonance region where priority is given to experimentaldata ENDF evaluations consist of complete neutron reaction data setsfor particular isotope or element (ENDF material) They cover all neu-tron reaction channels within the 10minus5 eV - 20 MeV energy range Nowa-days in many evaluated data libraries this energy range is extended tohigher energies All these data sets are stored in the internationally-adoptedENDF-6 format that is maintained by the Cross Section Evaluation Work-ing Group (CSEWG) and publicly available at the NNDC and NDS web-sites httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf and httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf re-spectively Cross section evaluations are of great importance for nuclearenergy and science applications and they are performed internationally forENDF JEFF TENDL JENDL ROSFOND and CENDL libraries [24 2526 27 28 29] in the USA Europe Japan Russian Federation and Chinarespectively
The EXFOR project is a primary source of experimental nuclear reac-tion data for neutron cross section evaluations In practice many ENDFevaluations are produced using nuclear reaction model codes EMPIRE orTALYS [42 43] that contain EXFOR database connectivity modules Thecomputer codes are used for calculation neutron-induced reaction theoreticalcurves data analysis and comparison with experimental data These eval-uations are critically important for many applications because they provideevaluated neutron cross sections for operation of nuclear power plants andGEANT and MCNP computer codes [44 45]
The ENDF Web interface takes its contents from a separate ENDF re-lational database It contains the most complete international collection ofevaluated nuclear reaction libraries includes data analysis capabilities andintegrated with experimental data The interface shown in Fig 10 servesevaluated data in many output formats and incorporates the ZVView pro-gram [22] The IAEA and NNDC interfaces are slightly different on a client
21
ENDF
Figure 10 ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated and experimental cross sectionsfor 235U(nf) reaction data inputs for the ENDF data selection pages were magni-fied The visualized evaluated data have been processed with the PREPRO code [46]at T=29316 K ENDF Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovendf
side and completely identical on the server side These differences have beenintroduced to reflect different user requirements Both interfaces allow usersto search a large number of evaluated libraries for relevant evaluations us-ing target reaction quantity product and other parameters For exampleconsider ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated nuclear data retrieval for235U(nf) reaction cross sections in conjunction with experimental data li-brary = ENDFB-VII1 JEFF-32 target = 235U reaction = nf and quan-tity = cs This retrieval can be accomplished from the main ENDF interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf) or as shown here by clicking an ENDF but-ton next to the experimental cross sections plotted in Fig 7 The ENDFdatabase output demonstrates that ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluatedcross sections agree well with experimental values
42 CINDA
Nuclear bibliography is essential for nuclear reaction data compilationsCINDA contains many historic publications that are not available in anyother database These publications are grouped by experiment and thedatabase allows application of energy range criteria for data searches Theseunique capabilities are still in demand by nuclear data evaluators Currently
22
CINDA
Figure 11 Nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf) reaction experimental cross sec-tions The CINDA Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovcinda
separate CINDA data compilations are terminated and CINDA contents areextended by new information from the EXFOR and NSR databases
CINDA contains the most extensive nuclear reaction bibliography it isintegrated with the EXFOR Web retrieval system and allows users to searchfor information that is not available in EXFOR The database interface in-cludes all major EXFOR search fields and provides data outputs in text andHTML formats For example to retrieve nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf)reaction cross sections the following input parameters are assumed target= 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs As shown in Fig 11 CINDAdatabase output consists of 2406 publications and 2736 reactions
5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
Originally EXFOR Web Interface was created to perform only basic op-erations data search retrieval and presentation It is now part of a largeand developed Web System including extended functionality and tools forregular [external or traditional] users EXFOR compilers and ENDF andENSDF [47] evaluators There are many interesting EXFOR Web interface
23
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
Table 1 List of EXFOR database compiled nuclear physics quantities
EXFOR Code Description Compilations
1 CS Cross section data 112042 DAP Partial differential data with respect to angle 42483 DA Differential data with respect to angle 42344 RP Resonance parameters 19615 CSP Partial cross section data 18746 POL Polarization data 11087 FY Fission product yields 10948 DAE Differential data with respect to angle and energy 10649 MFQ Fission neutron quantities 50910 SP Gamma spectra 46111 RI Resonance integrals 45112 DE Differential data with respect to energy 37213 TT Thick target yields 35914 E Kinetic energies 33315 L Scattering amplitudes 19616 INT Cross section integral over incident energy 18517 PY Product yields 16618 NQ Nuclear quantities 13719 MLT Outgoing particle multiplicities 10220 RR Reaction rates 9821 TTD Differential thick target yields 5122 CST Temperature dependent cross section data 3023 SQ Special quantities 1624 DEP Partial differential data with respect to energy 1225 TTP Partial thick target yields 726 COR Secondary particle correlations 5
5
5 01 0 01 5 02 0 02 5 03 0 03 5 04 0 0
0 2 0 4 0 6 0 8 0 1 0 0
1 0
2 0
3 0
4 0
5 0
6 0
7 0
1 9 2 0 1 9 4 0 1 9 6 0 1 9 8 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 2 0
S nU
Cros
sSec
tionM
easu
remen
ts
N G
N G
U
S n
A u
Z
G N
Y e a r
G N
A u
Figure 2 EXFOR compilations of nuclear astrophysics relevant neutron capture (nγ) andphoto-neutron (γn) production reactions vs target material (z) and historical distribu-tion of experimental results are shown in left and right panels respectively
In recent years the EXFOR compilations became even more popularworldwide and a large number of institutions have joined In fact EXFORrepresents one of the oldest continuously-operated scientific collaborationsSince its creation the EXFOR project has relied heavily on computer tech-nologies available at the time Historically the data compilations were per-formed using pencil and paper and they have gradually developed into thepresent day computer operation that includes modern relational databaseand Web servers EXFOR compilation editors plot digitizers and opticalcharacter recognition technologies Since the beginning reaction data com-pilations were performed on a timely basis and archived in close cooperationwith the researchers Many scientists have contributed their original datasets to the EXFOR library Unfortunately this mode of operation has notalways worked perfectly and several important data sets were missed andthe NRDC network members are working on their recovery In addition theNRDC community has addressed the issues with the problematic and incor-rectly entered data compilations The database contents were reanalyzed andcorrected by the members of the Subgroup 30 of the Working Party on In-ternational Evaluation Co-operation of the NEA Nuclear Science Committee[5]
6
Data recovery (eg nuclear archeology) is one of the important functionsof the EXFOR operation Here the authors consider EXFOR entry 14329based on the PhD dissertation of JL Kammerdiener [6] University of Cal-ifornia Davis This thesis represents cost and time-expensive measurementswith unique target materials 239Pu 238U 235U Pb Nb Ni Al and C Thesethesis data were preserved as a paper copy only where results were shown asplots A new measurement with these targets would require lengthy delaycontingent on a program advisory committee approval process and may re-sult in a few million dollars of additional expenses Therefore this thesis andassociated graphic data were reanalyzed and digitized forty one years laterat the National Nuclear Data Center In this endeavor the EXFOR editor [7]and Java digitizer [8] developed in Sarov Russian Federation and SapporoJapan respectively were used The Fig 3 example illustrates the first 2 ofKammerdienerrsquos 171 thesis data records (subentries) The present compila-tion beginning subentry contains bibliographical and general information forall subentries such as 14 MeV incident neutrons energy in the common sec-tion while experimental data are compiled in the following subentries Thecompilation second subentry reaction field (13-AL-27(NEL)13-AL-27DA)indicates elastic neutron scattering differential data with respect to angle(DA) and the subentry status field (CURVE) reveals digitized data All ex-perimental data sets are placed within DATA and ENDDATA tags and theoriginal article units are preserved The well-structured compilation formatwas intentionally designed for further usage in computer systems It repre-sents a typical input file for the current Web and database system that willbe discussed in the following section
22 EXFOR Format
The EXFOR database format was introduced for data storage and in-formation exchanges between major data centers as a replacement of theSCISRS format [1] The present format is human-readable is 80 characterslong and includes opening and closing tags for all data and metadata setsEfforts to improve the EXFOR format are currently underway [9] and theseattempts will provide additional avenues for application developments Inthe present work the authors will adopt the EXFOR Basics publication [10]as an introductory guide to EXFOR format for advanced users the LEX-FOR manual is recommended [11] The EXFOR format is currently used forexperimental nuclear data archiving and dissemination and its file structureis shown in Fig 4 The experimental nuclear reaction data library consists of
7
ENTRY 14329 20130820 20131120 20131111 1393
SUBENT 14329001 20130820 20131120 20131111 1393
BIB 15 72
TITLE Neutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235U Pb Nb
Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutrons
AUTHOR (JLKammerdiener)
INSTITUTE (1USADAV)
REFERENCE (RUCRL-512321972) PhDthesis
REL-REF (O10423001LFHansen+PUSNDC-984197311) Ni data
(OV1004001TKawanoWKAWANO2013)
Angle-integrated spectra derived from present
experiment
FACILITY (ICTR1USALRL) Insulated core transformer accelerator
INC-SOURCE (D-T) Deuteron on tritium
DETECTOR (SCINGLASD) NE-213 scintillator 6Li glass detector
PART-DET (NG)
METHOD (TOFPSDRINGR) Time of flight pulse shape
ANALYSIS (REDUC) The entire data reduction process was
CORRECTION The data were corrected for effects due to
ERR-ANALYS (DATA-ERR) Data which has been corrected
(ERR-S100) less than 10
COMMENT From conversation of MB Chadwick with John
HISTORY (20121207C) BP
(20130712A) BP added reference to Los Alamos estimate
by T Kawano
ENDBIB 72
COMMON 1 3
EN
MEV
140
ENDCOMMON 3
ENDSUBENT 79
SUBENT 14329002 20121207 20130502 20130429 1388
BIB 3 3
REACTION (13-AL-27(NEL)13-AL-27DA)
STATUS (CURVE) Fig42
REL-REF (A11322001JHCoon+JPR1112501958)
ENDBIB 3
NOCOMMON 0 0
DATA 3 13
ANG-CM DATA-CM DATA-ERR
ADEG MBSR MBSR
2500E+01 2238E+02
3000E+01 1018E+02 6049E+00
3500E+01 3094E+01 3807E+00
4000E+01 1407E+01 2260E+00
4500E+01 1736E+01 1867E+00
5500E+01 3784E+01
6500E+01 4469E+01
7500E+01 2810E+01
8500E+01 1181E+01 6043E-01
1000E+02 1000E+01 5117E-01
1150E+02 1181E+01 7988E-01
1350E+02 1082E+01 9070E-01
1550E+02 1121E+01 1379E+00
ENDDATA 15
ENDSUBENT 23 ENDENTRY 2
Figure 3 Fragment of EXFOR entry 14329 based on the 1972 University of CaliforniaDavis thesis by JL Kammerdiener [6]
8
AUTHOR
TITLE
REFERENCE
DETECTOR
METHOD
MONITOR
FACILITY
REACTION
EXFOR
ENTRY
ENTRY
ENTRY
SUBENT-1
SUBENT-2
SUBENT-n
BIB
KEYWORD-1
KEYWORD-2
KEYWORD-n
CODE[s]
Free text
CODE[s]
Free text
Header
Units
value
value
Header
Units
value
value
Header
Units
value
value
n n n
n
n
k+
2
m
KEYWORD =
DATAk timesm
COMMON1 times m (k=1)
COMMON DATA
Figure 4 Manifold structure of the EXFOR library Each database entry consists ofbibliographical and data subentries
data entries that contain complete records of individual experiments Eachexperiment may include multiple nuclear reaction data sets (subentries) andseveral research papers because EXFOR compilers group multiple publica-tions from a particular experiment into a single entry Another importantfeature of the library is that all experimental data are compiled as publishedonly obvious errors are corrected
Each entry is assigned a unique accession number each subentry is as-signed a subaccession number (the accession number plus a subentry num-ber) The subaccession numbers are associated with a data table throughoutthe life of the EXFOR system The subentries are further divided into thefollowing categories
bull Bibliographic descriptive and bookkeeping information (hereafter calledBIB information)
bull Common data that applies to all data throughout the entry or subentry
9
bull Data tables
In order to avoid repetition of information that is common to all subentrieswithin an entry or to all lines within a subentry information may be asso-ciated with an entire entry or with an entire subentry To accomplish thisthe first subentry of each work contains only information that applies to allother subentries Within each subentry the information common to all linesof the table precedes the table
EXFOR format was originally designed for data storage and interchangebetween the four data centers and it serves well for these purposes Howeverthe compilation format [12] may represent a problem for application devel-opers and other users who are not familiar with format specifics To over-come this obstacle a simplified computational format (C4) was introducedThe code X4TOC4 [13] converts EXFOR data sets to the easy-to-read datacolumns in C4 format The C4 format is used in the current system for dataplotting and further dissemination
23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
Compilation databases often contain an extensive collection of dictionar-ies The EXFOR dictionaries list details for database keywords and codesand their identification numbers range between 1 and 999 [14] These dictio-naries are periodically updated with new keywords and codes and could besubdivided into three groups
bull The Archive dictionaries are the source of the contents of all forms ofthe dictionaries They contain all keys their expansions and additionalcodes as well as free text explanations for compilers
bull The DANIEL backup dictionaries contain all keys additional codesneeded for programs and most of the expansions These dictionariesare designed for interacting with computer programs
bull The EXFOR transmission dictionaries contain all keys (except for Dic-tionary 26 Unit families [14]) their expansions and free text expla-nations but not all additional codes needed for the checking and otherprograms
10
24 EXFOR Manual
EXFOR database its formats structures and relevant procedures areextensively described in the manual Historically it was maintained by theUS National Nuclear Data Center and recently it was transferred to theIAEA Nuclear Data section [10 11] The manual is absolutely essential forEXFOR database compilations and application developments
3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
The development of nuclear reaction data storage and dissemination sys-tems has a very rich history There have been previous efforts to disseminatenuclear reaction data such as the Brookhaven Cross Section Information Stor-age and Retrieval System (CSISRS) that was introduced in 1971 based onthe VAX-VMS computer system This dissemination system was a revisedversion of the original SCISRS
The VMS platform became obsolete in the 90s due to the rapid progressof modern computing and introduction of World Wide Web technologies Inorder to improve the quality of nuclear data services and take advantageof the latest software and hardware developments the NNDC BNL andNDS IAEA started to work on a data migration project in 1999 followinga basic assessment of future options [15] This exploratory work culminatedat an International Workshop on Relational Database and Java Technolo-gies for Nuclear Data held at BNL September 11-15 2000 [16] As a re-sult of the workshop the two partners embarked on a project to migrateits databases to a UNIX-based relational database environment and signif-icantly upgrade Web Services employing the latest computer technologies[15 17] The migration project was successfully completed and the new nu-clear data Web service made available beginning in 2004 [18] General systemdesign and several distinct elements of the system such as Nuclear ScienceReferences (NSR httpwwwnndcbnlgovnsr) and Sigma Web Interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovsigma) have been described previously [19 20] Atthe same time other popular features such as the very advanced and con-stantly evolving experimental nuclear reaction Web and data services werenever comprehensively described in the literature This publication is in-tended to fulfill this task and provide an extensive description of nuclearreaction data services
In the present work the authors describe the current status of the EXFORdatabase project which creates one of the foundations for the modern nuclear
11
data Web services The current system has been designed as multiuser andplatform independent environment [21] The cross platform capabilities havebeen achieved by extensive usage of Java technologies Java codes can bedeveloped on any device compiled into a standard bytecode and run on anydevice equipped with a Java virtual machine The current system includesJava Web servlets database connectivity and wrapper classes for a ZVViewplotting package [22] and legacy FORTRAN and C codes It is based oncommercially available software and hardware and contains many featuresof enterprise computer portals dealt with on a daily basis Two versions ofthe EXFOR database and Web retrieval systems are presently distributedserver and personal computer (portable) for multiple and individual clientsrespectively The server installation is briefly described in Ref [18] whilethe personal computer version is build on a standard compact disk thatis available from the IAEA upon request In subsequent subsections theauthors will describe hardware and software computer environments followedby software application developments careful analysis of Web features anda worldwide impact on nuclear data users
31 EXFOR Relational Database
The EXFOR database contains nuclear data sets for sim22000 experi-ments Rapid access to these data is of paramount importance for nuclearscience and technology professionals The first modern EXFOR Web dis-semination and data storage system was developed at the NDS IAEA incooperation with the NNDC BNL [21] It is a multi-platform product thatwas developed for the nuclear data services migration project to a TomcatWeb and SybaseMySQL database servers environment [18] Later the nu-clear databases were transferred from Sybase to MySQL servers The mod-ern relational database servers allow access to data using Structured QueryLanguage (SQL) The SQL language is easy to learn and use it allowingmanagement of the databases and building Web interfaces for data searchesmanagement and updates The underlying software converts these requestsinto corresponding SQL statements that are passed to the database to harvestdatabase outputs
MySQL server is a robust database system that can be operated on mul-tiple computer platforms using community or enterprise licenses Initiallythe NDS IAEA service was based on MySQL while the NNDC operatedenterprise Sybase servers and later transferred to MySQL enterprise serversIn recent years both centers migrated to MySQL community edition servers
12
The EXFOR database has been successfully integrated with the Evalu-ated Nuclear Data File (ENDF) libraries [23 24 25 26 27 28 29] bibli-ographical Computer Index of Nuclear (reaction) DAta (CINDA) [30 31]and Nuclear Science References databases [19] Its contents are also used inSigma Web Interface [20] some of its components are used in JANIS (JAva-based Nuclear data Information System independently developed by the NEADatabank) [32] The EXFOR relational database project has evolved andmatured substantially in the last fifteen years compared to its initial version[21 18] and an extensive description of its latest features is presented below
311 EXFOR Database Schema
The schema describes a database structure in a formal language supportedby the database management system In a relational database the schemadefines the tables fields relationships views indexes procedures and otherelements
The simplified version of EXFOR relational database schema is shown inFig 5 The EXFOR schema includes tables that contain data metadataand dictionaries such as X4SRC ENTRIES and AUTHORS respectively Itincludes relationships between data tables eg ENTRY and SUBENT metadata tables are linked using an EntryID relationship The current databaseschema provides a glimpse into the present system storage of experimentalnuclear reaction data sets
312 Database System Operation
The EXFOR operation includes contributions from the data groups affil-iated with the network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) [33] andNon-EXFOR data sources The NRDC supplies the database with new andrevised data compilations dictionaries and manual updates Bibliographicalmetadata original publication PDF files and data renormalization informa-tion are provided through separate channels All of these nuclear science andbibliographical data are processed and stored in a relational database thatincorporates text compilation and articledocument PDF files for the major-ity of EXFOR entries Due to major publishersrsquo subscription rules the PDFfiles are not available for external users The Java-based computer programsprocess contributions and fetch data retrievals as EXFOR-formatted filesZVView plots PDF files and many other custom formats for remote Weband local users The EXFOR database operation workflow diagram is shownin Fig 6
13
SubentID= EntryID=
ReacodeID=
ReacodeID=
SubentID=
HEADER
DatasetID
SubentID iCol
Pointer
flagCD Header
Units
KEYWORD
SubentID
iKeyword EntryID
Entry
SubAcc
SubAccNum KeyWord
Pointer Code
FreeText
REACSTR
ReacstrID
SubentID ReacodeID
iReacstr
Pointer
nCodes Code
Target Reaction
Product Projectile
Category
Quant SF1SF9
SF58
ZTarg
elTarg aTarg
sTarg zProd elProd
sProd
ztProd
atProd
TransID=
ENTRY
EntryID
Entry TransID
UpdateNo
Area
DateDebut FileSrc
nInstitutes
Institute1 nAuthors
Author1Ini Author1
nReferences Reference1
YearRef1
X4TRANS
TransID
UpdateNo
TransDate TransFile
nEntries
nSubentries
nDatalines
EntryID=EntryID
X4UPDATE
UpdateNo
UpdateDate UpdateFlag
UpdateNo=
PRODUCT SubentID
ReacodeID
Fld Element
Mass
Isomer Product
Prod
X4SRC
SubentID SubAcc
Entry Coding
Source
Relations
Many to one
One to one
SubentID=
SUBENT
SubentID
SubAcc EntryID
Entry
TransID
UpdateNo SubAcc1
StatusSPSDD DateUpd
nReac nReacstr
EnMin
EnMax CdatasetID
CnCol
CnRow
DdatasetId DnCol
DnRow
REACODE
ReacodeID
SubentID
SubAcc
Pointer nReacstr
nDataLines
eMin eMax
fullCode
AUTHORS EntryID
Entry
iAuthor AuthorIni
Author
INSTITUT EntryID
Entry
iInstitute Institute
Code
Area Country
REFERS EntryID
Entry
iReference Reference
Ref
Title DateRef
NsrKeyno
AuthorsList
DOI
Figure 5 The EXFOR database schema
14
Non-EXFOR sources
EXFOR (NRDC)
Dictionaries
Manual
PDF files
BibTeX files
Expert corrections
So
ftw
are
EXFOR X4+ X4plusmn
Plots ZVD R33
T4 C4 C5 C5M XC4
PDF Web-Journals
X4xml X4html
Links to ENDF NSR
C4renormalized
EXFOR
Database
EXFOR files
Web-
User
EXFOR-Master
EXFOR-Uploading
Compiler
Temp-files
Input-files
SG30
Isolated
User
So
ftw
are
NSR
Database We
b R
etr
ieva
l sy
ste
m
pro
gra
ms
fil
es
(CD
F
TP
)
Figure 6 The EXFOR operation workflow
32 EXFOR Web Interface
Since introduction of the World Wide Web it is essential for data and re-search centers to provide direct access to nuclear databases [18 34 35 36 37]The EXFOR Web retrieval interface is an integral part of both IAEA andNNDC Web Services [18 34] To provide more robust scalable architecturesatisfy cyber security requirements and protect nuclear data services from asingle-point failure the Web and database servers are physically separatedThe Web server has the ApacheTomcat [38 39] Web production environ-ment installed All servers are running the Linux (Red Hat SUSE etc)operating system The initial version of the present interface became opera-tional fifteen years ago and eventually grew to its current state The interfaceis based on current computer technologies and provides retrieval of databasecontent in HTML Text BibTex and PDF formats It also produces special-ized outputs in C4C5 Application Programing Interface (API)XML andR33 for nuclear model codes application developers and Ion Beam AnalysisNuclear Data Library (IBANDL) [40] users community respectively
Data plotting is performed using the ZVView software package that hasbeen written in C and designed for evaluators of nuclear reaction data toperform efficient interactive analyses of cross section data retrieved from thenuclear data libraries [22] The main function of ZVView is to plot these data
15
for comparison using a variety of options to study graphical numerical andbibliographic information along with the possibility of analyzing the resultsof the userrsquos evaluations Since 2010 the ZVView program has been extendedto plot 2-dimensional arrays Z(XY) with the main purpose of displaying cor-relation matrices The package allows users to change plotting parameterssuch as type of data view (curve histogram map 3D animation symbolsof points colors error bars) logarithmic and linear scales zoom split plotto sub-windows smoothing by least-squares method choice of data and au-thors to be plotted scans of their points and changing language on the flyThe Web-ZVView program implements the majority of these functions asintegrated part of EXFOR and ENDF Web retrieval systems
The current Web interface is a very sophisticated product that reflectsthe overall complexity of nuclear reaction data The immense variety andvolume of the archived quantities require advanced data retrieval capabilitiesat the same time a large number of EXFOR users are still looking for simpleretrievals of reaction cross sections To accommodate these different usergroups four levels of EXFOR retrievals have been introduced basic (simple)extended keywords and expert
321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
The majority of EXFOR users are not familiar with the databasersquos ad-vanced structure or its philosophy This user group includes nuclear scien-tists engineers and graduate students that need direct access to the latestnuclear reaction data sets To satisfy their needs the authors have developedsimple EXFOR retrievals that are based on target reaction experimentalquantity product energy range authors publication year and accessionnumber search parameters All search fields are based on a logical ldquoORrdquooperator () that returns the Boolean value true if either of the operandsis true and returns false otherwise Therefore empty fields are ignored by adata search query and users can easily construct database queries using Webinterface search fields To demonstrate the present Web interface graphic anddata capabilities the authors will consider a case of 235U(nf) reaction crosssections Fig 7 shows a simple retrieval for the following input parameterstarget = 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs
To improve user experience a simple text string Google-like search hasbeen recently added to the EXFOR Web interface It is located on the topright side of the EXFOR front page This search is intended for less sophis-ticated EXFOR users who prefer to mine experimental data using common
16
Figure 7 An example of simple cross section retrieval for 235U(nf) reaction data in-puts for the EXFOR front and data selection pages were magnified The EXFOR WebInterface is publicly available at the websites of the Nuclear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor the National Nuclear Data Center httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor
nuclear physics concepts The EXFOR interface also contains online helpdisplayed as question mark buttons on the right side of the search boxesThese buttons produce pop-up windows that have information on text boxinput parameters and provide access to EXFOR dictionaries
322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
EXFOR is the only nuclear physics database that stores extensive de-scriptions of experimental results and facilities In fact these data representa treasure trove for investigation of research trends in nuclear physics [3] andprovide complementary background for nuclear data evaluations These datacan be extracted using extended keywords and expert requests
The extended retrieval provides additional capabilities for creating sophis-ticated database queries that include bibliographical metadata geographicalorigin (area country institute) NSR keynumbers (NSR database analoguesof EXFOR accession numbers) and compilation timing information
Keyword retrieval allows queries for experimental quantities that cannotbe easily found anywhere else detector method monitor facility incomingsource and spectrum data analysis detected particles and radiations and
17
experimental data originsThe expert retrieval supplies capabilities for searching for outgoing parti-
cle parameters data units ranges for experimental data points and EXFORcompilation centers individual compilers and data transmissions As it wasmentioned previously all text box search fields are implemented as a logicalldquoORrdquo operator and therefore missing search fields are ignored by SQL dataqueries
33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
The EXFOR system has matured over the years into a very advancedproduct and several complex features represent a challenge for new users Toovercome these issues the webpage News display box numerical and plottingexamples of requests and video guides (httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4guide)have been prepared These resources provide constant updates on new EX-FOR system features and share best user practices The EXFOR examplesare intended for user education purposes and supply additional insights on in-terface capabilities The broad scope of examples helped to improve EXFORuser experiences and such policies contributed to the worldwide popularityof the service
34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
The EXFOR interface is a gateway to the latest experimental nuclearreaction data stored at the IAEA and NNDC databases and it has a verybroad spectrum of usage worldwide In order to provide the best qualityof services the authors monitor the interface operation [18 41] Monitor-ing includes collection of web statistics geographical coverage network dataanalysis and estimates of database usage The EXFOR database retrievalstatistics are very conservative and completely based on a count of success-ful database retrievals any Web browser hits are ignored Retrievals fornon-existing entities in the database (eg author reaction target) whichproduce an empty output file are rejected Complete information for eachretrieval is recorded in separate Web statistic data files and usually sim300retrievalsday are observed from the IAEA and NNDC websites
The absolute number of Web retrievals provides only a partial estimateof product usage To further estimate the impact of the current productretrieval statistics can be complimented with the Google Scholar data TheScholar Web application allows retrieval of information on the EXFOR Webapplication usage from research articles A simple Google Scholar search for
18
2 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 50
5 0
1 0 0
1 5 0
2 0 0
2 5 0
3 0 0
Goog
le Sc
holar
Citat
ions
Y e a r
w w w n n d c b n l g o v e x f o r w w w - n d s i a e a o r g e x f o r
Figure 8 The worldwide impact of EXFOR Web application based on the NDS IAEAand NNDC BNL citation statistics The plot shows an incremental growth of websiteGoogle Scholar citations over the years
the NDS httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor and NNDC httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfortext strings results in sim1100 and sim770 citations respectively These cita-tions originate from research papers where the EXFOR interface address wasmentioned The growth curve shown in Fig 8 is well matched with the Webretrieval statistics [41] The agreement between these trends provides a ver-ification of the present analysis and confirms a broad usage of the EXFORWeb interface
Complementary insights on EXFOR usage can be obtained from the Webinterface usage pattern pie chart shown in Fig 9 The chart is based on aGoogle Analytics analysis of NNDC and NDS Web traffic sim100000 interac-tions per year (data searches are not included) and sim2500 unique users permonth The EXFOR plot X4plusmn interactive tree (iTree) X4+ interpretedT4 simplified and original format retrievals constitute 232 206 185 125and 88 of total operations respectively Other noticeable contributionsinclude access of publisher Digital Object Identifier (DOI) links and NSRdatabase downloads of plotted data and PDF files and covariance matrixcalculation using experimental uncertainties Usage of the retrieval system
19
2 3 2 P l o t2 0 6 X 4 i T r e e1 8 5 X 4 + I n t e r p r e t e d1 2 5 T 4 S i m p l i f i e d
8 8 X 4 O r i g i n a l6 4 P u b l i s h e r L i n k s3 9 D o w n l o a d P l o t t e d2 1 P D F1 3 C r e a t e C o v M a t r i x1 1 N S R - k e y n o1 6 O t h e r s
Figure 9 Google Analytics statistical analysis for EXFOR Web interface
can be summarized as follows
bull EXFOR data downloads in various interpreted formats (iTree X4+T4 - sim50) These data transfers exceed the original EXFOR formatretrievals (lt9)
bull EXFOR plotting with the subsequent download of plotted data as textor html tables (sim27) and construction of covariance matrices usingexperimental uncertainties (sim1)
bull DOI access of publisher web sites (64) and NSR web retrieval system(sim1) and download of PDF copies (sim2) The last option is availablefor authorized users only due to copyright restrictions
bull Other tools and operations (lt2) for example extremely valuablefor nuclear physicist or engineer EXFOR cross section renormalization(fifty-two unique clients in 2016 represent sim01 of all operations)
4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
The EXFOR computer database is an integral part of nuclear data Webservices is firmly related to nuclear reaction data evaluations and requiresaccess to nuclear bibliography The combined development of the experi-mental evaluated and bibliographical nuclear reaction databases was a costeffective solution that allowed reuse of Java classes Web implementation of
20
plotting packages and reduction of overall time for application developmentand testing
41 ENDF
ENDF is a core nuclear reaction database containing evaluated (recom-mended) cross sections spectra angular distributions fission product yieldsthermal neutron scattering and photo-atomic and other data with an em-phasis on neutron-induced reactions ENDF library evaluations are basedon theoretical calculations normalized to experimental data with an excep-tion of neutron resonance region where priority is given to experimentaldata ENDF evaluations consist of complete neutron reaction data setsfor particular isotope or element (ENDF material) They cover all neu-tron reaction channels within the 10minus5 eV - 20 MeV energy range Nowa-days in many evaluated data libraries this energy range is extended tohigher energies All these data sets are stored in the internationally-adoptedENDF-6 format that is maintained by the Cross Section Evaluation Work-ing Group (CSEWG) and publicly available at the NNDC and NDS web-sites httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf and httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf re-spectively Cross section evaluations are of great importance for nuclearenergy and science applications and they are performed internationally forENDF JEFF TENDL JENDL ROSFOND and CENDL libraries [24 2526 27 28 29] in the USA Europe Japan Russian Federation and Chinarespectively
The EXFOR project is a primary source of experimental nuclear reac-tion data for neutron cross section evaluations In practice many ENDFevaluations are produced using nuclear reaction model codes EMPIRE orTALYS [42 43] that contain EXFOR database connectivity modules Thecomputer codes are used for calculation neutron-induced reaction theoreticalcurves data analysis and comparison with experimental data These eval-uations are critically important for many applications because they provideevaluated neutron cross sections for operation of nuclear power plants andGEANT and MCNP computer codes [44 45]
The ENDF Web interface takes its contents from a separate ENDF re-lational database It contains the most complete international collection ofevaluated nuclear reaction libraries includes data analysis capabilities andintegrated with experimental data The interface shown in Fig 10 servesevaluated data in many output formats and incorporates the ZVView pro-gram [22] The IAEA and NNDC interfaces are slightly different on a client
21
ENDF
Figure 10 ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated and experimental cross sectionsfor 235U(nf) reaction data inputs for the ENDF data selection pages were magni-fied The visualized evaluated data have been processed with the PREPRO code [46]at T=29316 K ENDF Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovendf
side and completely identical on the server side These differences have beenintroduced to reflect different user requirements Both interfaces allow usersto search a large number of evaluated libraries for relevant evaluations us-ing target reaction quantity product and other parameters For exampleconsider ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated nuclear data retrieval for235U(nf) reaction cross sections in conjunction with experimental data li-brary = ENDFB-VII1 JEFF-32 target = 235U reaction = nf and quan-tity = cs This retrieval can be accomplished from the main ENDF interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf) or as shown here by clicking an ENDF but-ton next to the experimental cross sections plotted in Fig 7 The ENDFdatabase output demonstrates that ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluatedcross sections agree well with experimental values
42 CINDA
Nuclear bibliography is essential for nuclear reaction data compilationsCINDA contains many historic publications that are not available in anyother database These publications are grouped by experiment and thedatabase allows application of energy range criteria for data searches Theseunique capabilities are still in demand by nuclear data evaluators Currently
22
CINDA
Figure 11 Nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf) reaction experimental cross sec-tions The CINDA Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovcinda
separate CINDA data compilations are terminated and CINDA contents areextended by new information from the EXFOR and NSR databases
CINDA contains the most extensive nuclear reaction bibliography it isintegrated with the EXFOR Web retrieval system and allows users to searchfor information that is not available in EXFOR The database interface in-cludes all major EXFOR search fields and provides data outputs in text andHTML formats For example to retrieve nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf)reaction cross sections the following input parameters are assumed target= 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs As shown in Fig 11 CINDAdatabase output consists of 2406 publications and 2736 reactions
5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
Originally EXFOR Web Interface was created to perform only basic op-erations data search retrieval and presentation It is now part of a largeand developed Web System including extended functionality and tools forregular [external or traditional] users EXFOR compilers and ENDF andENSDF [47] evaluators There are many interesting EXFOR Web interface
23
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
5 01 0 01 5 02 0 02 5 03 0 03 5 04 0 0
0 2 0 4 0 6 0 8 0 1 0 0
1 0
2 0
3 0
4 0
5 0
6 0
7 0
1 9 2 0 1 9 4 0 1 9 6 0 1 9 8 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 2 0
S nU
Cros
sSec
tionM
easu
remen
ts
N G
N G
U
S n
A u
Z
G N
Y e a r
G N
A u
Figure 2 EXFOR compilations of nuclear astrophysics relevant neutron capture (nγ) andphoto-neutron (γn) production reactions vs target material (z) and historical distribu-tion of experimental results are shown in left and right panels respectively
In recent years the EXFOR compilations became even more popularworldwide and a large number of institutions have joined In fact EXFORrepresents one of the oldest continuously-operated scientific collaborationsSince its creation the EXFOR project has relied heavily on computer tech-nologies available at the time Historically the data compilations were per-formed using pencil and paper and they have gradually developed into thepresent day computer operation that includes modern relational databaseand Web servers EXFOR compilation editors plot digitizers and opticalcharacter recognition technologies Since the beginning reaction data com-pilations were performed on a timely basis and archived in close cooperationwith the researchers Many scientists have contributed their original datasets to the EXFOR library Unfortunately this mode of operation has notalways worked perfectly and several important data sets were missed andthe NRDC network members are working on their recovery In addition theNRDC community has addressed the issues with the problematic and incor-rectly entered data compilations The database contents were reanalyzed andcorrected by the members of the Subgroup 30 of the Working Party on In-ternational Evaluation Co-operation of the NEA Nuclear Science Committee[5]
6
Data recovery (eg nuclear archeology) is one of the important functionsof the EXFOR operation Here the authors consider EXFOR entry 14329based on the PhD dissertation of JL Kammerdiener [6] University of Cal-ifornia Davis This thesis represents cost and time-expensive measurementswith unique target materials 239Pu 238U 235U Pb Nb Ni Al and C Thesethesis data were preserved as a paper copy only where results were shown asplots A new measurement with these targets would require lengthy delaycontingent on a program advisory committee approval process and may re-sult in a few million dollars of additional expenses Therefore this thesis andassociated graphic data were reanalyzed and digitized forty one years laterat the National Nuclear Data Center In this endeavor the EXFOR editor [7]and Java digitizer [8] developed in Sarov Russian Federation and SapporoJapan respectively were used The Fig 3 example illustrates the first 2 ofKammerdienerrsquos 171 thesis data records (subentries) The present compila-tion beginning subentry contains bibliographical and general information forall subentries such as 14 MeV incident neutrons energy in the common sec-tion while experimental data are compiled in the following subentries Thecompilation second subentry reaction field (13-AL-27(NEL)13-AL-27DA)indicates elastic neutron scattering differential data with respect to angle(DA) and the subentry status field (CURVE) reveals digitized data All ex-perimental data sets are placed within DATA and ENDDATA tags and theoriginal article units are preserved The well-structured compilation formatwas intentionally designed for further usage in computer systems It repre-sents a typical input file for the current Web and database system that willbe discussed in the following section
22 EXFOR Format
The EXFOR database format was introduced for data storage and in-formation exchanges between major data centers as a replacement of theSCISRS format [1] The present format is human-readable is 80 characterslong and includes opening and closing tags for all data and metadata setsEfforts to improve the EXFOR format are currently underway [9] and theseattempts will provide additional avenues for application developments Inthe present work the authors will adopt the EXFOR Basics publication [10]as an introductory guide to EXFOR format for advanced users the LEX-FOR manual is recommended [11] The EXFOR format is currently used forexperimental nuclear data archiving and dissemination and its file structureis shown in Fig 4 The experimental nuclear reaction data library consists of
7
ENTRY 14329 20130820 20131120 20131111 1393
SUBENT 14329001 20130820 20131120 20131111 1393
BIB 15 72
TITLE Neutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235U Pb Nb
Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutrons
AUTHOR (JLKammerdiener)
INSTITUTE (1USADAV)
REFERENCE (RUCRL-512321972) PhDthesis
REL-REF (O10423001LFHansen+PUSNDC-984197311) Ni data
(OV1004001TKawanoWKAWANO2013)
Angle-integrated spectra derived from present
experiment
FACILITY (ICTR1USALRL) Insulated core transformer accelerator
INC-SOURCE (D-T) Deuteron on tritium
DETECTOR (SCINGLASD) NE-213 scintillator 6Li glass detector
PART-DET (NG)
METHOD (TOFPSDRINGR) Time of flight pulse shape
ANALYSIS (REDUC) The entire data reduction process was
CORRECTION The data were corrected for effects due to
ERR-ANALYS (DATA-ERR) Data which has been corrected
(ERR-S100) less than 10
COMMENT From conversation of MB Chadwick with John
HISTORY (20121207C) BP
(20130712A) BP added reference to Los Alamos estimate
by T Kawano
ENDBIB 72
COMMON 1 3
EN
MEV
140
ENDCOMMON 3
ENDSUBENT 79
SUBENT 14329002 20121207 20130502 20130429 1388
BIB 3 3
REACTION (13-AL-27(NEL)13-AL-27DA)
STATUS (CURVE) Fig42
REL-REF (A11322001JHCoon+JPR1112501958)
ENDBIB 3
NOCOMMON 0 0
DATA 3 13
ANG-CM DATA-CM DATA-ERR
ADEG MBSR MBSR
2500E+01 2238E+02
3000E+01 1018E+02 6049E+00
3500E+01 3094E+01 3807E+00
4000E+01 1407E+01 2260E+00
4500E+01 1736E+01 1867E+00
5500E+01 3784E+01
6500E+01 4469E+01
7500E+01 2810E+01
8500E+01 1181E+01 6043E-01
1000E+02 1000E+01 5117E-01
1150E+02 1181E+01 7988E-01
1350E+02 1082E+01 9070E-01
1550E+02 1121E+01 1379E+00
ENDDATA 15
ENDSUBENT 23 ENDENTRY 2
Figure 3 Fragment of EXFOR entry 14329 based on the 1972 University of CaliforniaDavis thesis by JL Kammerdiener [6]
8
AUTHOR
TITLE
REFERENCE
DETECTOR
METHOD
MONITOR
FACILITY
REACTION
EXFOR
ENTRY
ENTRY
ENTRY
SUBENT-1
SUBENT-2
SUBENT-n
BIB
KEYWORD-1
KEYWORD-2
KEYWORD-n
CODE[s]
Free text
CODE[s]
Free text
Header
Units
value
value
Header
Units
value
value
Header
Units
value
value
n n n
n
n
k+
2
m
KEYWORD =
DATAk timesm
COMMON1 times m (k=1)
COMMON DATA
Figure 4 Manifold structure of the EXFOR library Each database entry consists ofbibliographical and data subentries
data entries that contain complete records of individual experiments Eachexperiment may include multiple nuclear reaction data sets (subentries) andseveral research papers because EXFOR compilers group multiple publica-tions from a particular experiment into a single entry Another importantfeature of the library is that all experimental data are compiled as publishedonly obvious errors are corrected
Each entry is assigned a unique accession number each subentry is as-signed a subaccession number (the accession number plus a subentry num-ber) The subaccession numbers are associated with a data table throughoutthe life of the EXFOR system The subentries are further divided into thefollowing categories
bull Bibliographic descriptive and bookkeeping information (hereafter calledBIB information)
bull Common data that applies to all data throughout the entry or subentry
9
bull Data tables
In order to avoid repetition of information that is common to all subentrieswithin an entry or to all lines within a subentry information may be asso-ciated with an entire entry or with an entire subentry To accomplish thisthe first subentry of each work contains only information that applies to allother subentries Within each subentry the information common to all linesof the table precedes the table
EXFOR format was originally designed for data storage and interchangebetween the four data centers and it serves well for these purposes Howeverthe compilation format [12] may represent a problem for application devel-opers and other users who are not familiar with format specifics To over-come this obstacle a simplified computational format (C4) was introducedThe code X4TOC4 [13] converts EXFOR data sets to the easy-to-read datacolumns in C4 format The C4 format is used in the current system for dataplotting and further dissemination
23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
Compilation databases often contain an extensive collection of dictionar-ies The EXFOR dictionaries list details for database keywords and codesand their identification numbers range between 1 and 999 [14] These dictio-naries are periodically updated with new keywords and codes and could besubdivided into three groups
bull The Archive dictionaries are the source of the contents of all forms ofthe dictionaries They contain all keys their expansions and additionalcodes as well as free text explanations for compilers
bull The DANIEL backup dictionaries contain all keys additional codesneeded for programs and most of the expansions These dictionariesare designed for interacting with computer programs
bull The EXFOR transmission dictionaries contain all keys (except for Dic-tionary 26 Unit families [14]) their expansions and free text expla-nations but not all additional codes needed for the checking and otherprograms
10
24 EXFOR Manual
EXFOR database its formats structures and relevant procedures areextensively described in the manual Historically it was maintained by theUS National Nuclear Data Center and recently it was transferred to theIAEA Nuclear Data section [10 11] The manual is absolutely essential forEXFOR database compilations and application developments
3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
The development of nuclear reaction data storage and dissemination sys-tems has a very rich history There have been previous efforts to disseminatenuclear reaction data such as the Brookhaven Cross Section Information Stor-age and Retrieval System (CSISRS) that was introduced in 1971 based onthe VAX-VMS computer system This dissemination system was a revisedversion of the original SCISRS
The VMS platform became obsolete in the 90s due to the rapid progressof modern computing and introduction of World Wide Web technologies Inorder to improve the quality of nuclear data services and take advantageof the latest software and hardware developments the NNDC BNL andNDS IAEA started to work on a data migration project in 1999 followinga basic assessment of future options [15] This exploratory work culminatedat an International Workshop on Relational Database and Java Technolo-gies for Nuclear Data held at BNL September 11-15 2000 [16] As a re-sult of the workshop the two partners embarked on a project to migrateits databases to a UNIX-based relational database environment and signif-icantly upgrade Web Services employing the latest computer technologies[15 17] The migration project was successfully completed and the new nu-clear data Web service made available beginning in 2004 [18] General systemdesign and several distinct elements of the system such as Nuclear ScienceReferences (NSR httpwwwnndcbnlgovnsr) and Sigma Web Interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovsigma) have been described previously [19 20] Atthe same time other popular features such as the very advanced and con-stantly evolving experimental nuclear reaction Web and data services werenever comprehensively described in the literature This publication is in-tended to fulfill this task and provide an extensive description of nuclearreaction data services
In the present work the authors describe the current status of the EXFORdatabase project which creates one of the foundations for the modern nuclear
11
data Web services The current system has been designed as multiuser andplatform independent environment [21] The cross platform capabilities havebeen achieved by extensive usage of Java technologies Java codes can bedeveloped on any device compiled into a standard bytecode and run on anydevice equipped with a Java virtual machine The current system includesJava Web servlets database connectivity and wrapper classes for a ZVViewplotting package [22] and legacy FORTRAN and C codes It is based oncommercially available software and hardware and contains many featuresof enterprise computer portals dealt with on a daily basis Two versions ofthe EXFOR database and Web retrieval systems are presently distributedserver and personal computer (portable) for multiple and individual clientsrespectively The server installation is briefly described in Ref [18] whilethe personal computer version is build on a standard compact disk thatis available from the IAEA upon request In subsequent subsections theauthors will describe hardware and software computer environments followedby software application developments careful analysis of Web features anda worldwide impact on nuclear data users
31 EXFOR Relational Database
The EXFOR database contains nuclear data sets for sim22000 experi-ments Rapid access to these data is of paramount importance for nuclearscience and technology professionals The first modern EXFOR Web dis-semination and data storage system was developed at the NDS IAEA incooperation with the NNDC BNL [21] It is a multi-platform product thatwas developed for the nuclear data services migration project to a TomcatWeb and SybaseMySQL database servers environment [18] Later the nu-clear databases were transferred from Sybase to MySQL servers The mod-ern relational database servers allow access to data using Structured QueryLanguage (SQL) The SQL language is easy to learn and use it allowingmanagement of the databases and building Web interfaces for data searchesmanagement and updates The underlying software converts these requestsinto corresponding SQL statements that are passed to the database to harvestdatabase outputs
MySQL server is a robust database system that can be operated on mul-tiple computer platforms using community or enterprise licenses Initiallythe NDS IAEA service was based on MySQL while the NNDC operatedenterprise Sybase servers and later transferred to MySQL enterprise serversIn recent years both centers migrated to MySQL community edition servers
12
The EXFOR database has been successfully integrated with the Evalu-ated Nuclear Data File (ENDF) libraries [23 24 25 26 27 28 29] bibli-ographical Computer Index of Nuclear (reaction) DAta (CINDA) [30 31]and Nuclear Science References databases [19] Its contents are also used inSigma Web Interface [20] some of its components are used in JANIS (JAva-based Nuclear data Information System independently developed by the NEADatabank) [32] The EXFOR relational database project has evolved andmatured substantially in the last fifteen years compared to its initial version[21 18] and an extensive description of its latest features is presented below
311 EXFOR Database Schema
The schema describes a database structure in a formal language supportedby the database management system In a relational database the schemadefines the tables fields relationships views indexes procedures and otherelements
The simplified version of EXFOR relational database schema is shown inFig 5 The EXFOR schema includes tables that contain data metadataand dictionaries such as X4SRC ENTRIES and AUTHORS respectively Itincludes relationships between data tables eg ENTRY and SUBENT metadata tables are linked using an EntryID relationship The current databaseschema provides a glimpse into the present system storage of experimentalnuclear reaction data sets
312 Database System Operation
The EXFOR operation includes contributions from the data groups affil-iated with the network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) [33] andNon-EXFOR data sources The NRDC supplies the database with new andrevised data compilations dictionaries and manual updates Bibliographicalmetadata original publication PDF files and data renormalization informa-tion are provided through separate channels All of these nuclear science andbibliographical data are processed and stored in a relational database thatincorporates text compilation and articledocument PDF files for the major-ity of EXFOR entries Due to major publishersrsquo subscription rules the PDFfiles are not available for external users The Java-based computer programsprocess contributions and fetch data retrievals as EXFOR-formatted filesZVView plots PDF files and many other custom formats for remote Weband local users The EXFOR database operation workflow diagram is shownin Fig 6
13
SubentID= EntryID=
ReacodeID=
ReacodeID=
SubentID=
HEADER
DatasetID
SubentID iCol
Pointer
flagCD Header
Units
KEYWORD
SubentID
iKeyword EntryID
Entry
SubAcc
SubAccNum KeyWord
Pointer Code
FreeText
REACSTR
ReacstrID
SubentID ReacodeID
iReacstr
Pointer
nCodes Code
Target Reaction
Product Projectile
Category
Quant SF1SF9
SF58
ZTarg
elTarg aTarg
sTarg zProd elProd
sProd
ztProd
atProd
TransID=
ENTRY
EntryID
Entry TransID
UpdateNo
Area
DateDebut FileSrc
nInstitutes
Institute1 nAuthors
Author1Ini Author1
nReferences Reference1
YearRef1
X4TRANS
TransID
UpdateNo
TransDate TransFile
nEntries
nSubentries
nDatalines
EntryID=EntryID
X4UPDATE
UpdateNo
UpdateDate UpdateFlag
UpdateNo=
PRODUCT SubentID
ReacodeID
Fld Element
Mass
Isomer Product
Prod
X4SRC
SubentID SubAcc
Entry Coding
Source
Relations
Many to one
One to one
SubentID=
SUBENT
SubentID
SubAcc EntryID
Entry
TransID
UpdateNo SubAcc1
StatusSPSDD DateUpd
nReac nReacstr
EnMin
EnMax CdatasetID
CnCol
CnRow
DdatasetId DnCol
DnRow
REACODE
ReacodeID
SubentID
SubAcc
Pointer nReacstr
nDataLines
eMin eMax
fullCode
AUTHORS EntryID
Entry
iAuthor AuthorIni
Author
INSTITUT EntryID
Entry
iInstitute Institute
Code
Area Country
REFERS EntryID
Entry
iReference Reference
Ref
Title DateRef
NsrKeyno
AuthorsList
DOI
Figure 5 The EXFOR database schema
14
Non-EXFOR sources
EXFOR (NRDC)
Dictionaries
Manual
PDF files
BibTeX files
Expert corrections
So
ftw
are
EXFOR X4+ X4plusmn
Plots ZVD R33
T4 C4 C5 C5M XC4
PDF Web-Journals
X4xml X4html
Links to ENDF NSR
C4renormalized
EXFOR
Database
EXFOR files
Web-
User
EXFOR-Master
EXFOR-Uploading
Compiler
Temp-files
Input-files
SG30
Isolated
User
So
ftw
are
NSR
Database We
b R
etr
ieva
l sy
ste
m
pro
gra
ms
fil
es
(CD
F
TP
)
Figure 6 The EXFOR operation workflow
32 EXFOR Web Interface
Since introduction of the World Wide Web it is essential for data and re-search centers to provide direct access to nuclear databases [18 34 35 36 37]The EXFOR Web retrieval interface is an integral part of both IAEA andNNDC Web Services [18 34] To provide more robust scalable architecturesatisfy cyber security requirements and protect nuclear data services from asingle-point failure the Web and database servers are physically separatedThe Web server has the ApacheTomcat [38 39] Web production environ-ment installed All servers are running the Linux (Red Hat SUSE etc)operating system The initial version of the present interface became opera-tional fifteen years ago and eventually grew to its current state The interfaceis based on current computer technologies and provides retrieval of databasecontent in HTML Text BibTex and PDF formats It also produces special-ized outputs in C4C5 Application Programing Interface (API)XML andR33 for nuclear model codes application developers and Ion Beam AnalysisNuclear Data Library (IBANDL) [40] users community respectively
Data plotting is performed using the ZVView software package that hasbeen written in C and designed for evaluators of nuclear reaction data toperform efficient interactive analyses of cross section data retrieved from thenuclear data libraries [22] The main function of ZVView is to plot these data
15
for comparison using a variety of options to study graphical numerical andbibliographic information along with the possibility of analyzing the resultsof the userrsquos evaluations Since 2010 the ZVView program has been extendedto plot 2-dimensional arrays Z(XY) with the main purpose of displaying cor-relation matrices The package allows users to change plotting parameterssuch as type of data view (curve histogram map 3D animation symbolsof points colors error bars) logarithmic and linear scales zoom split plotto sub-windows smoothing by least-squares method choice of data and au-thors to be plotted scans of their points and changing language on the flyThe Web-ZVView program implements the majority of these functions asintegrated part of EXFOR and ENDF Web retrieval systems
The current Web interface is a very sophisticated product that reflectsthe overall complexity of nuclear reaction data The immense variety andvolume of the archived quantities require advanced data retrieval capabilitiesat the same time a large number of EXFOR users are still looking for simpleretrievals of reaction cross sections To accommodate these different usergroups four levels of EXFOR retrievals have been introduced basic (simple)extended keywords and expert
321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
The majority of EXFOR users are not familiar with the databasersquos ad-vanced structure or its philosophy This user group includes nuclear scien-tists engineers and graduate students that need direct access to the latestnuclear reaction data sets To satisfy their needs the authors have developedsimple EXFOR retrievals that are based on target reaction experimentalquantity product energy range authors publication year and accessionnumber search parameters All search fields are based on a logical ldquoORrdquooperator () that returns the Boolean value true if either of the operandsis true and returns false otherwise Therefore empty fields are ignored by adata search query and users can easily construct database queries using Webinterface search fields To demonstrate the present Web interface graphic anddata capabilities the authors will consider a case of 235U(nf) reaction crosssections Fig 7 shows a simple retrieval for the following input parameterstarget = 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs
To improve user experience a simple text string Google-like search hasbeen recently added to the EXFOR Web interface It is located on the topright side of the EXFOR front page This search is intended for less sophis-ticated EXFOR users who prefer to mine experimental data using common
16
Figure 7 An example of simple cross section retrieval for 235U(nf) reaction data in-puts for the EXFOR front and data selection pages were magnified The EXFOR WebInterface is publicly available at the websites of the Nuclear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor the National Nuclear Data Center httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor
nuclear physics concepts The EXFOR interface also contains online helpdisplayed as question mark buttons on the right side of the search boxesThese buttons produce pop-up windows that have information on text boxinput parameters and provide access to EXFOR dictionaries
322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
EXFOR is the only nuclear physics database that stores extensive de-scriptions of experimental results and facilities In fact these data representa treasure trove for investigation of research trends in nuclear physics [3] andprovide complementary background for nuclear data evaluations These datacan be extracted using extended keywords and expert requests
The extended retrieval provides additional capabilities for creating sophis-ticated database queries that include bibliographical metadata geographicalorigin (area country institute) NSR keynumbers (NSR database analoguesof EXFOR accession numbers) and compilation timing information
Keyword retrieval allows queries for experimental quantities that cannotbe easily found anywhere else detector method monitor facility incomingsource and spectrum data analysis detected particles and radiations and
17
experimental data originsThe expert retrieval supplies capabilities for searching for outgoing parti-
cle parameters data units ranges for experimental data points and EXFORcompilation centers individual compilers and data transmissions As it wasmentioned previously all text box search fields are implemented as a logicalldquoORrdquo operator and therefore missing search fields are ignored by SQL dataqueries
33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
The EXFOR system has matured over the years into a very advancedproduct and several complex features represent a challenge for new users Toovercome these issues the webpage News display box numerical and plottingexamples of requests and video guides (httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4guide)have been prepared These resources provide constant updates on new EX-FOR system features and share best user practices The EXFOR examplesare intended for user education purposes and supply additional insights on in-terface capabilities The broad scope of examples helped to improve EXFORuser experiences and such policies contributed to the worldwide popularityof the service
34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
The EXFOR interface is a gateway to the latest experimental nuclearreaction data stored at the IAEA and NNDC databases and it has a verybroad spectrum of usage worldwide In order to provide the best qualityof services the authors monitor the interface operation [18 41] Monitor-ing includes collection of web statistics geographical coverage network dataanalysis and estimates of database usage The EXFOR database retrievalstatistics are very conservative and completely based on a count of success-ful database retrievals any Web browser hits are ignored Retrievals fornon-existing entities in the database (eg author reaction target) whichproduce an empty output file are rejected Complete information for eachretrieval is recorded in separate Web statistic data files and usually sim300retrievalsday are observed from the IAEA and NNDC websites
The absolute number of Web retrievals provides only a partial estimateof product usage To further estimate the impact of the current productretrieval statistics can be complimented with the Google Scholar data TheScholar Web application allows retrieval of information on the EXFOR Webapplication usage from research articles A simple Google Scholar search for
18
2 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 50
5 0
1 0 0
1 5 0
2 0 0
2 5 0
3 0 0
Goog
le Sc
holar
Citat
ions
Y e a r
w w w n n d c b n l g o v e x f o r w w w - n d s i a e a o r g e x f o r
Figure 8 The worldwide impact of EXFOR Web application based on the NDS IAEAand NNDC BNL citation statistics The plot shows an incremental growth of websiteGoogle Scholar citations over the years
the NDS httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor and NNDC httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfortext strings results in sim1100 and sim770 citations respectively These cita-tions originate from research papers where the EXFOR interface address wasmentioned The growth curve shown in Fig 8 is well matched with the Webretrieval statistics [41] The agreement between these trends provides a ver-ification of the present analysis and confirms a broad usage of the EXFORWeb interface
Complementary insights on EXFOR usage can be obtained from the Webinterface usage pattern pie chart shown in Fig 9 The chart is based on aGoogle Analytics analysis of NNDC and NDS Web traffic sim100000 interac-tions per year (data searches are not included) and sim2500 unique users permonth The EXFOR plot X4plusmn interactive tree (iTree) X4+ interpretedT4 simplified and original format retrievals constitute 232 206 185 125and 88 of total operations respectively Other noticeable contributionsinclude access of publisher Digital Object Identifier (DOI) links and NSRdatabase downloads of plotted data and PDF files and covariance matrixcalculation using experimental uncertainties Usage of the retrieval system
19
2 3 2 P l o t2 0 6 X 4 i T r e e1 8 5 X 4 + I n t e r p r e t e d1 2 5 T 4 S i m p l i f i e d
8 8 X 4 O r i g i n a l6 4 P u b l i s h e r L i n k s3 9 D o w n l o a d P l o t t e d2 1 P D F1 3 C r e a t e C o v M a t r i x1 1 N S R - k e y n o1 6 O t h e r s
Figure 9 Google Analytics statistical analysis for EXFOR Web interface
can be summarized as follows
bull EXFOR data downloads in various interpreted formats (iTree X4+T4 - sim50) These data transfers exceed the original EXFOR formatretrievals (lt9)
bull EXFOR plotting with the subsequent download of plotted data as textor html tables (sim27) and construction of covariance matrices usingexperimental uncertainties (sim1)
bull DOI access of publisher web sites (64) and NSR web retrieval system(sim1) and download of PDF copies (sim2) The last option is availablefor authorized users only due to copyright restrictions
bull Other tools and operations (lt2) for example extremely valuablefor nuclear physicist or engineer EXFOR cross section renormalization(fifty-two unique clients in 2016 represent sim01 of all operations)
4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
The EXFOR computer database is an integral part of nuclear data Webservices is firmly related to nuclear reaction data evaluations and requiresaccess to nuclear bibliography The combined development of the experi-mental evaluated and bibliographical nuclear reaction databases was a costeffective solution that allowed reuse of Java classes Web implementation of
20
plotting packages and reduction of overall time for application developmentand testing
41 ENDF
ENDF is a core nuclear reaction database containing evaluated (recom-mended) cross sections spectra angular distributions fission product yieldsthermal neutron scattering and photo-atomic and other data with an em-phasis on neutron-induced reactions ENDF library evaluations are basedon theoretical calculations normalized to experimental data with an excep-tion of neutron resonance region where priority is given to experimentaldata ENDF evaluations consist of complete neutron reaction data setsfor particular isotope or element (ENDF material) They cover all neu-tron reaction channels within the 10minus5 eV - 20 MeV energy range Nowa-days in many evaluated data libraries this energy range is extended tohigher energies All these data sets are stored in the internationally-adoptedENDF-6 format that is maintained by the Cross Section Evaluation Work-ing Group (CSEWG) and publicly available at the NNDC and NDS web-sites httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf and httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf re-spectively Cross section evaluations are of great importance for nuclearenergy and science applications and they are performed internationally forENDF JEFF TENDL JENDL ROSFOND and CENDL libraries [24 2526 27 28 29] in the USA Europe Japan Russian Federation and Chinarespectively
The EXFOR project is a primary source of experimental nuclear reac-tion data for neutron cross section evaluations In practice many ENDFevaluations are produced using nuclear reaction model codes EMPIRE orTALYS [42 43] that contain EXFOR database connectivity modules Thecomputer codes are used for calculation neutron-induced reaction theoreticalcurves data analysis and comparison with experimental data These eval-uations are critically important for many applications because they provideevaluated neutron cross sections for operation of nuclear power plants andGEANT and MCNP computer codes [44 45]
The ENDF Web interface takes its contents from a separate ENDF re-lational database It contains the most complete international collection ofevaluated nuclear reaction libraries includes data analysis capabilities andintegrated with experimental data The interface shown in Fig 10 servesevaluated data in many output formats and incorporates the ZVView pro-gram [22] The IAEA and NNDC interfaces are slightly different on a client
21
ENDF
Figure 10 ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated and experimental cross sectionsfor 235U(nf) reaction data inputs for the ENDF data selection pages were magni-fied The visualized evaluated data have been processed with the PREPRO code [46]at T=29316 K ENDF Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovendf
side and completely identical on the server side These differences have beenintroduced to reflect different user requirements Both interfaces allow usersto search a large number of evaluated libraries for relevant evaluations us-ing target reaction quantity product and other parameters For exampleconsider ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated nuclear data retrieval for235U(nf) reaction cross sections in conjunction with experimental data li-brary = ENDFB-VII1 JEFF-32 target = 235U reaction = nf and quan-tity = cs This retrieval can be accomplished from the main ENDF interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf) or as shown here by clicking an ENDF but-ton next to the experimental cross sections plotted in Fig 7 The ENDFdatabase output demonstrates that ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluatedcross sections agree well with experimental values
42 CINDA
Nuclear bibliography is essential for nuclear reaction data compilationsCINDA contains many historic publications that are not available in anyother database These publications are grouped by experiment and thedatabase allows application of energy range criteria for data searches Theseunique capabilities are still in demand by nuclear data evaluators Currently
22
CINDA
Figure 11 Nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf) reaction experimental cross sec-tions The CINDA Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovcinda
separate CINDA data compilations are terminated and CINDA contents areextended by new information from the EXFOR and NSR databases
CINDA contains the most extensive nuclear reaction bibliography it isintegrated with the EXFOR Web retrieval system and allows users to searchfor information that is not available in EXFOR The database interface in-cludes all major EXFOR search fields and provides data outputs in text andHTML formats For example to retrieve nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf)reaction cross sections the following input parameters are assumed target= 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs As shown in Fig 11 CINDAdatabase output consists of 2406 publications and 2736 reactions
5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
Originally EXFOR Web Interface was created to perform only basic op-erations data search retrieval and presentation It is now part of a largeand developed Web System including extended functionality and tools forregular [external or traditional] users EXFOR compilers and ENDF andENSDF [47] evaluators There are many interesting EXFOR Web interface
23
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
Data recovery (eg nuclear archeology) is one of the important functionsof the EXFOR operation Here the authors consider EXFOR entry 14329based on the PhD dissertation of JL Kammerdiener [6] University of Cal-ifornia Davis This thesis represents cost and time-expensive measurementswith unique target materials 239Pu 238U 235U Pb Nb Ni Al and C Thesethesis data were preserved as a paper copy only where results were shown asplots A new measurement with these targets would require lengthy delaycontingent on a program advisory committee approval process and may re-sult in a few million dollars of additional expenses Therefore this thesis andassociated graphic data were reanalyzed and digitized forty one years laterat the National Nuclear Data Center In this endeavor the EXFOR editor [7]and Java digitizer [8] developed in Sarov Russian Federation and SapporoJapan respectively were used The Fig 3 example illustrates the first 2 ofKammerdienerrsquos 171 thesis data records (subentries) The present compila-tion beginning subentry contains bibliographical and general information forall subentries such as 14 MeV incident neutrons energy in the common sec-tion while experimental data are compiled in the following subentries Thecompilation second subentry reaction field (13-AL-27(NEL)13-AL-27DA)indicates elastic neutron scattering differential data with respect to angle(DA) and the subentry status field (CURVE) reveals digitized data All ex-perimental data sets are placed within DATA and ENDDATA tags and theoriginal article units are preserved The well-structured compilation formatwas intentionally designed for further usage in computer systems It repre-sents a typical input file for the current Web and database system that willbe discussed in the following section
22 EXFOR Format
The EXFOR database format was introduced for data storage and in-formation exchanges between major data centers as a replacement of theSCISRS format [1] The present format is human-readable is 80 characterslong and includes opening and closing tags for all data and metadata setsEfforts to improve the EXFOR format are currently underway [9] and theseattempts will provide additional avenues for application developments Inthe present work the authors will adopt the EXFOR Basics publication [10]as an introductory guide to EXFOR format for advanced users the LEX-FOR manual is recommended [11] The EXFOR format is currently used forexperimental nuclear data archiving and dissemination and its file structureis shown in Fig 4 The experimental nuclear reaction data library consists of
7
ENTRY 14329 20130820 20131120 20131111 1393
SUBENT 14329001 20130820 20131120 20131111 1393
BIB 15 72
TITLE Neutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235U Pb Nb
Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutrons
AUTHOR (JLKammerdiener)
INSTITUTE (1USADAV)
REFERENCE (RUCRL-512321972) PhDthesis
REL-REF (O10423001LFHansen+PUSNDC-984197311) Ni data
(OV1004001TKawanoWKAWANO2013)
Angle-integrated spectra derived from present
experiment
FACILITY (ICTR1USALRL) Insulated core transformer accelerator
INC-SOURCE (D-T) Deuteron on tritium
DETECTOR (SCINGLASD) NE-213 scintillator 6Li glass detector
PART-DET (NG)
METHOD (TOFPSDRINGR) Time of flight pulse shape
ANALYSIS (REDUC) The entire data reduction process was
CORRECTION The data were corrected for effects due to
ERR-ANALYS (DATA-ERR) Data which has been corrected
(ERR-S100) less than 10
COMMENT From conversation of MB Chadwick with John
HISTORY (20121207C) BP
(20130712A) BP added reference to Los Alamos estimate
by T Kawano
ENDBIB 72
COMMON 1 3
EN
MEV
140
ENDCOMMON 3
ENDSUBENT 79
SUBENT 14329002 20121207 20130502 20130429 1388
BIB 3 3
REACTION (13-AL-27(NEL)13-AL-27DA)
STATUS (CURVE) Fig42
REL-REF (A11322001JHCoon+JPR1112501958)
ENDBIB 3
NOCOMMON 0 0
DATA 3 13
ANG-CM DATA-CM DATA-ERR
ADEG MBSR MBSR
2500E+01 2238E+02
3000E+01 1018E+02 6049E+00
3500E+01 3094E+01 3807E+00
4000E+01 1407E+01 2260E+00
4500E+01 1736E+01 1867E+00
5500E+01 3784E+01
6500E+01 4469E+01
7500E+01 2810E+01
8500E+01 1181E+01 6043E-01
1000E+02 1000E+01 5117E-01
1150E+02 1181E+01 7988E-01
1350E+02 1082E+01 9070E-01
1550E+02 1121E+01 1379E+00
ENDDATA 15
ENDSUBENT 23 ENDENTRY 2
Figure 3 Fragment of EXFOR entry 14329 based on the 1972 University of CaliforniaDavis thesis by JL Kammerdiener [6]
8
AUTHOR
TITLE
REFERENCE
DETECTOR
METHOD
MONITOR
FACILITY
REACTION
EXFOR
ENTRY
ENTRY
ENTRY
SUBENT-1
SUBENT-2
SUBENT-n
BIB
KEYWORD-1
KEYWORD-2
KEYWORD-n
CODE[s]
Free text
CODE[s]
Free text
Header
Units
value
value
Header
Units
value
value
Header
Units
value
value
n n n
n
n
k+
2
m
KEYWORD =
DATAk timesm
COMMON1 times m (k=1)
COMMON DATA
Figure 4 Manifold structure of the EXFOR library Each database entry consists ofbibliographical and data subentries
data entries that contain complete records of individual experiments Eachexperiment may include multiple nuclear reaction data sets (subentries) andseveral research papers because EXFOR compilers group multiple publica-tions from a particular experiment into a single entry Another importantfeature of the library is that all experimental data are compiled as publishedonly obvious errors are corrected
Each entry is assigned a unique accession number each subentry is as-signed a subaccession number (the accession number plus a subentry num-ber) The subaccession numbers are associated with a data table throughoutthe life of the EXFOR system The subentries are further divided into thefollowing categories
bull Bibliographic descriptive and bookkeeping information (hereafter calledBIB information)
bull Common data that applies to all data throughout the entry or subentry
9
bull Data tables
In order to avoid repetition of information that is common to all subentrieswithin an entry or to all lines within a subentry information may be asso-ciated with an entire entry or with an entire subentry To accomplish thisthe first subentry of each work contains only information that applies to allother subentries Within each subentry the information common to all linesof the table precedes the table
EXFOR format was originally designed for data storage and interchangebetween the four data centers and it serves well for these purposes Howeverthe compilation format [12] may represent a problem for application devel-opers and other users who are not familiar with format specifics To over-come this obstacle a simplified computational format (C4) was introducedThe code X4TOC4 [13] converts EXFOR data sets to the easy-to-read datacolumns in C4 format The C4 format is used in the current system for dataplotting and further dissemination
23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
Compilation databases often contain an extensive collection of dictionar-ies The EXFOR dictionaries list details for database keywords and codesand their identification numbers range between 1 and 999 [14] These dictio-naries are periodically updated with new keywords and codes and could besubdivided into three groups
bull The Archive dictionaries are the source of the contents of all forms ofthe dictionaries They contain all keys their expansions and additionalcodes as well as free text explanations for compilers
bull The DANIEL backup dictionaries contain all keys additional codesneeded for programs and most of the expansions These dictionariesare designed for interacting with computer programs
bull The EXFOR transmission dictionaries contain all keys (except for Dic-tionary 26 Unit families [14]) their expansions and free text expla-nations but not all additional codes needed for the checking and otherprograms
10
24 EXFOR Manual
EXFOR database its formats structures and relevant procedures areextensively described in the manual Historically it was maintained by theUS National Nuclear Data Center and recently it was transferred to theIAEA Nuclear Data section [10 11] The manual is absolutely essential forEXFOR database compilations and application developments
3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
The development of nuclear reaction data storage and dissemination sys-tems has a very rich history There have been previous efforts to disseminatenuclear reaction data such as the Brookhaven Cross Section Information Stor-age and Retrieval System (CSISRS) that was introduced in 1971 based onthe VAX-VMS computer system This dissemination system was a revisedversion of the original SCISRS
The VMS platform became obsolete in the 90s due to the rapid progressof modern computing and introduction of World Wide Web technologies Inorder to improve the quality of nuclear data services and take advantageof the latest software and hardware developments the NNDC BNL andNDS IAEA started to work on a data migration project in 1999 followinga basic assessment of future options [15] This exploratory work culminatedat an International Workshop on Relational Database and Java Technolo-gies for Nuclear Data held at BNL September 11-15 2000 [16] As a re-sult of the workshop the two partners embarked on a project to migrateits databases to a UNIX-based relational database environment and signif-icantly upgrade Web Services employing the latest computer technologies[15 17] The migration project was successfully completed and the new nu-clear data Web service made available beginning in 2004 [18] General systemdesign and several distinct elements of the system such as Nuclear ScienceReferences (NSR httpwwwnndcbnlgovnsr) and Sigma Web Interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovsigma) have been described previously [19 20] Atthe same time other popular features such as the very advanced and con-stantly evolving experimental nuclear reaction Web and data services werenever comprehensively described in the literature This publication is in-tended to fulfill this task and provide an extensive description of nuclearreaction data services
In the present work the authors describe the current status of the EXFORdatabase project which creates one of the foundations for the modern nuclear
11
data Web services The current system has been designed as multiuser andplatform independent environment [21] The cross platform capabilities havebeen achieved by extensive usage of Java technologies Java codes can bedeveloped on any device compiled into a standard bytecode and run on anydevice equipped with a Java virtual machine The current system includesJava Web servlets database connectivity and wrapper classes for a ZVViewplotting package [22] and legacy FORTRAN and C codes It is based oncommercially available software and hardware and contains many featuresof enterprise computer portals dealt with on a daily basis Two versions ofthe EXFOR database and Web retrieval systems are presently distributedserver and personal computer (portable) for multiple and individual clientsrespectively The server installation is briefly described in Ref [18] whilethe personal computer version is build on a standard compact disk thatis available from the IAEA upon request In subsequent subsections theauthors will describe hardware and software computer environments followedby software application developments careful analysis of Web features anda worldwide impact on nuclear data users
31 EXFOR Relational Database
The EXFOR database contains nuclear data sets for sim22000 experi-ments Rapid access to these data is of paramount importance for nuclearscience and technology professionals The first modern EXFOR Web dis-semination and data storage system was developed at the NDS IAEA incooperation with the NNDC BNL [21] It is a multi-platform product thatwas developed for the nuclear data services migration project to a TomcatWeb and SybaseMySQL database servers environment [18] Later the nu-clear databases were transferred from Sybase to MySQL servers The mod-ern relational database servers allow access to data using Structured QueryLanguage (SQL) The SQL language is easy to learn and use it allowingmanagement of the databases and building Web interfaces for data searchesmanagement and updates The underlying software converts these requestsinto corresponding SQL statements that are passed to the database to harvestdatabase outputs
MySQL server is a robust database system that can be operated on mul-tiple computer platforms using community or enterprise licenses Initiallythe NDS IAEA service was based on MySQL while the NNDC operatedenterprise Sybase servers and later transferred to MySQL enterprise serversIn recent years both centers migrated to MySQL community edition servers
12
The EXFOR database has been successfully integrated with the Evalu-ated Nuclear Data File (ENDF) libraries [23 24 25 26 27 28 29] bibli-ographical Computer Index of Nuclear (reaction) DAta (CINDA) [30 31]and Nuclear Science References databases [19] Its contents are also used inSigma Web Interface [20] some of its components are used in JANIS (JAva-based Nuclear data Information System independently developed by the NEADatabank) [32] The EXFOR relational database project has evolved andmatured substantially in the last fifteen years compared to its initial version[21 18] and an extensive description of its latest features is presented below
311 EXFOR Database Schema
The schema describes a database structure in a formal language supportedby the database management system In a relational database the schemadefines the tables fields relationships views indexes procedures and otherelements
The simplified version of EXFOR relational database schema is shown inFig 5 The EXFOR schema includes tables that contain data metadataand dictionaries such as X4SRC ENTRIES and AUTHORS respectively Itincludes relationships between data tables eg ENTRY and SUBENT metadata tables are linked using an EntryID relationship The current databaseschema provides a glimpse into the present system storage of experimentalnuclear reaction data sets
312 Database System Operation
The EXFOR operation includes contributions from the data groups affil-iated with the network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) [33] andNon-EXFOR data sources The NRDC supplies the database with new andrevised data compilations dictionaries and manual updates Bibliographicalmetadata original publication PDF files and data renormalization informa-tion are provided through separate channels All of these nuclear science andbibliographical data are processed and stored in a relational database thatincorporates text compilation and articledocument PDF files for the major-ity of EXFOR entries Due to major publishersrsquo subscription rules the PDFfiles are not available for external users The Java-based computer programsprocess contributions and fetch data retrievals as EXFOR-formatted filesZVView plots PDF files and many other custom formats for remote Weband local users The EXFOR database operation workflow diagram is shownin Fig 6
13
SubentID= EntryID=
ReacodeID=
ReacodeID=
SubentID=
HEADER
DatasetID
SubentID iCol
Pointer
flagCD Header
Units
KEYWORD
SubentID
iKeyword EntryID
Entry
SubAcc
SubAccNum KeyWord
Pointer Code
FreeText
REACSTR
ReacstrID
SubentID ReacodeID
iReacstr
Pointer
nCodes Code
Target Reaction
Product Projectile
Category
Quant SF1SF9
SF58
ZTarg
elTarg aTarg
sTarg zProd elProd
sProd
ztProd
atProd
TransID=
ENTRY
EntryID
Entry TransID
UpdateNo
Area
DateDebut FileSrc
nInstitutes
Institute1 nAuthors
Author1Ini Author1
nReferences Reference1
YearRef1
X4TRANS
TransID
UpdateNo
TransDate TransFile
nEntries
nSubentries
nDatalines
EntryID=EntryID
X4UPDATE
UpdateNo
UpdateDate UpdateFlag
UpdateNo=
PRODUCT SubentID
ReacodeID
Fld Element
Mass
Isomer Product
Prod
X4SRC
SubentID SubAcc
Entry Coding
Source
Relations
Many to one
One to one
SubentID=
SUBENT
SubentID
SubAcc EntryID
Entry
TransID
UpdateNo SubAcc1
StatusSPSDD DateUpd
nReac nReacstr
EnMin
EnMax CdatasetID
CnCol
CnRow
DdatasetId DnCol
DnRow
REACODE
ReacodeID
SubentID
SubAcc
Pointer nReacstr
nDataLines
eMin eMax
fullCode
AUTHORS EntryID
Entry
iAuthor AuthorIni
Author
INSTITUT EntryID
Entry
iInstitute Institute
Code
Area Country
REFERS EntryID
Entry
iReference Reference
Ref
Title DateRef
NsrKeyno
AuthorsList
DOI
Figure 5 The EXFOR database schema
14
Non-EXFOR sources
EXFOR (NRDC)
Dictionaries
Manual
PDF files
BibTeX files
Expert corrections
So
ftw
are
EXFOR X4+ X4plusmn
Plots ZVD R33
T4 C4 C5 C5M XC4
PDF Web-Journals
X4xml X4html
Links to ENDF NSR
C4renormalized
EXFOR
Database
EXFOR files
Web-
User
EXFOR-Master
EXFOR-Uploading
Compiler
Temp-files
Input-files
SG30
Isolated
User
So
ftw
are
NSR
Database We
b R
etr
ieva
l sy
ste
m
pro
gra
ms
fil
es
(CD
F
TP
)
Figure 6 The EXFOR operation workflow
32 EXFOR Web Interface
Since introduction of the World Wide Web it is essential for data and re-search centers to provide direct access to nuclear databases [18 34 35 36 37]The EXFOR Web retrieval interface is an integral part of both IAEA andNNDC Web Services [18 34] To provide more robust scalable architecturesatisfy cyber security requirements and protect nuclear data services from asingle-point failure the Web and database servers are physically separatedThe Web server has the ApacheTomcat [38 39] Web production environ-ment installed All servers are running the Linux (Red Hat SUSE etc)operating system The initial version of the present interface became opera-tional fifteen years ago and eventually grew to its current state The interfaceis based on current computer technologies and provides retrieval of databasecontent in HTML Text BibTex and PDF formats It also produces special-ized outputs in C4C5 Application Programing Interface (API)XML andR33 for nuclear model codes application developers and Ion Beam AnalysisNuclear Data Library (IBANDL) [40] users community respectively
Data plotting is performed using the ZVView software package that hasbeen written in C and designed for evaluators of nuclear reaction data toperform efficient interactive analyses of cross section data retrieved from thenuclear data libraries [22] The main function of ZVView is to plot these data
15
for comparison using a variety of options to study graphical numerical andbibliographic information along with the possibility of analyzing the resultsof the userrsquos evaluations Since 2010 the ZVView program has been extendedto plot 2-dimensional arrays Z(XY) with the main purpose of displaying cor-relation matrices The package allows users to change plotting parameterssuch as type of data view (curve histogram map 3D animation symbolsof points colors error bars) logarithmic and linear scales zoom split plotto sub-windows smoothing by least-squares method choice of data and au-thors to be plotted scans of their points and changing language on the flyThe Web-ZVView program implements the majority of these functions asintegrated part of EXFOR and ENDF Web retrieval systems
The current Web interface is a very sophisticated product that reflectsthe overall complexity of nuclear reaction data The immense variety andvolume of the archived quantities require advanced data retrieval capabilitiesat the same time a large number of EXFOR users are still looking for simpleretrievals of reaction cross sections To accommodate these different usergroups four levels of EXFOR retrievals have been introduced basic (simple)extended keywords and expert
321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
The majority of EXFOR users are not familiar with the databasersquos ad-vanced structure or its philosophy This user group includes nuclear scien-tists engineers and graduate students that need direct access to the latestnuclear reaction data sets To satisfy their needs the authors have developedsimple EXFOR retrievals that are based on target reaction experimentalquantity product energy range authors publication year and accessionnumber search parameters All search fields are based on a logical ldquoORrdquooperator () that returns the Boolean value true if either of the operandsis true and returns false otherwise Therefore empty fields are ignored by adata search query and users can easily construct database queries using Webinterface search fields To demonstrate the present Web interface graphic anddata capabilities the authors will consider a case of 235U(nf) reaction crosssections Fig 7 shows a simple retrieval for the following input parameterstarget = 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs
To improve user experience a simple text string Google-like search hasbeen recently added to the EXFOR Web interface It is located on the topright side of the EXFOR front page This search is intended for less sophis-ticated EXFOR users who prefer to mine experimental data using common
16
Figure 7 An example of simple cross section retrieval for 235U(nf) reaction data in-puts for the EXFOR front and data selection pages were magnified The EXFOR WebInterface is publicly available at the websites of the Nuclear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor the National Nuclear Data Center httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor
nuclear physics concepts The EXFOR interface also contains online helpdisplayed as question mark buttons on the right side of the search boxesThese buttons produce pop-up windows that have information on text boxinput parameters and provide access to EXFOR dictionaries
322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
EXFOR is the only nuclear physics database that stores extensive de-scriptions of experimental results and facilities In fact these data representa treasure trove for investigation of research trends in nuclear physics [3] andprovide complementary background for nuclear data evaluations These datacan be extracted using extended keywords and expert requests
The extended retrieval provides additional capabilities for creating sophis-ticated database queries that include bibliographical metadata geographicalorigin (area country institute) NSR keynumbers (NSR database analoguesof EXFOR accession numbers) and compilation timing information
Keyword retrieval allows queries for experimental quantities that cannotbe easily found anywhere else detector method monitor facility incomingsource and spectrum data analysis detected particles and radiations and
17
experimental data originsThe expert retrieval supplies capabilities for searching for outgoing parti-
cle parameters data units ranges for experimental data points and EXFORcompilation centers individual compilers and data transmissions As it wasmentioned previously all text box search fields are implemented as a logicalldquoORrdquo operator and therefore missing search fields are ignored by SQL dataqueries
33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
The EXFOR system has matured over the years into a very advancedproduct and several complex features represent a challenge for new users Toovercome these issues the webpage News display box numerical and plottingexamples of requests and video guides (httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4guide)have been prepared These resources provide constant updates on new EX-FOR system features and share best user practices The EXFOR examplesare intended for user education purposes and supply additional insights on in-terface capabilities The broad scope of examples helped to improve EXFORuser experiences and such policies contributed to the worldwide popularityof the service
34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
The EXFOR interface is a gateway to the latest experimental nuclearreaction data stored at the IAEA and NNDC databases and it has a verybroad spectrum of usage worldwide In order to provide the best qualityof services the authors monitor the interface operation [18 41] Monitor-ing includes collection of web statistics geographical coverage network dataanalysis and estimates of database usage The EXFOR database retrievalstatistics are very conservative and completely based on a count of success-ful database retrievals any Web browser hits are ignored Retrievals fornon-existing entities in the database (eg author reaction target) whichproduce an empty output file are rejected Complete information for eachretrieval is recorded in separate Web statistic data files and usually sim300retrievalsday are observed from the IAEA and NNDC websites
The absolute number of Web retrievals provides only a partial estimateof product usage To further estimate the impact of the current productretrieval statistics can be complimented with the Google Scholar data TheScholar Web application allows retrieval of information on the EXFOR Webapplication usage from research articles A simple Google Scholar search for
18
2 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 50
5 0
1 0 0
1 5 0
2 0 0
2 5 0
3 0 0
Goog
le Sc
holar
Citat
ions
Y e a r
w w w n n d c b n l g o v e x f o r w w w - n d s i a e a o r g e x f o r
Figure 8 The worldwide impact of EXFOR Web application based on the NDS IAEAand NNDC BNL citation statistics The plot shows an incremental growth of websiteGoogle Scholar citations over the years
the NDS httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor and NNDC httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfortext strings results in sim1100 and sim770 citations respectively These cita-tions originate from research papers where the EXFOR interface address wasmentioned The growth curve shown in Fig 8 is well matched with the Webretrieval statistics [41] The agreement between these trends provides a ver-ification of the present analysis and confirms a broad usage of the EXFORWeb interface
Complementary insights on EXFOR usage can be obtained from the Webinterface usage pattern pie chart shown in Fig 9 The chart is based on aGoogle Analytics analysis of NNDC and NDS Web traffic sim100000 interac-tions per year (data searches are not included) and sim2500 unique users permonth The EXFOR plot X4plusmn interactive tree (iTree) X4+ interpretedT4 simplified and original format retrievals constitute 232 206 185 125and 88 of total operations respectively Other noticeable contributionsinclude access of publisher Digital Object Identifier (DOI) links and NSRdatabase downloads of plotted data and PDF files and covariance matrixcalculation using experimental uncertainties Usage of the retrieval system
19
2 3 2 P l o t2 0 6 X 4 i T r e e1 8 5 X 4 + I n t e r p r e t e d1 2 5 T 4 S i m p l i f i e d
8 8 X 4 O r i g i n a l6 4 P u b l i s h e r L i n k s3 9 D o w n l o a d P l o t t e d2 1 P D F1 3 C r e a t e C o v M a t r i x1 1 N S R - k e y n o1 6 O t h e r s
Figure 9 Google Analytics statistical analysis for EXFOR Web interface
can be summarized as follows
bull EXFOR data downloads in various interpreted formats (iTree X4+T4 - sim50) These data transfers exceed the original EXFOR formatretrievals (lt9)
bull EXFOR plotting with the subsequent download of plotted data as textor html tables (sim27) and construction of covariance matrices usingexperimental uncertainties (sim1)
bull DOI access of publisher web sites (64) and NSR web retrieval system(sim1) and download of PDF copies (sim2) The last option is availablefor authorized users only due to copyright restrictions
bull Other tools and operations (lt2) for example extremely valuablefor nuclear physicist or engineer EXFOR cross section renormalization(fifty-two unique clients in 2016 represent sim01 of all operations)
4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
The EXFOR computer database is an integral part of nuclear data Webservices is firmly related to nuclear reaction data evaluations and requiresaccess to nuclear bibliography The combined development of the experi-mental evaluated and bibliographical nuclear reaction databases was a costeffective solution that allowed reuse of Java classes Web implementation of
20
plotting packages and reduction of overall time for application developmentand testing
41 ENDF
ENDF is a core nuclear reaction database containing evaluated (recom-mended) cross sections spectra angular distributions fission product yieldsthermal neutron scattering and photo-atomic and other data with an em-phasis on neutron-induced reactions ENDF library evaluations are basedon theoretical calculations normalized to experimental data with an excep-tion of neutron resonance region where priority is given to experimentaldata ENDF evaluations consist of complete neutron reaction data setsfor particular isotope or element (ENDF material) They cover all neu-tron reaction channels within the 10minus5 eV - 20 MeV energy range Nowa-days in many evaluated data libraries this energy range is extended tohigher energies All these data sets are stored in the internationally-adoptedENDF-6 format that is maintained by the Cross Section Evaluation Work-ing Group (CSEWG) and publicly available at the NNDC and NDS web-sites httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf and httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf re-spectively Cross section evaluations are of great importance for nuclearenergy and science applications and they are performed internationally forENDF JEFF TENDL JENDL ROSFOND and CENDL libraries [24 2526 27 28 29] in the USA Europe Japan Russian Federation and Chinarespectively
The EXFOR project is a primary source of experimental nuclear reac-tion data for neutron cross section evaluations In practice many ENDFevaluations are produced using nuclear reaction model codes EMPIRE orTALYS [42 43] that contain EXFOR database connectivity modules Thecomputer codes are used for calculation neutron-induced reaction theoreticalcurves data analysis and comparison with experimental data These eval-uations are critically important for many applications because they provideevaluated neutron cross sections for operation of nuclear power plants andGEANT and MCNP computer codes [44 45]
The ENDF Web interface takes its contents from a separate ENDF re-lational database It contains the most complete international collection ofevaluated nuclear reaction libraries includes data analysis capabilities andintegrated with experimental data The interface shown in Fig 10 servesevaluated data in many output formats and incorporates the ZVView pro-gram [22] The IAEA and NNDC interfaces are slightly different on a client
21
ENDF
Figure 10 ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated and experimental cross sectionsfor 235U(nf) reaction data inputs for the ENDF data selection pages were magni-fied The visualized evaluated data have been processed with the PREPRO code [46]at T=29316 K ENDF Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovendf
side and completely identical on the server side These differences have beenintroduced to reflect different user requirements Both interfaces allow usersto search a large number of evaluated libraries for relevant evaluations us-ing target reaction quantity product and other parameters For exampleconsider ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated nuclear data retrieval for235U(nf) reaction cross sections in conjunction with experimental data li-brary = ENDFB-VII1 JEFF-32 target = 235U reaction = nf and quan-tity = cs This retrieval can be accomplished from the main ENDF interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf) or as shown here by clicking an ENDF but-ton next to the experimental cross sections plotted in Fig 7 The ENDFdatabase output demonstrates that ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluatedcross sections agree well with experimental values
42 CINDA
Nuclear bibliography is essential for nuclear reaction data compilationsCINDA contains many historic publications that are not available in anyother database These publications are grouped by experiment and thedatabase allows application of energy range criteria for data searches Theseunique capabilities are still in demand by nuclear data evaluators Currently
22
CINDA
Figure 11 Nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf) reaction experimental cross sec-tions The CINDA Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovcinda
separate CINDA data compilations are terminated and CINDA contents areextended by new information from the EXFOR and NSR databases
CINDA contains the most extensive nuclear reaction bibliography it isintegrated with the EXFOR Web retrieval system and allows users to searchfor information that is not available in EXFOR The database interface in-cludes all major EXFOR search fields and provides data outputs in text andHTML formats For example to retrieve nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf)reaction cross sections the following input parameters are assumed target= 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs As shown in Fig 11 CINDAdatabase output consists of 2406 publications and 2736 reactions
5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
Originally EXFOR Web Interface was created to perform only basic op-erations data search retrieval and presentation It is now part of a largeand developed Web System including extended functionality and tools forregular [external or traditional] users EXFOR compilers and ENDF andENSDF [47] evaluators There are many interesting EXFOR Web interface
23
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
ENTRY 14329 20130820 20131120 20131111 1393
SUBENT 14329001 20130820 20131120 20131111 1393
BIB 15 72
TITLE Neutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235U Pb Nb
Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutrons
AUTHOR (JLKammerdiener)
INSTITUTE (1USADAV)
REFERENCE (RUCRL-512321972) PhDthesis
REL-REF (O10423001LFHansen+PUSNDC-984197311) Ni data
(OV1004001TKawanoWKAWANO2013)
Angle-integrated spectra derived from present
experiment
FACILITY (ICTR1USALRL) Insulated core transformer accelerator
INC-SOURCE (D-T) Deuteron on tritium
DETECTOR (SCINGLASD) NE-213 scintillator 6Li glass detector
PART-DET (NG)
METHOD (TOFPSDRINGR) Time of flight pulse shape
ANALYSIS (REDUC) The entire data reduction process was
CORRECTION The data were corrected for effects due to
ERR-ANALYS (DATA-ERR) Data which has been corrected
(ERR-S100) less than 10
COMMENT From conversation of MB Chadwick with John
HISTORY (20121207C) BP
(20130712A) BP added reference to Los Alamos estimate
by T Kawano
ENDBIB 72
COMMON 1 3
EN
MEV
140
ENDCOMMON 3
ENDSUBENT 79
SUBENT 14329002 20121207 20130502 20130429 1388
BIB 3 3
REACTION (13-AL-27(NEL)13-AL-27DA)
STATUS (CURVE) Fig42
REL-REF (A11322001JHCoon+JPR1112501958)
ENDBIB 3
NOCOMMON 0 0
DATA 3 13
ANG-CM DATA-CM DATA-ERR
ADEG MBSR MBSR
2500E+01 2238E+02
3000E+01 1018E+02 6049E+00
3500E+01 3094E+01 3807E+00
4000E+01 1407E+01 2260E+00
4500E+01 1736E+01 1867E+00
5500E+01 3784E+01
6500E+01 4469E+01
7500E+01 2810E+01
8500E+01 1181E+01 6043E-01
1000E+02 1000E+01 5117E-01
1150E+02 1181E+01 7988E-01
1350E+02 1082E+01 9070E-01
1550E+02 1121E+01 1379E+00
ENDDATA 15
ENDSUBENT 23 ENDENTRY 2
Figure 3 Fragment of EXFOR entry 14329 based on the 1972 University of CaliforniaDavis thesis by JL Kammerdiener [6]
8
AUTHOR
TITLE
REFERENCE
DETECTOR
METHOD
MONITOR
FACILITY
REACTION
EXFOR
ENTRY
ENTRY
ENTRY
SUBENT-1
SUBENT-2
SUBENT-n
BIB
KEYWORD-1
KEYWORD-2
KEYWORD-n
CODE[s]
Free text
CODE[s]
Free text
Header
Units
value
value
Header
Units
value
value
Header
Units
value
value
n n n
n
n
k+
2
m
KEYWORD =
DATAk timesm
COMMON1 times m (k=1)
COMMON DATA
Figure 4 Manifold structure of the EXFOR library Each database entry consists ofbibliographical and data subentries
data entries that contain complete records of individual experiments Eachexperiment may include multiple nuclear reaction data sets (subentries) andseveral research papers because EXFOR compilers group multiple publica-tions from a particular experiment into a single entry Another importantfeature of the library is that all experimental data are compiled as publishedonly obvious errors are corrected
Each entry is assigned a unique accession number each subentry is as-signed a subaccession number (the accession number plus a subentry num-ber) The subaccession numbers are associated with a data table throughoutthe life of the EXFOR system The subentries are further divided into thefollowing categories
bull Bibliographic descriptive and bookkeeping information (hereafter calledBIB information)
bull Common data that applies to all data throughout the entry or subentry
9
bull Data tables
In order to avoid repetition of information that is common to all subentrieswithin an entry or to all lines within a subentry information may be asso-ciated with an entire entry or with an entire subentry To accomplish thisthe first subentry of each work contains only information that applies to allother subentries Within each subentry the information common to all linesof the table precedes the table
EXFOR format was originally designed for data storage and interchangebetween the four data centers and it serves well for these purposes Howeverthe compilation format [12] may represent a problem for application devel-opers and other users who are not familiar with format specifics To over-come this obstacle a simplified computational format (C4) was introducedThe code X4TOC4 [13] converts EXFOR data sets to the easy-to-read datacolumns in C4 format The C4 format is used in the current system for dataplotting and further dissemination
23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
Compilation databases often contain an extensive collection of dictionar-ies The EXFOR dictionaries list details for database keywords and codesand their identification numbers range between 1 and 999 [14] These dictio-naries are periodically updated with new keywords and codes and could besubdivided into three groups
bull The Archive dictionaries are the source of the contents of all forms ofthe dictionaries They contain all keys their expansions and additionalcodes as well as free text explanations for compilers
bull The DANIEL backup dictionaries contain all keys additional codesneeded for programs and most of the expansions These dictionariesare designed for interacting with computer programs
bull The EXFOR transmission dictionaries contain all keys (except for Dic-tionary 26 Unit families [14]) their expansions and free text expla-nations but not all additional codes needed for the checking and otherprograms
10
24 EXFOR Manual
EXFOR database its formats structures and relevant procedures areextensively described in the manual Historically it was maintained by theUS National Nuclear Data Center and recently it was transferred to theIAEA Nuclear Data section [10 11] The manual is absolutely essential forEXFOR database compilations and application developments
3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
The development of nuclear reaction data storage and dissemination sys-tems has a very rich history There have been previous efforts to disseminatenuclear reaction data such as the Brookhaven Cross Section Information Stor-age and Retrieval System (CSISRS) that was introduced in 1971 based onthe VAX-VMS computer system This dissemination system was a revisedversion of the original SCISRS
The VMS platform became obsolete in the 90s due to the rapid progressof modern computing and introduction of World Wide Web technologies Inorder to improve the quality of nuclear data services and take advantageof the latest software and hardware developments the NNDC BNL andNDS IAEA started to work on a data migration project in 1999 followinga basic assessment of future options [15] This exploratory work culminatedat an International Workshop on Relational Database and Java Technolo-gies for Nuclear Data held at BNL September 11-15 2000 [16] As a re-sult of the workshop the two partners embarked on a project to migrateits databases to a UNIX-based relational database environment and signif-icantly upgrade Web Services employing the latest computer technologies[15 17] The migration project was successfully completed and the new nu-clear data Web service made available beginning in 2004 [18] General systemdesign and several distinct elements of the system such as Nuclear ScienceReferences (NSR httpwwwnndcbnlgovnsr) and Sigma Web Interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovsigma) have been described previously [19 20] Atthe same time other popular features such as the very advanced and con-stantly evolving experimental nuclear reaction Web and data services werenever comprehensively described in the literature This publication is in-tended to fulfill this task and provide an extensive description of nuclearreaction data services
In the present work the authors describe the current status of the EXFORdatabase project which creates one of the foundations for the modern nuclear
11
data Web services The current system has been designed as multiuser andplatform independent environment [21] The cross platform capabilities havebeen achieved by extensive usage of Java technologies Java codes can bedeveloped on any device compiled into a standard bytecode and run on anydevice equipped with a Java virtual machine The current system includesJava Web servlets database connectivity and wrapper classes for a ZVViewplotting package [22] and legacy FORTRAN and C codes It is based oncommercially available software and hardware and contains many featuresof enterprise computer portals dealt with on a daily basis Two versions ofthe EXFOR database and Web retrieval systems are presently distributedserver and personal computer (portable) for multiple and individual clientsrespectively The server installation is briefly described in Ref [18] whilethe personal computer version is build on a standard compact disk thatis available from the IAEA upon request In subsequent subsections theauthors will describe hardware and software computer environments followedby software application developments careful analysis of Web features anda worldwide impact on nuclear data users
31 EXFOR Relational Database
The EXFOR database contains nuclear data sets for sim22000 experi-ments Rapid access to these data is of paramount importance for nuclearscience and technology professionals The first modern EXFOR Web dis-semination and data storage system was developed at the NDS IAEA incooperation with the NNDC BNL [21] It is a multi-platform product thatwas developed for the nuclear data services migration project to a TomcatWeb and SybaseMySQL database servers environment [18] Later the nu-clear databases were transferred from Sybase to MySQL servers The mod-ern relational database servers allow access to data using Structured QueryLanguage (SQL) The SQL language is easy to learn and use it allowingmanagement of the databases and building Web interfaces for data searchesmanagement and updates The underlying software converts these requestsinto corresponding SQL statements that are passed to the database to harvestdatabase outputs
MySQL server is a robust database system that can be operated on mul-tiple computer platforms using community or enterprise licenses Initiallythe NDS IAEA service was based on MySQL while the NNDC operatedenterprise Sybase servers and later transferred to MySQL enterprise serversIn recent years both centers migrated to MySQL community edition servers
12
The EXFOR database has been successfully integrated with the Evalu-ated Nuclear Data File (ENDF) libraries [23 24 25 26 27 28 29] bibli-ographical Computer Index of Nuclear (reaction) DAta (CINDA) [30 31]and Nuclear Science References databases [19] Its contents are also used inSigma Web Interface [20] some of its components are used in JANIS (JAva-based Nuclear data Information System independently developed by the NEADatabank) [32] The EXFOR relational database project has evolved andmatured substantially in the last fifteen years compared to its initial version[21 18] and an extensive description of its latest features is presented below
311 EXFOR Database Schema
The schema describes a database structure in a formal language supportedby the database management system In a relational database the schemadefines the tables fields relationships views indexes procedures and otherelements
The simplified version of EXFOR relational database schema is shown inFig 5 The EXFOR schema includes tables that contain data metadataand dictionaries such as X4SRC ENTRIES and AUTHORS respectively Itincludes relationships between data tables eg ENTRY and SUBENT metadata tables are linked using an EntryID relationship The current databaseschema provides a glimpse into the present system storage of experimentalnuclear reaction data sets
312 Database System Operation
The EXFOR operation includes contributions from the data groups affil-iated with the network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) [33] andNon-EXFOR data sources The NRDC supplies the database with new andrevised data compilations dictionaries and manual updates Bibliographicalmetadata original publication PDF files and data renormalization informa-tion are provided through separate channels All of these nuclear science andbibliographical data are processed and stored in a relational database thatincorporates text compilation and articledocument PDF files for the major-ity of EXFOR entries Due to major publishersrsquo subscription rules the PDFfiles are not available for external users The Java-based computer programsprocess contributions and fetch data retrievals as EXFOR-formatted filesZVView plots PDF files and many other custom formats for remote Weband local users The EXFOR database operation workflow diagram is shownin Fig 6
13
SubentID= EntryID=
ReacodeID=
ReacodeID=
SubentID=
HEADER
DatasetID
SubentID iCol
Pointer
flagCD Header
Units
KEYWORD
SubentID
iKeyword EntryID
Entry
SubAcc
SubAccNum KeyWord
Pointer Code
FreeText
REACSTR
ReacstrID
SubentID ReacodeID
iReacstr
Pointer
nCodes Code
Target Reaction
Product Projectile
Category
Quant SF1SF9
SF58
ZTarg
elTarg aTarg
sTarg zProd elProd
sProd
ztProd
atProd
TransID=
ENTRY
EntryID
Entry TransID
UpdateNo
Area
DateDebut FileSrc
nInstitutes
Institute1 nAuthors
Author1Ini Author1
nReferences Reference1
YearRef1
X4TRANS
TransID
UpdateNo
TransDate TransFile
nEntries
nSubentries
nDatalines
EntryID=EntryID
X4UPDATE
UpdateNo
UpdateDate UpdateFlag
UpdateNo=
PRODUCT SubentID
ReacodeID
Fld Element
Mass
Isomer Product
Prod
X4SRC
SubentID SubAcc
Entry Coding
Source
Relations
Many to one
One to one
SubentID=
SUBENT
SubentID
SubAcc EntryID
Entry
TransID
UpdateNo SubAcc1
StatusSPSDD DateUpd
nReac nReacstr
EnMin
EnMax CdatasetID
CnCol
CnRow
DdatasetId DnCol
DnRow
REACODE
ReacodeID
SubentID
SubAcc
Pointer nReacstr
nDataLines
eMin eMax
fullCode
AUTHORS EntryID
Entry
iAuthor AuthorIni
Author
INSTITUT EntryID
Entry
iInstitute Institute
Code
Area Country
REFERS EntryID
Entry
iReference Reference
Ref
Title DateRef
NsrKeyno
AuthorsList
DOI
Figure 5 The EXFOR database schema
14
Non-EXFOR sources
EXFOR (NRDC)
Dictionaries
Manual
PDF files
BibTeX files
Expert corrections
So
ftw
are
EXFOR X4+ X4plusmn
Plots ZVD R33
T4 C4 C5 C5M XC4
PDF Web-Journals
X4xml X4html
Links to ENDF NSR
C4renormalized
EXFOR
Database
EXFOR files
Web-
User
EXFOR-Master
EXFOR-Uploading
Compiler
Temp-files
Input-files
SG30
Isolated
User
So
ftw
are
NSR
Database We
b R
etr
ieva
l sy
ste
m
pro
gra
ms
fil
es
(CD
F
TP
)
Figure 6 The EXFOR operation workflow
32 EXFOR Web Interface
Since introduction of the World Wide Web it is essential for data and re-search centers to provide direct access to nuclear databases [18 34 35 36 37]The EXFOR Web retrieval interface is an integral part of both IAEA andNNDC Web Services [18 34] To provide more robust scalable architecturesatisfy cyber security requirements and protect nuclear data services from asingle-point failure the Web and database servers are physically separatedThe Web server has the ApacheTomcat [38 39] Web production environ-ment installed All servers are running the Linux (Red Hat SUSE etc)operating system The initial version of the present interface became opera-tional fifteen years ago and eventually grew to its current state The interfaceis based on current computer technologies and provides retrieval of databasecontent in HTML Text BibTex and PDF formats It also produces special-ized outputs in C4C5 Application Programing Interface (API)XML andR33 for nuclear model codes application developers and Ion Beam AnalysisNuclear Data Library (IBANDL) [40] users community respectively
Data plotting is performed using the ZVView software package that hasbeen written in C and designed for evaluators of nuclear reaction data toperform efficient interactive analyses of cross section data retrieved from thenuclear data libraries [22] The main function of ZVView is to plot these data
15
for comparison using a variety of options to study graphical numerical andbibliographic information along with the possibility of analyzing the resultsof the userrsquos evaluations Since 2010 the ZVView program has been extendedto plot 2-dimensional arrays Z(XY) with the main purpose of displaying cor-relation matrices The package allows users to change plotting parameterssuch as type of data view (curve histogram map 3D animation symbolsof points colors error bars) logarithmic and linear scales zoom split plotto sub-windows smoothing by least-squares method choice of data and au-thors to be plotted scans of their points and changing language on the flyThe Web-ZVView program implements the majority of these functions asintegrated part of EXFOR and ENDF Web retrieval systems
The current Web interface is a very sophisticated product that reflectsthe overall complexity of nuclear reaction data The immense variety andvolume of the archived quantities require advanced data retrieval capabilitiesat the same time a large number of EXFOR users are still looking for simpleretrievals of reaction cross sections To accommodate these different usergroups four levels of EXFOR retrievals have been introduced basic (simple)extended keywords and expert
321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
The majority of EXFOR users are not familiar with the databasersquos ad-vanced structure or its philosophy This user group includes nuclear scien-tists engineers and graduate students that need direct access to the latestnuclear reaction data sets To satisfy their needs the authors have developedsimple EXFOR retrievals that are based on target reaction experimentalquantity product energy range authors publication year and accessionnumber search parameters All search fields are based on a logical ldquoORrdquooperator () that returns the Boolean value true if either of the operandsis true and returns false otherwise Therefore empty fields are ignored by adata search query and users can easily construct database queries using Webinterface search fields To demonstrate the present Web interface graphic anddata capabilities the authors will consider a case of 235U(nf) reaction crosssections Fig 7 shows a simple retrieval for the following input parameterstarget = 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs
To improve user experience a simple text string Google-like search hasbeen recently added to the EXFOR Web interface It is located on the topright side of the EXFOR front page This search is intended for less sophis-ticated EXFOR users who prefer to mine experimental data using common
16
Figure 7 An example of simple cross section retrieval for 235U(nf) reaction data in-puts for the EXFOR front and data selection pages were magnified The EXFOR WebInterface is publicly available at the websites of the Nuclear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor the National Nuclear Data Center httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor
nuclear physics concepts The EXFOR interface also contains online helpdisplayed as question mark buttons on the right side of the search boxesThese buttons produce pop-up windows that have information on text boxinput parameters and provide access to EXFOR dictionaries
322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
EXFOR is the only nuclear physics database that stores extensive de-scriptions of experimental results and facilities In fact these data representa treasure trove for investigation of research trends in nuclear physics [3] andprovide complementary background for nuclear data evaluations These datacan be extracted using extended keywords and expert requests
The extended retrieval provides additional capabilities for creating sophis-ticated database queries that include bibliographical metadata geographicalorigin (area country institute) NSR keynumbers (NSR database analoguesof EXFOR accession numbers) and compilation timing information
Keyword retrieval allows queries for experimental quantities that cannotbe easily found anywhere else detector method monitor facility incomingsource and spectrum data analysis detected particles and radiations and
17
experimental data originsThe expert retrieval supplies capabilities for searching for outgoing parti-
cle parameters data units ranges for experimental data points and EXFORcompilation centers individual compilers and data transmissions As it wasmentioned previously all text box search fields are implemented as a logicalldquoORrdquo operator and therefore missing search fields are ignored by SQL dataqueries
33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
The EXFOR system has matured over the years into a very advancedproduct and several complex features represent a challenge for new users Toovercome these issues the webpage News display box numerical and plottingexamples of requests and video guides (httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4guide)have been prepared These resources provide constant updates on new EX-FOR system features and share best user practices The EXFOR examplesare intended for user education purposes and supply additional insights on in-terface capabilities The broad scope of examples helped to improve EXFORuser experiences and such policies contributed to the worldwide popularityof the service
34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
The EXFOR interface is a gateway to the latest experimental nuclearreaction data stored at the IAEA and NNDC databases and it has a verybroad spectrum of usage worldwide In order to provide the best qualityof services the authors monitor the interface operation [18 41] Monitor-ing includes collection of web statistics geographical coverage network dataanalysis and estimates of database usage The EXFOR database retrievalstatistics are very conservative and completely based on a count of success-ful database retrievals any Web browser hits are ignored Retrievals fornon-existing entities in the database (eg author reaction target) whichproduce an empty output file are rejected Complete information for eachretrieval is recorded in separate Web statistic data files and usually sim300retrievalsday are observed from the IAEA and NNDC websites
The absolute number of Web retrievals provides only a partial estimateof product usage To further estimate the impact of the current productretrieval statistics can be complimented with the Google Scholar data TheScholar Web application allows retrieval of information on the EXFOR Webapplication usage from research articles A simple Google Scholar search for
18
2 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 50
5 0
1 0 0
1 5 0
2 0 0
2 5 0
3 0 0
Goog
le Sc
holar
Citat
ions
Y e a r
w w w n n d c b n l g o v e x f o r w w w - n d s i a e a o r g e x f o r
Figure 8 The worldwide impact of EXFOR Web application based on the NDS IAEAand NNDC BNL citation statistics The plot shows an incremental growth of websiteGoogle Scholar citations over the years
the NDS httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor and NNDC httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfortext strings results in sim1100 and sim770 citations respectively These cita-tions originate from research papers where the EXFOR interface address wasmentioned The growth curve shown in Fig 8 is well matched with the Webretrieval statistics [41] The agreement between these trends provides a ver-ification of the present analysis and confirms a broad usage of the EXFORWeb interface
Complementary insights on EXFOR usage can be obtained from the Webinterface usage pattern pie chart shown in Fig 9 The chart is based on aGoogle Analytics analysis of NNDC and NDS Web traffic sim100000 interac-tions per year (data searches are not included) and sim2500 unique users permonth The EXFOR plot X4plusmn interactive tree (iTree) X4+ interpretedT4 simplified and original format retrievals constitute 232 206 185 125and 88 of total operations respectively Other noticeable contributionsinclude access of publisher Digital Object Identifier (DOI) links and NSRdatabase downloads of plotted data and PDF files and covariance matrixcalculation using experimental uncertainties Usage of the retrieval system
19
2 3 2 P l o t2 0 6 X 4 i T r e e1 8 5 X 4 + I n t e r p r e t e d1 2 5 T 4 S i m p l i f i e d
8 8 X 4 O r i g i n a l6 4 P u b l i s h e r L i n k s3 9 D o w n l o a d P l o t t e d2 1 P D F1 3 C r e a t e C o v M a t r i x1 1 N S R - k e y n o1 6 O t h e r s
Figure 9 Google Analytics statistical analysis for EXFOR Web interface
can be summarized as follows
bull EXFOR data downloads in various interpreted formats (iTree X4+T4 - sim50) These data transfers exceed the original EXFOR formatretrievals (lt9)
bull EXFOR plotting with the subsequent download of plotted data as textor html tables (sim27) and construction of covariance matrices usingexperimental uncertainties (sim1)
bull DOI access of publisher web sites (64) and NSR web retrieval system(sim1) and download of PDF copies (sim2) The last option is availablefor authorized users only due to copyright restrictions
bull Other tools and operations (lt2) for example extremely valuablefor nuclear physicist or engineer EXFOR cross section renormalization(fifty-two unique clients in 2016 represent sim01 of all operations)
4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
The EXFOR computer database is an integral part of nuclear data Webservices is firmly related to nuclear reaction data evaluations and requiresaccess to nuclear bibliography The combined development of the experi-mental evaluated and bibliographical nuclear reaction databases was a costeffective solution that allowed reuse of Java classes Web implementation of
20
plotting packages and reduction of overall time for application developmentand testing
41 ENDF
ENDF is a core nuclear reaction database containing evaluated (recom-mended) cross sections spectra angular distributions fission product yieldsthermal neutron scattering and photo-atomic and other data with an em-phasis on neutron-induced reactions ENDF library evaluations are basedon theoretical calculations normalized to experimental data with an excep-tion of neutron resonance region where priority is given to experimentaldata ENDF evaluations consist of complete neutron reaction data setsfor particular isotope or element (ENDF material) They cover all neu-tron reaction channels within the 10minus5 eV - 20 MeV energy range Nowa-days in many evaluated data libraries this energy range is extended tohigher energies All these data sets are stored in the internationally-adoptedENDF-6 format that is maintained by the Cross Section Evaluation Work-ing Group (CSEWG) and publicly available at the NNDC and NDS web-sites httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf and httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf re-spectively Cross section evaluations are of great importance for nuclearenergy and science applications and they are performed internationally forENDF JEFF TENDL JENDL ROSFOND and CENDL libraries [24 2526 27 28 29] in the USA Europe Japan Russian Federation and Chinarespectively
The EXFOR project is a primary source of experimental nuclear reac-tion data for neutron cross section evaluations In practice many ENDFevaluations are produced using nuclear reaction model codes EMPIRE orTALYS [42 43] that contain EXFOR database connectivity modules Thecomputer codes are used for calculation neutron-induced reaction theoreticalcurves data analysis and comparison with experimental data These eval-uations are critically important for many applications because they provideevaluated neutron cross sections for operation of nuclear power plants andGEANT and MCNP computer codes [44 45]
The ENDF Web interface takes its contents from a separate ENDF re-lational database It contains the most complete international collection ofevaluated nuclear reaction libraries includes data analysis capabilities andintegrated with experimental data The interface shown in Fig 10 servesevaluated data in many output formats and incorporates the ZVView pro-gram [22] The IAEA and NNDC interfaces are slightly different on a client
21
ENDF
Figure 10 ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated and experimental cross sectionsfor 235U(nf) reaction data inputs for the ENDF data selection pages were magni-fied The visualized evaluated data have been processed with the PREPRO code [46]at T=29316 K ENDF Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovendf
side and completely identical on the server side These differences have beenintroduced to reflect different user requirements Both interfaces allow usersto search a large number of evaluated libraries for relevant evaluations us-ing target reaction quantity product and other parameters For exampleconsider ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated nuclear data retrieval for235U(nf) reaction cross sections in conjunction with experimental data li-brary = ENDFB-VII1 JEFF-32 target = 235U reaction = nf and quan-tity = cs This retrieval can be accomplished from the main ENDF interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf) or as shown here by clicking an ENDF but-ton next to the experimental cross sections plotted in Fig 7 The ENDFdatabase output demonstrates that ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluatedcross sections agree well with experimental values
42 CINDA
Nuclear bibliography is essential for nuclear reaction data compilationsCINDA contains many historic publications that are not available in anyother database These publications are grouped by experiment and thedatabase allows application of energy range criteria for data searches Theseunique capabilities are still in demand by nuclear data evaluators Currently
22
CINDA
Figure 11 Nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf) reaction experimental cross sec-tions The CINDA Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovcinda
separate CINDA data compilations are terminated and CINDA contents areextended by new information from the EXFOR and NSR databases
CINDA contains the most extensive nuclear reaction bibliography it isintegrated with the EXFOR Web retrieval system and allows users to searchfor information that is not available in EXFOR The database interface in-cludes all major EXFOR search fields and provides data outputs in text andHTML formats For example to retrieve nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf)reaction cross sections the following input parameters are assumed target= 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs As shown in Fig 11 CINDAdatabase output consists of 2406 publications and 2736 reactions
5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
Originally EXFOR Web Interface was created to perform only basic op-erations data search retrieval and presentation It is now part of a largeand developed Web System including extended functionality and tools forregular [external or traditional] users EXFOR compilers and ENDF andENSDF [47] evaluators There are many interesting EXFOR Web interface
23
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
AUTHOR
TITLE
REFERENCE
DETECTOR
METHOD
MONITOR
FACILITY
REACTION
EXFOR
ENTRY
ENTRY
ENTRY
SUBENT-1
SUBENT-2
SUBENT-n
BIB
KEYWORD-1
KEYWORD-2
KEYWORD-n
CODE[s]
Free text
CODE[s]
Free text
Header
Units
value
value
Header
Units
value
value
Header
Units
value
value
n n n
n
n
k+
2
m
KEYWORD =
DATAk timesm
COMMON1 times m (k=1)
COMMON DATA
Figure 4 Manifold structure of the EXFOR library Each database entry consists ofbibliographical and data subentries
data entries that contain complete records of individual experiments Eachexperiment may include multiple nuclear reaction data sets (subentries) andseveral research papers because EXFOR compilers group multiple publica-tions from a particular experiment into a single entry Another importantfeature of the library is that all experimental data are compiled as publishedonly obvious errors are corrected
Each entry is assigned a unique accession number each subentry is as-signed a subaccession number (the accession number plus a subentry num-ber) The subaccession numbers are associated with a data table throughoutthe life of the EXFOR system The subentries are further divided into thefollowing categories
bull Bibliographic descriptive and bookkeeping information (hereafter calledBIB information)
bull Common data that applies to all data throughout the entry or subentry
9
bull Data tables
In order to avoid repetition of information that is common to all subentrieswithin an entry or to all lines within a subentry information may be asso-ciated with an entire entry or with an entire subentry To accomplish thisthe first subentry of each work contains only information that applies to allother subentries Within each subentry the information common to all linesof the table precedes the table
EXFOR format was originally designed for data storage and interchangebetween the four data centers and it serves well for these purposes Howeverthe compilation format [12] may represent a problem for application devel-opers and other users who are not familiar with format specifics To over-come this obstacle a simplified computational format (C4) was introducedThe code X4TOC4 [13] converts EXFOR data sets to the easy-to-read datacolumns in C4 format The C4 format is used in the current system for dataplotting and further dissemination
23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
Compilation databases often contain an extensive collection of dictionar-ies The EXFOR dictionaries list details for database keywords and codesand their identification numbers range between 1 and 999 [14] These dictio-naries are periodically updated with new keywords and codes and could besubdivided into three groups
bull The Archive dictionaries are the source of the contents of all forms ofthe dictionaries They contain all keys their expansions and additionalcodes as well as free text explanations for compilers
bull The DANIEL backup dictionaries contain all keys additional codesneeded for programs and most of the expansions These dictionariesare designed for interacting with computer programs
bull The EXFOR transmission dictionaries contain all keys (except for Dic-tionary 26 Unit families [14]) their expansions and free text expla-nations but not all additional codes needed for the checking and otherprograms
10
24 EXFOR Manual
EXFOR database its formats structures and relevant procedures areextensively described in the manual Historically it was maintained by theUS National Nuclear Data Center and recently it was transferred to theIAEA Nuclear Data section [10 11] The manual is absolutely essential forEXFOR database compilations and application developments
3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
The development of nuclear reaction data storage and dissemination sys-tems has a very rich history There have been previous efforts to disseminatenuclear reaction data such as the Brookhaven Cross Section Information Stor-age and Retrieval System (CSISRS) that was introduced in 1971 based onthe VAX-VMS computer system This dissemination system was a revisedversion of the original SCISRS
The VMS platform became obsolete in the 90s due to the rapid progressof modern computing and introduction of World Wide Web technologies Inorder to improve the quality of nuclear data services and take advantageof the latest software and hardware developments the NNDC BNL andNDS IAEA started to work on a data migration project in 1999 followinga basic assessment of future options [15] This exploratory work culminatedat an International Workshop on Relational Database and Java Technolo-gies for Nuclear Data held at BNL September 11-15 2000 [16] As a re-sult of the workshop the two partners embarked on a project to migrateits databases to a UNIX-based relational database environment and signif-icantly upgrade Web Services employing the latest computer technologies[15 17] The migration project was successfully completed and the new nu-clear data Web service made available beginning in 2004 [18] General systemdesign and several distinct elements of the system such as Nuclear ScienceReferences (NSR httpwwwnndcbnlgovnsr) and Sigma Web Interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovsigma) have been described previously [19 20] Atthe same time other popular features such as the very advanced and con-stantly evolving experimental nuclear reaction Web and data services werenever comprehensively described in the literature This publication is in-tended to fulfill this task and provide an extensive description of nuclearreaction data services
In the present work the authors describe the current status of the EXFORdatabase project which creates one of the foundations for the modern nuclear
11
data Web services The current system has been designed as multiuser andplatform independent environment [21] The cross platform capabilities havebeen achieved by extensive usage of Java technologies Java codes can bedeveloped on any device compiled into a standard bytecode and run on anydevice equipped with a Java virtual machine The current system includesJava Web servlets database connectivity and wrapper classes for a ZVViewplotting package [22] and legacy FORTRAN and C codes It is based oncommercially available software and hardware and contains many featuresof enterprise computer portals dealt with on a daily basis Two versions ofthe EXFOR database and Web retrieval systems are presently distributedserver and personal computer (portable) for multiple and individual clientsrespectively The server installation is briefly described in Ref [18] whilethe personal computer version is build on a standard compact disk thatis available from the IAEA upon request In subsequent subsections theauthors will describe hardware and software computer environments followedby software application developments careful analysis of Web features anda worldwide impact on nuclear data users
31 EXFOR Relational Database
The EXFOR database contains nuclear data sets for sim22000 experi-ments Rapid access to these data is of paramount importance for nuclearscience and technology professionals The first modern EXFOR Web dis-semination and data storage system was developed at the NDS IAEA incooperation with the NNDC BNL [21] It is a multi-platform product thatwas developed for the nuclear data services migration project to a TomcatWeb and SybaseMySQL database servers environment [18] Later the nu-clear databases were transferred from Sybase to MySQL servers The mod-ern relational database servers allow access to data using Structured QueryLanguage (SQL) The SQL language is easy to learn and use it allowingmanagement of the databases and building Web interfaces for data searchesmanagement and updates The underlying software converts these requestsinto corresponding SQL statements that are passed to the database to harvestdatabase outputs
MySQL server is a robust database system that can be operated on mul-tiple computer platforms using community or enterprise licenses Initiallythe NDS IAEA service was based on MySQL while the NNDC operatedenterprise Sybase servers and later transferred to MySQL enterprise serversIn recent years both centers migrated to MySQL community edition servers
12
The EXFOR database has been successfully integrated with the Evalu-ated Nuclear Data File (ENDF) libraries [23 24 25 26 27 28 29] bibli-ographical Computer Index of Nuclear (reaction) DAta (CINDA) [30 31]and Nuclear Science References databases [19] Its contents are also used inSigma Web Interface [20] some of its components are used in JANIS (JAva-based Nuclear data Information System independently developed by the NEADatabank) [32] The EXFOR relational database project has evolved andmatured substantially in the last fifteen years compared to its initial version[21 18] and an extensive description of its latest features is presented below
311 EXFOR Database Schema
The schema describes a database structure in a formal language supportedby the database management system In a relational database the schemadefines the tables fields relationships views indexes procedures and otherelements
The simplified version of EXFOR relational database schema is shown inFig 5 The EXFOR schema includes tables that contain data metadataand dictionaries such as X4SRC ENTRIES and AUTHORS respectively Itincludes relationships between data tables eg ENTRY and SUBENT metadata tables are linked using an EntryID relationship The current databaseschema provides a glimpse into the present system storage of experimentalnuclear reaction data sets
312 Database System Operation
The EXFOR operation includes contributions from the data groups affil-iated with the network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) [33] andNon-EXFOR data sources The NRDC supplies the database with new andrevised data compilations dictionaries and manual updates Bibliographicalmetadata original publication PDF files and data renormalization informa-tion are provided through separate channels All of these nuclear science andbibliographical data are processed and stored in a relational database thatincorporates text compilation and articledocument PDF files for the major-ity of EXFOR entries Due to major publishersrsquo subscription rules the PDFfiles are not available for external users The Java-based computer programsprocess contributions and fetch data retrievals as EXFOR-formatted filesZVView plots PDF files and many other custom formats for remote Weband local users The EXFOR database operation workflow diagram is shownin Fig 6
13
SubentID= EntryID=
ReacodeID=
ReacodeID=
SubentID=
HEADER
DatasetID
SubentID iCol
Pointer
flagCD Header
Units
KEYWORD
SubentID
iKeyword EntryID
Entry
SubAcc
SubAccNum KeyWord
Pointer Code
FreeText
REACSTR
ReacstrID
SubentID ReacodeID
iReacstr
Pointer
nCodes Code
Target Reaction
Product Projectile
Category
Quant SF1SF9
SF58
ZTarg
elTarg aTarg
sTarg zProd elProd
sProd
ztProd
atProd
TransID=
ENTRY
EntryID
Entry TransID
UpdateNo
Area
DateDebut FileSrc
nInstitutes
Institute1 nAuthors
Author1Ini Author1
nReferences Reference1
YearRef1
X4TRANS
TransID
UpdateNo
TransDate TransFile
nEntries
nSubentries
nDatalines
EntryID=EntryID
X4UPDATE
UpdateNo
UpdateDate UpdateFlag
UpdateNo=
PRODUCT SubentID
ReacodeID
Fld Element
Mass
Isomer Product
Prod
X4SRC
SubentID SubAcc
Entry Coding
Source
Relations
Many to one
One to one
SubentID=
SUBENT
SubentID
SubAcc EntryID
Entry
TransID
UpdateNo SubAcc1
StatusSPSDD DateUpd
nReac nReacstr
EnMin
EnMax CdatasetID
CnCol
CnRow
DdatasetId DnCol
DnRow
REACODE
ReacodeID
SubentID
SubAcc
Pointer nReacstr
nDataLines
eMin eMax
fullCode
AUTHORS EntryID
Entry
iAuthor AuthorIni
Author
INSTITUT EntryID
Entry
iInstitute Institute
Code
Area Country
REFERS EntryID
Entry
iReference Reference
Ref
Title DateRef
NsrKeyno
AuthorsList
DOI
Figure 5 The EXFOR database schema
14
Non-EXFOR sources
EXFOR (NRDC)
Dictionaries
Manual
PDF files
BibTeX files
Expert corrections
So
ftw
are
EXFOR X4+ X4plusmn
Plots ZVD R33
T4 C4 C5 C5M XC4
PDF Web-Journals
X4xml X4html
Links to ENDF NSR
C4renormalized
EXFOR
Database
EXFOR files
Web-
User
EXFOR-Master
EXFOR-Uploading
Compiler
Temp-files
Input-files
SG30
Isolated
User
So
ftw
are
NSR
Database We
b R
etr
ieva
l sy
ste
m
pro
gra
ms
fil
es
(CD
F
TP
)
Figure 6 The EXFOR operation workflow
32 EXFOR Web Interface
Since introduction of the World Wide Web it is essential for data and re-search centers to provide direct access to nuclear databases [18 34 35 36 37]The EXFOR Web retrieval interface is an integral part of both IAEA andNNDC Web Services [18 34] To provide more robust scalable architecturesatisfy cyber security requirements and protect nuclear data services from asingle-point failure the Web and database servers are physically separatedThe Web server has the ApacheTomcat [38 39] Web production environ-ment installed All servers are running the Linux (Red Hat SUSE etc)operating system The initial version of the present interface became opera-tional fifteen years ago and eventually grew to its current state The interfaceis based on current computer technologies and provides retrieval of databasecontent in HTML Text BibTex and PDF formats It also produces special-ized outputs in C4C5 Application Programing Interface (API)XML andR33 for nuclear model codes application developers and Ion Beam AnalysisNuclear Data Library (IBANDL) [40] users community respectively
Data plotting is performed using the ZVView software package that hasbeen written in C and designed for evaluators of nuclear reaction data toperform efficient interactive analyses of cross section data retrieved from thenuclear data libraries [22] The main function of ZVView is to plot these data
15
for comparison using a variety of options to study graphical numerical andbibliographic information along with the possibility of analyzing the resultsof the userrsquos evaluations Since 2010 the ZVView program has been extendedto plot 2-dimensional arrays Z(XY) with the main purpose of displaying cor-relation matrices The package allows users to change plotting parameterssuch as type of data view (curve histogram map 3D animation symbolsof points colors error bars) logarithmic and linear scales zoom split plotto sub-windows smoothing by least-squares method choice of data and au-thors to be plotted scans of their points and changing language on the flyThe Web-ZVView program implements the majority of these functions asintegrated part of EXFOR and ENDF Web retrieval systems
The current Web interface is a very sophisticated product that reflectsthe overall complexity of nuclear reaction data The immense variety andvolume of the archived quantities require advanced data retrieval capabilitiesat the same time a large number of EXFOR users are still looking for simpleretrievals of reaction cross sections To accommodate these different usergroups four levels of EXFOR retrievals have been introduced basic (simple)extended keywords and expert
321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
The majority of EXFOR users are not familiar with the databasersquos ad-vanced structure or its philosophy This user group includes nuclear scien-tists engineers and graduate students that need direct access to the latestnuclear reaction data sets To satisfy their needs the authors have developedsimple EXFOR retrievals that are based on target reaction experimentalquantity product energy range authors publication year and accessionnumber search parameters All search fields are based on a logical ldquoORrdquooperator () that returns the Boolean value true if either of the operandsis true and returns false otherwise Therefore empty fields are ignored by adata search query and users can easily construct database queries using Webinterface search fields To demonstrate the present Web interface graphic anddata capabilities the authors will consider a case of 235U(nf) reaction crosssections Fig 7 shows a simple retrieval for the following input parameterstarget = 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs
To improve user experience a simple text string Google-like search hasbeen recently added to the EXFOR Web interface It is located on the topright side of the EXFOR front page This search is intended for less sophis-ticated EXFOR users who prefer to mine experimental data using common
16
Figure 7 An example of simple cross section retrieval for 235U(nf) reaction data in-puts for the EXFOR front and data selection pages were magnified The EXFOR WebInterface is publicly available at the websites of the Nuclear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor the National Nuclear Data Center httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor
nuclear physics concepts The EXFOR interface also contains online helpdisplayed as question mark buttons on the right side of the search boxesThese buttons produce pop-up windows that have information on text boxinput parameters and provide access to EXFOR dictionaries
322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
EXFOR is the only nuclear physics database that stores extensive de-scriptions of experimental results and facilities In fact these data representa treasure trove for investigation of research trends in nuclear physics [3] andprovide complementary background for nuclear data evaluations These datacan be extracted using extended keywords and expert requests
The extended retrieval provides additional capabilities for creating sophis-ticated database queries that include bibliographical metadata geographicalorigin (area country institute) NSR keynumbers (NSR database analoguesof EXFOR accession numbers) and compilation timing information
Keyword retrieval allows queries for experimental quantities that cannotbe easily found anywhere else detector method monitor facility incomingsource and spectrum data analysis detected particles and radiations and
17
experimental data originsThe expert retrieval supplies capabilities for searching for outgoing parti-
cle parameters data units ranges for experimental data points and EXFORcompilation centers individual compilers and data transmissions As it wasmentioned previously all text box search fields are implemented as a logicalldquoORrdquo operator and therefore missing search fields are ignored by SQL dataqueries
33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
The EXFOR system has matured over the years into a very advancedproduct and several complex features represent a challenge for new users Toovercome these issues the webpage News display box numerical and plottingexamples of requests and video guides (httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4guide)have been prepared These resources provide constant updates on new EX-FOR system features and share best user practices The EXFOR examplesare intended for user education purposes and supply additional insights on in-terface capabilities The broad scope of examples helped to improve EXFORuser experiences and such policies contributed to the worldwide popularityof the service
34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
The EXFOR interface is a gateway to the latest experimental nuclearreaction data stored at the IAEA and NNDC databases and it has a verybroad spectrum of usage worldwide In order to provide the best qualityof services the authors monitor the interface operation [18 41] Monitor-ing includes collection of web statistics geographical coverage network dataanalysis and estimates of database usage The EXFOR database retrievalstatistics are very conservative and completely based on a count of success-ful database retrievals any Web browser hits are ignored Retrievals fornon-existing entities in the database (eg author reaction target) whichproduce an empty output file are rejected Complete information for eachretrieval is recorded in separate Web statistic data files and usually sim300retrievalsday are observed from the IAEA and NNDC websites
The absolute number of Web retrievals provides only a partial estimateof product usage To further estimate the impact of the current productretrieval statistics can be complimented with the Google Scholar data TheScholar Web application allows retrieval of information on the EXFOR Webapplication usage from research articles A simple Google Scholar search for
18
2 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 50
5 0
1 0 0
1 5 0
2 0 0
2 5 0
3 0 0
Goog
le Sc
holar
Citat
ions
Y e a r
w w w n n d c b n l g o v e x f o r w w w - n d s i a e a o r g e x f o r
Figure 8 The worldwide impact of EXFOR Web application based on the NDS IAEAand NNDC BNL citation statistics The plot shows an incremental growth of websiteGoogle Scholar citations over the years
the NDS httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor and NNDC httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfortext strings results in sim1100 and sim770 citations respectively These cita-tions originate from research papers where the EXFOR interface address wasmentioned The growth curve shown in Fig 8 is well matched with the Webretrieval statistics [41] The agreement between these trends provides a ver-ification of the present analysis and confirms a broad usage of the EXFORWeb interface
Complementary insights on EXFOR usage can be obtained from the Webinterface usage pattern pie chart shown in Fig 9 The chart is based on aGoogle Analytics analysis of NNDC and NDS Web traffic sim100000 interac-tions per year (data searches are not included) and sim2500 unique users permonth The EXFOR plot X4plusmn interactive tree (iTree) X4+ interpretedT4 simplified and original format retrievals constitute 232 206 185 125and 88 of total operations respectively Other noticeable contributionsinclude access of publisher Digital Object Identifier (DOI) links and NSRdatabase downloads of plotted data and PDF files and covariance matrixcalculation using experimental uncertainties Usage of the retrieval system
19
2 3 2 P l o t2 0 6 X 4 i T r e e1 8 5 X 4 + I n t e r p r e t e d1 2 5 T 4 S i m p l i f i e d
8 8 X 4 O r i g i n a l6 4 P u b l i s h e r L i n k s3 9 D o w n l o a d P l o t t e d2 1 P D F1 3 C r e a t e C o v M a t r i x1 1 N S R - k e y n o1 6 O t h e r s
Figure 9 Google Analytics statistical analysis for EXFOR Web interface
can be summarized as follows
bull EXFOR data downloads in various interpreted formats (iTree X4+T4 - sim50) These data transfers exceed the original EXFOR formatretrievals (lt9)
bull EXFOR plotting with the subsequent download of plotted data as textor html tables (sim27) and construction of covariance matrices usingexperimental uncertainties (sim1)
bull DOI access of publisher web sites (64) and NSR web retrieval system(sim1) and download of PDF copies (sim2) The last option is availablefor authorized users only due to copyright restrictions
bull Other tools and operations (lt2) for example extremely valuablefor nuclear physicist or engineer EXFOR cross section renormalization(fifty-two unique clients in 2016 represent sim01 of all operations)
4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
The EXFOR computer database is an integral part of nuclear data Webservices is firmly related to nuclear reaction data evaluations and requiresaccess to nuclear bibliography The combined development of the experi-mental evaluated and bibliographical nuclear reaction databases was a costeffective solution that allowed reuse of Java classes Web implementation of
20
plotting packages and reduction of overall time for application developmentand testing
41 ENDF
ENDF is a core nuclear reaction database containing evaluated (recom-mended) cross sections spectra angular distributions fission product yieldsthermal neutron scattering and photo-atomic and other data with an em-phasis on neutron-induced reactions ENDF library evaluations are basedon theoretical calculations normalized to experimental data with an excep-tion of neutron resonance region where priority is given to experimentaldata ENDF evaluations consist of complete neutron reaction data setsfor particular isotope or element (ENDF material) They cover all neu-tron reaction channels within the 10minus5 eV - 20 MeV energy range Nowa-days in many evaluated data libraries this energy range is extended tohigher energies All these data sets are stored in the internationally-adoptedENDF-6 format that is maintained by the Cross Section Evaluation Work-ing Group (CSEWG) and publicly available at the NNDC and NDS web-sites httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf and httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf re-spectively Cross section evaluations are of great importance for nuclearenergy and science applications and they are performed internationally forENDF JEFF TENDL JENDL ROSFOND and CENDL libraries [24 2526 27 28 29] in the USA Europe Japan Russian Federation and Chinarespectively
The EXFOR project is a primary source of experimental nuclear reac-tion data for neutron cross section evaluations In practice many ENDFevaluations are produced using nuclear reaction model codes EMPIRE orTALYS [42 43] that contain EXFOR database connectivity modules Thecomputer codes are used for calculation neutron-induced reaction theoreticalcurves data analysis and comparison with experimental data These eval-uations are critically important for many applications because they provideevaluated neutron cross sections for operation of nuclear power plants andGEANT and MCNP computer codes [44 45]
The ENDF Web interface takes its contents from a separate ENDF re-lational database It contains the most complete international collection ofevaluated nuclear reaction libraries includes data analysis capabilities andintegrated with experimental data The interface shown in Fig 10 servesevaluated data in many output formats and incorporates the ZVView pro-gram [22] The IAEA and NNDC interfaces are slightly different on a client
21
ENDF
Figure 10 ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated and experimental cross sectionsfor 235U(nf) reaction data inputs for the ENDF data selection pages were magni-fied The visualized evaluated data have been processed with the PREPRO code [46]at T=29316 K ENDF Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovendf
side and completely identical on the server side These differences have beenintroduced to reflect different user requirements Both interfaces allow usersto search a large number of evaluated libraries for relevant evaluations us-ing target reaction quantity product and other parameters For exampleconsider ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated nuclear data retrieval for235U(nf) reaction cross sections in conjunction with experimental data li-brary = ENDFB-VII1 JEFF-32 target = 235U reaction = nf and quan-tity = cs This retrieval can be accomplished from the main ENDF interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf) or as shown here by clicking an ENDF but-ton next to the experimental cross sections plotted in Fig 7 The ENDFdatabase output demonstrates that ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluatedcross sections agree well with experimental values
42 CINDA
Nuclear bibliography is essential for nuclear reaction data compilationsCINDA contains many historic publications that are not available in anyother database These publications are grouped by experiment and thedatabase allows application of energy range criteria for data searches Theseunique capabilities are still in demand by nuclear data evaluators Currently
22
CINDA
Figure 11 Nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf) reaction experimental cross sec-tions The CINDA Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovcinda
separate CINDA data compilations are terminated and CINDA contents areextended by new information from the EXFOR and NSR databases
CINDA contains the most extensive nuclear reaction bibliography it isintegrated with the EXFOR Web retrieval system and allows users to searchfor information that is not available in EXFOR The database interface in-cludes all major EXFOR search fields and provides data outputs in text andHTML formats For example to retrieve nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf)reaction cross sections the following input parameters are assumed target= 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs As shown in Fig 11 CINDAdatabase output consists of 2406 publications and 2736 reactions
5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
Originally EXFOR Web Interface was created to perform only basic op-erations data search retrieval and presentation It is now part of a largeand developed Web System including extended functionality and tools forregular [external or traditional] users EXFOR compilers and ENDF andENSDF [47] evaluators There are many interesting EXFOR Web interface
23
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
bull Data tables
In order to avoid repetition of information that is common to all subentrieswithin an entry or to all lines within a subentry information may be asso-ciated with an entire entry or with an entire subentry To accomplish thisthe first subentry of each work contains only information that applies to allother subentries Within each subentry the information common to all linesof the table precedes the table
EXFOR format was originally designed for data storage and interchangebetween the four data centers and it serves well for these purposes Howeverthe compilation format [12] may represent a problem for application devel-opers and other users who are not familiar with format specifics To over-come this obstacle a simplified computational format (C4) was introducedThe code X4TOC4 [13] converts EXFOR data sets to the easy-to-read datacolumns in C4 format The C4 format is used in the current system for dataplotting and further dissemination
23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
Compilation databases often contain an extensive collection of dictionar-ies The EXFOR dictionaries list details for database keywords and codesand their identification numbers range between 1 and 999 [14] These dictio-naries are periodically updated with new keywords and codes and could besubdivided into three groups
bull The Archive dictionaries are the source of the contents of all forms ofthe dictionaries They contain all keys their expansions and additionalcodes as well as free text explanations for compilers
bull The DANIEL backup dictionaries contain all keys additional codesneeded for programs and most of the expansions These dictionariesare designed for interacting with computer programs
bull The EXFOR transmission dictionaries contain all keys (except for Dic-tionary 26 Unit families [14]) their expansions and free text expla-nations but not all additional codes needed for the checking and otherprograms
10
24 EXFOR Manual
EXFOR database its formats structures and relevant procedures areextensively described in the manual Historically it was maintained by theUS National Nuclear Data Center and recently it was transferred to theIAEA Nuclear Data section [10 11] The manual is absolutely essential forEXFOR database compilations and application developments
3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
The development of nuclear reaction data storage and dissemination sys-tems has a very rich history There have been previous efforts to disseminatenuclear reaction data such as the Brookhaven Cross Section Information Stor-age and Retrieval System (CSISRS) that was introduced in 1971 based onthe VAX-VMS computer system This dissemination system was a revisedversion of the original SCISRS
The VMS platform became obsolete in the 90s due to the rapid progressof modern computing and introduction of World Wide Web technologies Inorder to improve the quality of nuclear data services and take advantageof the latest software and hardware developments the NNDC BNL andNDS IAEA started to work on a data migration project in 1999 followinga basic assessment of future options [15] This exploratory work culminatedat an International Workshop on Relational Database and Java Technolo-gies for Nuclear Data held at BNL September 11-15 2000 [16] As a re-sult of the workshop the two partners embarked on a project to migrateits databases to a UNIX-based relational database environment and signif-icantly upgrade Web Services employing the latest computer technologies[15 17] The migration project was successfully completed and the new nu-clear data Web service made available beginning in 2004 [18] General systemdesign and several distinct elements of the system such as Nuclear ScienceReferences (NSR httpwwwnndcbnlgovnsr) and Sigma Web Interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovsigma) have been described previously [19 20] Atthe same time other popular features such as the very advanced and con-stantly evolving experimental nuclear reaction Web and data services werenever comprehensively described in the literature This publication is in-tended to fulfill this task and provide an extensive description of nuclearreaction data services
In the present work the authors describe the current status of the EXFORdatabase project which creates one of the foundations for the modern nuclear
11
data Web services The current system has been designed as multiuser andplatform independent environment [21] The cross platform capabilities havebeen achieved by extensive usage of Java technologies Java codes can bedeveloped on any device compiled into a standard bytecode and run on anydevice equipped with a Java virtual machine The current system includesJava Web servlets database connectivity and wrapper classes for a ZVViewplotting package [22] and legacy FORTRAN and C codes It is based oncommercially available software and hardware and contains many featuresof enterprise computer portals dealt with on a daily basis Two versions ofthe EXFOR database and Web retrieval systems are presently distributedserver and personal computer (portable) for multiple and individual clientsrespectively The server installation is briefly described in Ref [18] whilethe personal computer version is build on a standard compact disk thatis available from the IAEA upon request In subsequent subsections theauthors will describe hardware and software computer environments followedby software application developments careful analysis of Web features anda worldwide impact on nuclear data users
31 EXFOR Relational Database
The EXFOR database contains nuclear data sets for sim22000 experi-ments Rapid access to these data is of paramount importance for nuclearscience and technology professionals The first modern EXFOR Web dis-semination and data storage system was developed at the NDS IAEA incooperation with the NNDC BNL [21] It is a multi-platform product thatwas developed for the nuclear data services migration project to a TomcatWeb and SybaseMySQL database servers environment [18] Later the nu-clear databases were transferred from Sybase to MySQL servers The mod-ern relational database servers allow access to data using Structured QueryLanguage (SQL) The SQL language is easy to learn and use it allowingmanagement of the databases and building Web interfaces for data searchesmanagement and updates The underlying software converts these requestsinto corresponding SQL statements that are passed to the database to harvestdatabase outputs
MySQL server is a robust database system that can be operated on mul-tiple computer platforms using community or enterprise licenses Initiallythe NDS IAEA service was based on MySQL while the NNDC operatedenterprise Sybase servers and later transferred to MySQL enterprise serversIn recent years both centers migrated to MySQL community edition servers
12
The EXFOR database has been successfully integrated with the Evalu-ated Nuclear Data File (ENDF) libraries [23 24 25 26 27 28 29] bibli-ographical Computer Index of Nuclear (reaction) DAta (CINDA) [30 31]and Nuclear Science References databases [19] Its contents are also used inSigma Web Interface [20] some of its components are used in JANIS (JAva-based Nuclear data Information System independently developed by the NEADatabank) [32] The EXFOR relational database project has evolved andmatured substantially in the last fifteen years compared to its initial version[21 18] and an extensive description of its latest features is presented below
311 EXFOR Database Schema
The schema describes a database structure in a formal language supportedby the database management system In a relational database the schemadefines the tables fields relationships views indexes procedures and otherelements
The simplified version of EXFOR relational database schema is shown inFig 5 The EXFOR schema includes tables that contain data metadataand dictionaries such as X4SRC ENTRIES and AUTHORS respectively Itincludes relationships between data tables eg ENTRY and SUBENT metadata tables are linked using an EntryID relationship The current databaseschema provides a glimpse into the present system storage of experimentalnuclear reaction data sets
312 Database System Operation
The EXFOR operation includes contributions from the data groups affil-iated with the network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) [33] andNon-EXFOR data sources The NRDC supplies the database with new andrevised data compilations dictionaries and manual updates Bibliographicalmetadata original publication PDF files and data renormalization informa-tion are provided through separate channels All of these nuclear science andbibliographical data are processed and stored in a relational database thatincorporates text compilation and articledocument PDF files for the major-ity of EXFOR entries Due to major publishersrsquo subscription rules the PDFfiles are not available for external users The Java-based computer programsprocess contributions and fetch data retrievals as EXFOR-formatted filesZVView plots PDF files and many other custom formats for remote Weband local users The EXFOR database operation workflow diagram is shownin Fig 6
13
SubentID= EntryID=
ReacodeID=
ReacodeID=
SubentID=
HEADER
DatasetID
SubentID iCol
Pointer
flagCD Header
Units
KEYWORD
SubentID
iKeyword EntryID
Entry
SubAcc
SubAccNum KeyWord
Pointer Code
FreeText
REACSTR
ReacstrID
SubentID ReacodeID
iReacstr
Pointer
nCodes Code
Target Reaction
Product Projectile
Category
Quant SF1SF9
SF58
ZTarg
elTarg aTarg
sTarg zProd elProd
sProd
ztProd
atProd
TransID=
ENTRY
EntryID
Entry TransID
UpdateNo
Area
DateDebut FileSrc
nInstitutes
Institute1 nAuthors
Author1Ini Author1
nReferences Reference1
YearRef1
X4TRANS
TransID
UpdateNo
TransDate TransFile
nEntries
nSubentries
nDatalines
EntryID=EntryID
X4UPDATE
UpdateNo
UpdateDate UpdateFlag
UpdateNo=
PRODUCT SubentID
ReacodeID
Fld Element
Mass
Isomer Product
Prod
X4SRC
SubentID SubAcc
Entry Coding
Source
Relations
Many to one
One to one
SubentID=
SUBENT
SubentID
SubAcc EntryID
Entry
TransID
UpdateNo SubAcc1
StatusSPSDD DateUpd
nReac nReacstr
EnMin
EnMax CdatasetID
CnCol
CnRow
DdatasetId DnCol
DnRow
REACODE
ReacodeID
SubentID
SubAcc
Pointer nReacstr
nDataLines
eMin eMax
fullCode
AUTHORS EntryID
Entry
iAuthor AuthorIni
Author
INSTITUT EntryID
Entry
iInstitute Institute
Code
Area Country
REFERS EntryID
Entry
iReference Reference
Ref
Title DateRef
NsrKeyno
AuthorsList
DOI
Figure 5 The EXFOR database schema
14
Non-EXFOR sources
EXFOR (NRDC)
Dictionaries
Manual
PDF files
BibTeX files
Expert corrections
So
ftw
are
EXFOR X4+ X4plusmn
Plots ZVD R33
T4 C4 C5 C5M XC4
PDF Web-Journals
X4xml X4html
Links to ENDF NSR
C4renormalized
EXFOR
Database
EXFOR files
Web-
User
EXFOR-Master
EXFOR-Uploading
Compiler
Temp-files
Input-files
SG30
Isolated
User
So
ftw
are
NSR
Database We
b R
etr
ieva
l sy
ste
m
pro
gra
ms
fil
es
(CD
F
TP
)
Figure 6 The EXFOR operation workflow
32 EXFOR Web Interface
Since introduction of the World Wide Web it is essential for data and re-search centers to provide direct access to nuclear databases [18 34 35 36 37]The EXFOR Web retrieval interface is an integral part of both IAEA andNNDC Web Services [18 34] To provide more robust scalable architecturesatisfy cyber security requirements and protect nuclear data services from asingle-point failure the Web and database servers are physically separatedThe Web server has the ApacheTomcat [38 39] Web production environ-ment installed All servers are running the Linux (Red Hat SUSE etc)operating system The initial version of the present interface became opera-tional fifteen years ago and eventually grew to its current state The interfaceis based on current computer technologies and provides retrieval of databasecontent in HTML Text BibTex and PDF formats It also produces special-ized outputs in C4C5 Application Programing Interface (API)XML andR33 for nuclear model codes application developers and Ion Beam AnalysisNuclear Data Library (IBANDL) [40] users community respectively
Data plotting is performed using the ZVView software package that hasbeen written in C and designed for evaluators of nuclear reaction data toperform efficient interactive analyses of cross section data retrieved from thenuclear data libraries [22] The main function of ZVView is to plot these data
15
for comparison using a variety of options to study graphical numerical andbibliographic information along with the possibility of analyzing the resultsof the userrsquos evaluations Since 2010 the ZVView program has been extendedto plot 2-dimensional arrays Z(XY) with the main purpose of displaying cor-relation matrices The package allows users to change plotting parameterssuch as type of data view (curve histogram map 3D animation symbolsof points colors error bars) logarithmic and linear scales zoom split plotto sub-windows smoothing by least-squares method choice of data and au-thors to be plotted scans of their points and changing language on the flyThe Web-ZVView program implements the majority of these functions asintegrated part of EXFOR and ENDF Web retrieval systems
The current Web interface is a very sophisticated product that reflectsthe overall complexity of nuclear reaction data The immense variety andvolume of the archived quantities require advanced data retrieval capabilitiesat the same time a large number of EXFOR users are still looking for simpleretrievals of reaction cross sections To accommodate these different usergroups four levels of EXFOR retrievals have been introduced basic (simple)extended keywords and expert
321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
The majority of EXFOR users are not familiar with the databasersquos ad-vanced structure or its philosophy This user group includes nuclear scien-tists engineers and graduate students that need direct access to the latestnuclear reaction data sets To satisfy their needs the authors have developedsimple EXFOR retrievals that are based on target reaction experimentalquantity product energy range authors publication year and accessionnumber search parameters All search fields are based on a logical ldquoORrdquooperator () that returns the Boolean value true if either of the operandsis true and returns false otherwise Therefore empty fields are ignored by adata search query and users can easily construct database queries using Webinterface search fields To demonstrate the present Web interface graphic anddata capabilities the authors will consider a case of 235U(nf) reaction crosssections Fig 7 shows a simple retrieval for the following input parameterstarget = 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs
To improve user experience a simple text string Google-like search hasbeen recently added to the EXFOR Web interface It is located on the topright side of the EXFOR front page This search is intended for less sophis-ticated EXFOR users who prefer to mine experimental data using common
16
Figure 7 An example of simple cross section retrieval for 235U(nf) reaction data in-puts for the EXFOR front and data selection pages were magnified The EXFOR WebInterface is publicly available at the websites of the Nuclear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor the National Nuclear Data Center httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor
nuclear physics concepts The EXFOR interface also contains online helpdisplayed as question mark buttons on the right side of the search boxesThese buttons produce pop-up windows that have information on text boxinput parameters and provide access to EXFOR dictionaries
322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
EXFOR is the only nuclear physics database that stores extensive de-scriptions of experimental results and facilities In fact these data representa treasure trove for investigation of research trends in nuclear physics [3] andprovide complementary background for nuclear data evaluations These datacan be extracted using extended keywords and expert requests
The extended retrieval provides additional capabilities for creating sophis-ticated database queries that include bibliographical metadata geographicalorigin (area country institute) NSR keynumbers (NSR database analoguesof EXFOR accession numbers) and compilation timing information
Keyword retrieval allows queries for experimental quantities that cannotbe easily found anywhere else detector method monitor facility incomingsource and spectrum data analysis detected particles and radiations and
17
experimental data originsThe expert retrieval supplies capabilities for searching for outgoing parti-
cle parameters data units ranges for experimental data points and EXFORcompilation centers individual compilers and data transmissions As it wasmentioned previously all text box search fields are implemented as a logicalldquoORrdquo operator and therefore missing search fields are ignored by SQL dataqueries
33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
The EXFOR system has matured over the years into a very advancedproduct and several complex features represent a challenge for new users Toovercome these issues the webpage News display box numerical and plottingexamples of requests and video guides (httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4guide)have been prepared These resources provide constant updates on new EX-FOR system features and share best user practices The EXFOR examplesare intended for user education purposes and supply additional insights on in-terface capabilities The broad scope of examples helped to improve EXFORuser experiences and such policies contributed to the worldwide popularityof the service
34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
The EXFOR interface is a gateway to the latest experimental nuclearreaction data stored at the IAEA and NNDC databases and it has a verybroad spectrum of usage worldwide In order to provide the best qualityof services the authors monitor the interface operation [18 41] Monitor-ing includes collection of web statistics geographical coverage network dataanalysis and estimates of database usage The EXFOR database retrievalstatistics are very conservative and completely based on a count of success-ful database retrievals any Web browser hits are ignored Retrievals fornon-existing entities in the database (eg author reaction target) whichproduce an empty output file are rejected Complete information for eachretrieval is recorded in separate Web statistic data files and usually sim300retrievalsday are observed from the IAEA and NNDC websites
The absolute number of Web retrievals provides only a partial estimateof product usage To further estimate the impact of the current productretrieval statistics can be complimented with the Google Scholar data TheScholar Web application allows retrieval of information on the EXFOR Webapplication usage from research articles A simple Google Scholar search for
18
2 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 50
5 0
1 0 0
1 5 0
2 0 0
2 5 0
3 0 0
Goog
le Sc
holar
Citat
ions
Y e a r
w w w n n d c b n l g o v e x f o r w w w - n d s i a e a o r g e x f o r
Figure 8 The worldwide impact of EXFOR Web application based on the NDS IAEAand NNDC BNL citation statistics The plot shows an incremental growth of websiteGoogle Scholar citations over the years
the NDS httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor and NNDC httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfortext strings results in sim1100 and sim770 citations respectively These cita-tions originate from research papers where the EXFOR interface address wasmentioned The growth curve shown in Fig 8 is well matched with the Webretrieval statistics [41] The agreement between these trends provides a ver-ification of the present analysis and confirms a broad usage of the EXFORWeb interface
Complementary insights on EXFOR usage can be obtained from the Webinterface usage pattern pie chart shown in Fig 9 The chart is based on aGoogle Analytics analysis of NNDC and NDS Web traffic sim100000 interac-tions per year (data searches are not included) and sim2500 unique users permonth The EXFOR plot X4plusmn interactive tree (iTree) X4+ interpretedT4 simplified and original format retrievals constitute 232 206 185 125and 88 of total operations respectively Other noticeable contributionsinclude access of publisher Digital Object Identifier (DOI) links and NSRdatabase downloads of plotted data and PDF files and covariance matrixcalculation using experimental uncertainties Usage of the retrieval system
19
2 3 2 P l o t2 0 6 X 4 i T r e e1 8 5 X 4 + I n t e r p r e t e d1 2 5 T 4 S i m p l i f i e d
8 8 X 4 O r i g i n a l6 4 P u b l i s h e r L i n k s3 9 D o w n l o a d P l o t t e d2 1 P D F1 3 C r e a t e C o v M a t r i x1 1 N S R - k e y n o1 6 O t h e r s
Figure 9 Google Analytics statistical analysis for EXFOR Web interface
can be summarized as follows
bull EXFOR data downloads in various interpreted formats (iTree X4+T4 - sim50) These data transfers exceed the original EXFOR formatretrievals (lt9)
bull EXFOR plotting with the subsequent download of plotted data as textor html tables (sim27) and construction of covariance matrices usingexperimental uncertainties (sim1)
bull DOI access of publisher web sites (64) and NSR web retrieval system(sim1) and download of PDF copies (sim2) The last option is availablefor authorized users only due to copyright restrictions
bull Other tools and operations (lt2) for example extremely valuablefor nuclear physicist or engineer EXFOR cross section renormalization(fifty-two unique clients in 2016 represent sim01 of all operations)
4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
The EXFOR computer database is an integral part of nuclear data Webservices is firmly related to nuclear reaction data evaluations and requiresaccess to nuclear bibliography The combined development of the experi-mental evaluated and bibliographical nuclear reaction databases was a costeffective solution that allowed reuse of Java classes Web implementation of
20
plotting packages and reduction of overall time for application developmentand testing
41 ENDF
ENDF is a core nuclear reaction database containing evaluated (recom-mended) cross sections spectra angular distributions fission product yieldsthermal neutron scattering and photo-atomic and other data with an em-phasis on neutron-induced reactions ENDF library evaluations are basedon theoretical calculations normalized to experimental data with an excep-tion of neutron resonance region where priority is given to experimentaldata ENDF evaluations consist of complete neutron reaction data setsfor particular isotope or element (ENDF material) They cover all neu-tron reaction channels within the 10minus5 eV - 20 MeV energy range Nowa-days in many evaluated data libraries this energy range is extended tohigher energies All these data sets are stored in the internationally-adoptedENDF-6 format that is maintained by the Cross Section Evaluation Work-ing Group (CSEWG) and publicly available at the NNDC and NDS web-sites httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf and httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf re-spectively Cross section evaluations are of great importance for nuclearenergy and science applications and they are performed internationally forENDF JEFF TENDL JENDL ROSFOND and CENDL libraries [24 2526 27 28 29] in the USA Europe Japan Russian Federation and Chinarespectively
The EXFOR project is a primary source of experimental nuclear reac-tion data for neutron cross section evaluations In practice many ENDFevaluations are produced using nuclear reaction model codes EMPIRE orTALYS [42 43] that contain EXFOR database connectivity modules Thecomputer codes are used for calculation neutron-induced reaction theoreticalcurves data analysis and comparison with experimental data These eval-uations are critically important for many applications because they provideevaluated neutron cross sections for operation of nuclear power plants andGEANT and MCNP computer codes [44 45]
The ENDF Web interface takes its contents from a separate ENDF re-lational database It contains the most complete international collection ofevaluated nuclear reaction libraries includes data analysis capabilities andintegrated with experimental data The interface shown in Fig 10 servesevaluated data in many output formats and incorporates the ZVView pro-gram [22] The IAEA and NNDC interfaces are slightly different on a client
21
ENDF
Figure 10 ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated and experimental cross sectionsfor 235U(nf) reaction data inputs for the ENDF data selection pages were magni-fied The visualized evaluated data have been processed with the PREPRO code [46]at T=29316 K ENDF Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovendf
side and completely identical on the server side These differences have beenintroduced to reflect different user requirements Both interfaces allow usersto search a large number of evaluated libraries for relevant evaluations us-ing target reaction quantity product and other parameters For exampleconsider ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated nuclear data retrieval for235U(nf) reaction cross sections in conjunction with experimental data li-brary = ENDFB-VII1 JEFF-32 target = 235U reaction = nf and quan-tity = cs This retrieval can be accomplished from the main ENDF interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf) or as shown here by clicking an ENDF but-ton next to the experimental cross sections plotted in Fig 7 The ENDFdatabase output demonstrates that ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluatedcross sections agree well with experimental values
42 CINDA
Nuclear bibliography is essential for nuclear reaction data compilationsCINDA contains many historic publications that are not available in anyother database These publications are grouped by experiment and thedatabase allows application of energy range criteria for data searches Theseunique capabilities are still in demand by nuclear data evaluators Currently
22
CINDA
Figure 11 Nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf) reaction experimental cross sec-tions The CINDA Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovcinda
separate CINDA data compilations are terminated and CINDA contents areextended by new information from the EXFOR and NSR databases
CINDA contains the most extensive nuclear reaction bibliography it isintegrated with the EXFOR Web retrieval system and allows users to searchfor information that is not available in EXFOR The database interface in-cludes all major EXFOR search fields and provides data outputs in text andHTML formats For example to retrieve nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf)reaction cross sections the following input parameters are assumed target= 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs As shown in Fig 11 CINDAdatabase output consists of 2406 publications and 2736 reactions
5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
Originally EXFOR Web Interface was created to perform only basic op-erations data search retrieval and presentation It is now part of a largeand developed Web System including extended functionality and tools forregular [external or traditional] users EXFOR compilers and ENDF andENSDF [47] evaluators There are many interesting EXFOR Web interface
23
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
24 EXFOR Manual
EXFOR database its formats structures and relevant procedures areextensively described in the manual Historically it was maintained by theUS National Nuclear Data Center and recently it was transferred to theIAEA Nuclear Data section [10 11] The manual is absolutely essential forEXFOR database compilations and application developments
3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
The development of nuclear reaction data storage and dissemination sys-tems has a very rich history There have been previous efforts to disseminatenuclear reaction data such as the Brookhaven Cross Section Information Stor-age and Retrieval System (CSISRS) that was introduced in 1971 based onthe VAX-VMS computer system This dissemination system was a revisedversion of the original SCISRS
The VMS platform became obsolete in the 90s due to the rapid progressof modern computing and introduction of World Wide Web technologies Inorder to improve the quality of nuclear data services and take advantageof the latest software and hardware developments the NNDC BNL andNDS IAEA started to work on a data migration project in 1999 followinga basic assessment of future options [15] This exploratory work culminatedat an International Workshop on Relational Database and Java Technolo-gies for Nuclear Data held at BNL September 11-15 2000 [16] As a re-sult of the workshop the two partners embarked on a project to migrateits databases to a UNIX-based relational database environment and signif-icantly upgrade Web Services employing the latest computer technologies[15 17] The migration project was successfully completed and the new nu-clear data Web service made available beginning in 2004 [18] General systemdesign and several distinct elements of the system such as Nuclear ScienceReferences (NSR httpwwwnndcbnlgovnsr) and Sigma Web Interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovsigma) have been described previously [19 20] Atthe same time other popular features such as the very advanced and con-stantly evolving experimental nuclear reaction Web and data services werenever comprehensively described in the literature This publication is in-tended to fulfill this task and provide an extensive description of nuclearreaction data services
In the present work the authors describe the current status of the EXFORdatabase project which creates one of the foundations for the modern nuclear
11
data Web services The current system has been designed as multiuser andplatform independent environment [21] The cross platform capabilities havebeen achieved by extensive usage of Java technologies Java codes can bedeveloped on any device compiled into a standard bytecode and run on anydevice equipped with a Java virtual machine The current system includesJava Web servlets database connectivity and wrapper classes for a ZVViewplotting package [22] and legacy FORTRAN and C codes It is based oncommercially available software and hardware and contains many featuresof enterprise computer portals dealt with on a daily basis Two versions ofthe EXFOR database and Web retrieval systems are presently distributedserver and personal computer (portable) for multiple and individual clientsrespectively The server installation is briefly described in Ref [18] whilethe personal computer version is build on a standard compact disk thatis available from the IAEA upon request In subsequent subsections theauthors will describe hardware and software computer environments followedby software application developments careful analysis of Web features anda worldwide impact on nuclear data users
31 EXFOR Relational Database
The EXFOR database contains nuclear data sets for sim22000 experi-ments Rapid access to these data is of paramount importance for nuclearscience and technology professionals The first modern EXFOR Web dis-semination and data storage system was developed at the NDS IAEA incooperation with the NNDC BNL [21] It is a multi-platform product thatwas developed for the nuclear data services migration project to a TomcatWeb and SybaseMySQL database servers environment [18] Later the nu-clear databases were transferred from Sybase to MySQL servers The mod-ern relational database servers allow access to data using Structured QueryLanguage (SQL) The SQL language is easy to learn and use it allowingmanagement of the databases and building Web interfaces for data searchesmanagement and updates The underlying software converts these requestsinto corresponding SQL statements that are passed to the database to harvestdatabase outputs
MySQL server is a robust database system that can be operated on mul-tiple computer platforms using community or enterprise licenses Initiallythe NDS IAEA service was based on MySQL while the NNDC operatedenterprise Sybase servers and later transferred to MySQL enterprise serversIn recent years both centers migrated to MySQL community edition servers
12
The EXFOR database has been successfully integrated with the Evalu-ated Nuclear Data File (ENDF) libraries [23 24 25 26 27 28 29] bibli-ographical Computer Index of Nuclear (reaction) DAta (CINDA) [30 31]and Nuclear Science References databases [19] Its contents are also used inSigma Web Interface [20] some of its components are used in JANIS (JAva-based Nuclear data Information System independently developed by the NEADatabank) [32] The EXFOR relational database project has evolved andmatured substantially in the last fifteen years compared to its initial version[21 18] and an extensive description of its latest features is presented below
311 EXFOR Database Schema
The schema describes a database structure in a formal language supportedby the database management system In a relational database the schemadefines the tables fields relationships views indexes procedures and otherelements
The simplified version of EXFOR relational database schema is shown inFig 5 The EXFOR schema includes tables that contain data metadataand dictionaries such as X4SRC ENTRIES and AUTHORS respectively Itincludes relationships between data tables eg ENTRY and SUBENT metadata tables are linked using an EntryID relationship The current databaseschema provides a glimpse into the present system storage of experimentalnuclear reaction data sets
312 Database System Operation
The EXFOR operation includes contributions from the data groups affil-iated with the network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) [33] andNon-EXFOR data sources The NRDC supplies the database with new andrevised data compilations dictionaries and manual updates Bibliographicalmetadata original publication PDF files and data renormalization informa-tion are provided through separate channels All of these nuclear science andbibliographical data are processed and stored in a relational database thatincorporates text compilation and articledocument PDF files for the major-ity of EXFOR entries Due to major publishersrsquo subscription rules the PDFfiles are not available for external users The Java-based computer programsprocess contributions and fetch data retrievals as EXFOR-formatted filesZVView plots PDF files and many other custom formats for remote Weband local users The EXFOR database operation workflow diagram is shownin Fig 6
13
SubentID= EntryID=
ReacodeID=
ReacodeID=
SubentID=
HEADER
DatasetID
SubentID iCol
Pointer
flagCD Header
Units
KEYWORD
SubentID
iKeyword EntryID
Entry
SubAcc
SubAccNum KeyWord
Pointer Code
FreeText
REACSTR
ReacstrID
SubentID ReacodeID
iReacstr
Pointer
nCodes Code
Target Reaction
Product Projectile
Category
Quant SF1SF9
SF58
ZTarg
elTarg aTarg
sTarg zProd elProd
sProd
ztProd
atProd
TransID=
ENTRY
EntryID
Entry TransID
UpdateNo
Area
DateDebut FileSrc
nInstitutes
Institute1 nAuthors
Author1Ini Author1
nReferences Reference1
YearRef1
X4TRANS
TransID
UpdateNo
TransDate TransFile
nEntries
nSubentries
nDatalines
EntryID=EntryID
X4UPDATE
UpdateNo
UpdateDate UpdateFlag
UpdateNo=
PRODUCT SubentID
ReacodeID
Fld Element
Mass
Isomer Product
Prod
X4SRC
SubentID SubAcc
Entry Coding
Source
Relations
Many to one
One to one
SubentID=
SUBENT
SubentID
SubAcc EntryID
Entry
TransID
UpdateNo SubAcc1
StatusSPSDD DateUpd
nReac nReacstr
EnMin
EnMax CdatasetID
CnCol
CnRow
DdatasetId DnCol
DnRow
REACODE
ReacodeID
SubentID
SubAcc
Pointer nReacstr
nDataLines
eMin eMax
fullCode
AUTHORS EntryID
Entry
iAuthor AuthorIni
Author
INSTITUT EntryID
Entry
iInstitute Institute
Code
Area Country
REFERS EntryID
Entry
iReference Reference
Ref
Title DateRef
NsrKeyno
AuthorsList
DOI
Figure 5 The EXFOR database schema
14
Non-EXFOR sources
EXFOR (NRDC)
Dictionaries
Manual
PDF files
BibTeX files
Expert corrections
So
ftw
are
EXFOR X4+ X4plusmn
Plots ZVD R33
T4 C4 C5 C5M XC4
PDF Web-Journals
X4xml X4html
Links to ENDF NSR
C4renormalized
EXFOR
Database
EXFOR files
Web-
User
EXFOR-Master
EXFOR-Uploading
Compiler
Temp-files
Input-files
SG30
Isolated
User
So
ftw
are
NSR
Database We
b R
etr
ieva
l sy
ste
m
pro
gra
ms
fil
es
(CD
F
TP
)
Figure 6 The EXFOR operation workflow
32 EXFOR Web Interface
Since introduction of the World Wide Web it is essential for data and re-search centers to provide direct access to nuclear databases [18 34 35 36 37]The EXFOR Web retrieval interface is an integral part of both IAEA andNNDC Web Services [18 34] To provide more robust scalable architecturesatisfy cyber security requirements and protect nuclear data services from asingle-point failure the Web and database servers are physically separatedThe Web server has the ApacheTomcat [38 39] Web production environ-ment installed All servers are running the Linux (Red Hat SUSE etc)operating system The initial version of the present interface became opera-tional fifteen years ago and eventually grew to its current state The interfaceis based on current computer technologies and provides retrieval of databasecontent in HTML Text BibTex and PDF formats It also produces special-ized outputs in C4C5 Application Programing Interface (API)XML andR33 for nuclear model codes application developers and Ion Beam AnalysisNuclear Data Library (IBANDL) [40] users community respectively
Data plotting is performed using the ZVView software package that hasbeen written in C and designed for evaluators of nuclear reaction data toperform efficient interactive analyses of cross section data retrieved from thenuclear data libraries [22] The main function of ZVView is to plot these data
15
for comparison using a variety of options to study graphical numerical andbibliographic information along with the possibility of analyzing the resultsof the userrsquos evaluations Since 2010 the ZVView program has been extendedto plot 2-dimensional arrays Z(XY) with the main purpose of displaying cor-relation matrices The package allows users to change plotting parameterssuch as type of data view (curve histogram map 3D animation symbolsof points colors error bars) logarithmic and linear scales zoom split plotto sub-windows smoothing by least-squares method choice of data and au-thors to be plotted scans of their points and changing language on the flyThe Web-ZVView program implements the majority of these functions asintegrated part of EXFOR and ENDF Web retrieval systems
The current Web interface is a very sophisticated product that reflectsthe overall complexity of nuclear reaction data The immense variety andvolume of the archived quantities require advanced data retrieval capabilitiesat the same time a large number of EXFOR users are still looking for simpleretrievals of reaction cross sections To accommodate these different usergroups four levels of EXFOR retrievals have been introduced basic (simple)extended keywords and expert
321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
The majority of EXFOR users are not familiar with the databasersquos ad-vanced structure or its philosophy This user group includes nuclear scien-tists engineers and graduate students that need direct access to the latestnuclear reaction data sets To satisfy their needs the authors have developedsimple EXFOR retrievals that are based on target reaction experimentalquantity product energy range authors publication year and accessionnumber search parameters All search fields are based on a logical ldquoORrdquooperator () that returns the Boolean value true if either of the operandsis true and returns false otherwise Therefore empty fields are ignored by adata search query and users can easily construct database queries using Webinterface search fields To demonstrate the present Web interface graphic anddata capabilities the authors will consider a case of 235U(nf) reaction crosssections Fig 7 shows a simple retrieval for the following input parameterstarget = 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs
To improve user experience a simple text string Google-like search hasbeen recently added to the EXFOR Web interface It is located on the topright side of the EXFOR front page This search is intended for less sophis-ticated EXFOR users who prefer to mine experimental data using common
16
Figure 7 An example of simple cross section retrieval for 235U(nf) reaction data in-puts for the EXFOR front and data selection pages were magnified The EXFOR WebInterface is publicly available at the websites of the Nuclear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor the National Nuclear Data Center httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor
nuclear physics concepts The EXFOR interface also contains online helpdisplayed as question mark buttons on the right side of the search boxesThese buttons produce pop-up windows that have information on text boxinput parameters and provide access to EXFOR dictionaries
322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
EXFOR is the only nuclear physics database that stores extensive de-scriptions of experimental results and facilities In fact these data representa treasure trove for investigation of research trends in nuclear physics [3] andprovide complementary background for nuclear data evaluations These datacan be extracted using extended keywords and expert requests
The extended retrieval provides additional capabilities for creating sophis-ticated database queries that include bibliographical metadata geographicalorigin (area country institute) NSR keynumbers (NSR database analoguesof EXFOR accession numbers) and compilation timing information
Keyword retrieval allows queries for experimental quantities that cannotbe easily found anywhere else detector method monitor facility incomingsource and spectrum data analysis detected particles and radiations and
17
experimental data originsThe expert retrieval supplies capabilities for searching for outgoing parti-
cle parameters data units ranges for experimental data points and EXFORcompilation centers individual compilers and data transmissions As it wasmentioned previously all text box search fields are implemented as a logicalldquoORrdquo operator and therefore missing search fields are ignored by SQL dataqueries
33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
The EXFOR system has matured over the years into a very advancedproduct and several complex features represent a challenge for new users Toovercome these issues the webpage News display box numerical and plottingexamples of requests and video guides (httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4guide)have been prepared These resources provide constant updates on new EX-FOR system features and share best user practices The EXFOR examplesare intended for user education purposes and supply additional insights on in-terface capabilities The broad scope of examples helped to improve EXFORuser experiences and such policies contributed to the worldwide popularityof the service
34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
The EXFOR interface is a gateway to the latest experimental nuclearreaction data stored at the IAEA and NNDC databases and it has a verybroad spectrum of usage worldwide In order to provide the best qualityof services the authors monitor the interface operation [18 41] Monitor-ing includes collection of web statistics geographical coverage network dataanalysis and estimates of database usage The EXFOR database retrievalstatistics are very conservative and completely based on a count of success-ful database retrievals any Web browser hits are ignored Retrievals fornon-existing entities in the database (eg author reaction target) whichproduce an empty output file are rejected Complete information for eachretrieval is recorded in separate Web statistic data files and usually sim300retrievalsday are observed from the IAEA and NNDC websites
The absolute number of Web retrievals provides only a partial estimateof product usage To further estimate the impact of the current productretrieval statistics can be complimented with the Google Scholar data TheScholar Web application allows retrieval of information on the EXFOR Webapplication usage from research articles A simple Google Scholar search for
18
2 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 50
5 0
1 0 0
1 5 0
2 0 0
2 5 0
3 0 0
Goog
le Sc
holar
Citat
ions
Y e a r
w w w n n d c b n l g o v e x f o r w w w - n d s i a e a o r g e x f o r
Figure 8 The worldwide impact of EXFOR Web application based on the NDS IAEAand NNDC BNL citation statistics The plot shows an incremental growth of websiteGoogle Scholar citations over the years
the NDS httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor and NNDC httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfortext strings results in sim1100 and sim770 citations respectively These cita-tions originate from research papers where the EXFOR interface address wasmentioned The growth curve shown in Fig 8 is well matched with the Webretrieval statistics [41] The agreement between these trends provides a ver-ification of the present analysis and confirms a broad usage of the EXFORWeb interface
Complementary insights on EXFOR usage can be obtained from the Webinterface usage pattern pie chart shown in Fig 9 The chart is based on aGoogle Analytics analysis of NNDC and NDS Web traffic sim100000 interac-tions per year (data searches are not included) and sim2500 unique users permonth The EXFOR plot X4plusmn interactive tree (iTree) X4+ interpretedT4 simplified and original format retrievals constitute 232 206 185 125and 88 of total operations respectively Other noticeable contributionsinclude access of publisher Digital Object Identifier (DOI) links and NSRdatabase downloads of plotted data and PDF files and covariance matrixcalculation using experimental uncertainties Usage of the retrieval system
19
2 3 2 P l o t2 0 6 X 4 i T r e e1 8 5 X 4 + I n t e r p r e t e d1 2 5 T 4 S i m p l i f i e d
8 8 X 4 O r i g i n a l6 4 P u b l i s h e r L i n k s3 9 D o w n l o a d P l o t t e d2 1 P D F1 3 C r e a t e C o v M a t r i x1 1 N S R - k e y n o1 6 O t h e r s
Figure 9 Google Analytics statistical analysis for EXFOR Web interface
can be summarized as follows
bull EXFOR data downloads in various interpreted formats (iTree X4+T4 - sim50) These data transfers exceed the original EXFOR formatretrievals (lt9)
bull EXFOR plotting with the subsequent download of plotted data as textor html tables (sim27) and construction of covariance matrices usingexperimental uncertainties (sim1)
bull DOI access of publisher web sites (64) and NSR web retrieval system(sim1) and download of PDF copies (sim2) The last option is availablefor authorized users only due to copyright restrictions
bull Other tools and operations (lt2) for example extremely valuablefor nuclear physicist or engineer EXFOR cross section renormalization(fifty-two unique clients in 2016 represent sim01 of all operations)
4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
The EXFOR computer database is an integral part of nuclear data Webservices is firmly related to nuclear reaction data evaluations and requiresaccess to nuclear bibliography The combined development of the experi-mental evaluated and bibliographical nuclear reaction databases was a costeffective solution that allowed reuse of Java classes Web implementation of
20
plotting packages and reduction of overall time for application developmentand testing
41 ENDF
ENDF is a core nuclear reaction database containing evaluated (recom-mended) cross sections spectra angular distributions fission product yieldsthermal neutron scattering and photo-atomic and other data with an em-phasis on neutron-induced reactions ENDF library evaluations are basedon theoretical calculations normalized to experimental data with an excep-tion of neutron resonance region where priority is given to experimentaldata ENDF evaluations consist of complete neutron reaction data setsfor particular isotope or element (ENDF material) They cover all neu-tron reaction channels within the 10minus5 eV - 20 MeV energy range Nowa-days in many evaluated data libraries this energy range is extended tohigher energies All these data sets are stored in the internationally-adoptedENDF-6 format that is maintained by the Cross Section Evaluation Work-ing Group (CSEWG) and publicly available at the NNDC and NDS web-sites httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf and httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf re-spectively Cross section evaluations are of great importance for nuclearenergy and science applications and they are performed internationally forENDF JEFF TENDL JENDL ROSFOND and CENDL libraries [24 2526 27 28 29] in the USA Europe Japan Russian Federation and Chinarespectively
The EXFOR project is a primary source of experimental nuclear reac-tion data for neutron cross section evaluations In practice many ENDFevaluations are produced using nuclear reaction model codes EMPIRE orTALYS [42 43] that contain EXFOR database connectivity modules Thecomputer codes are used for calculation neutron-induced reaction theoreticalcurves data analysis and comparison with experimental data These eval-uations are critically important for many applications because they provideevaluated neutron cross sections for operation of nuclear power plants andGEANT and MCNP computer codes [44 45]
The ENDF Web interface takes its contents from a separate ENDF re-lational database It contains the most complete international collection ofevaluated nuclear reaction libraries includes data analysis capabilities andintegrated with experimental data The interface shown in Fig 10 servesevaluated data in many output formats and incorporates the ZVView pro-gram [22] The IAEA and NNDC interfaces are slightly different on a client
21
ENDF
Figure 10 ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated and experimental cross sectionsfor 235U(nf) reaction data inputs for the ENDF data selection pages were magni-fied The visualized evaluated data have been processed with the PREPRO code [46]at T=29316 K ENDF Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovendf
side and completely identical on the server side These differences have beenintroduced to reflect different user requirements Both interfaces allow usersto search a large number of evaluated libraries for relevant evaluations us-ing target reaction quantity product and other parameters For exampleconsider ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated nuclear data retrieval for235U(nf) reaction cross sections in conjunction with experimental data li-brary = ENDFB-VII1 JEFF-32 target = 235U reaction = nf and quan-tity = cs This retrieval can be accomplished from the main ENDF interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf) or as shown here by clicking an ENDF but-ton next to the experimental cross sections plotted in Fig 7 The ENDFdatabase output demonstrates that ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluatedcross sections agree well with experimental values
42 CINDA
Nuclear bibliography is essential for nuclear reaction data compilationsCINDA contains many historic publications that are not available in anyother database These publications are grouped by experiment and thedatabase allows application of energy range criteria for data searches Theseunique capabilities are still in demand by nuclear data evaluators Currently
22
CINDA
Figure 11 Nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf) reaction experimental cross sec-tions The CINDA Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovcinda
separate CINDA data compilations are terminated and CINDA contents areextended by new information from the EXFOR and NSR databases
CINDA contains the most extensive nuclear reaction bibliography it isintegrated with the EXFOR Web retrieval system and allows users to searchfor information that is not available in EXFOR The database interface in-cludes all major EXFOR search fields and provides data outputs in text andHTML formats For example to retrieve nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf)reaction cross sections the following input parameters are assumed target= 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs As shown in Fig 11 CINDAdatabase output consists of 2406 publications and 2736 reactions
5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
Originally EXFOR Web Interface was created to perform only basic op-erations data search retrieval and presentation It is now part of a largeand developed Web System including extended functionality and tools forregular [external or traditional] users EXFOR compilers and ENDF andENSDF [47] evaluators There are many interesting EXFOR Web interface
23
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
data Web services The current system has been designed as multiuser andplatform independent environment [21] The cross platform capabilities havebeen achieved by extensive usage of Java technologies Java codes can bedeveloped on any device compiled into a standard bytecode and run on anydevice equipped with a Java virtual machine The current system includesJava Web servlets database connectivity and wrapper classes for a ZVViewplotting package [22] and legacy FORTRAN and C codes It is based oncommercially available software and hardware and contains many featuresof enterprise computer portals dealt with on a daily basis Two versions ofthe EXFOR database and Web retrieval systems are presently distributedserver and personal computer (portable) for multiple and individual clientsrespectively The server installation is briefly described in Ref [18] whilethe personal computer version is build on a standard compact disk thatis available from the IAEA upon request In subsequent subsections theauthors will describe hardware and software computer environments followedby software application developments careful analysis of Web features anda worldwide impact on nuclear data users
31 EXFOR Relational Database
The EXFOR database contains nuclear data sets for sim22000 experi-ments Rapid access to these data is of paramount importance for nuclearscience and technology professionals The first modern EXFOR Web dis-semination and data storage system was developed at the NDS IAEA incooperation with the NNDC BNL [21] It is a multi-platform product thatwas developed for the nuclear data services migration project to a TomcatWeb and SybaseMySQL database servers environment [18] Later the nu-clear databases were transferred from Sybase to MySQL servers The mod-ern relational database servers allow access to data using Structured QueryLanguage (SQL) The SQL language is easy to learn and use it allowingmanagement of the databases and building Web interfaces for data searchesmanagement and updates The underlying software converts these requestsinto corresponding SQL statements that are passed to the database to harvestdatabase outputs
MySQL server is a robust database system that can be operated on mul-tiple computer platforms using community or enterprise licenses Initiallythe NDS IAEA service was based on MySQL while the NNDC operatedenterprise Sybase servers and later transferred to MySQL enterprise serversIn recent years both centers migrated to MySQL community edition servers
12
The EXFOR database has been successfully integrated with the Evalu-ated Nuclear Data File (ENDF) libraries [23 24 25 26 27 28 29] bibli-ographical Computer Index of Nuclear (reaction) DAta (CINDA) [30 31]and Nuclear Science References databases [19] Its contents are also used inSigma Web Interface [20] some of its components are used in JANIS (JAva-based Nuclear data Information System independently developed by the NEADatabank) [32] The EXFOR relational database project has evolved andmatured substantially in the last fifteen years compared to its initial version[21 18] and an extensive description of its latest features is presented below
311 EXFOR Database Schema
The schema describes a database structure in a formal language supportedby the database management system In a relational database the schemadefines the tables fields relationships views indexes procedures and otherelements
The simplified version of EXFOR relational database schema is shown inFig 5 The EXFOR schema includes tables that contain data metadataand dictionaries such as X4SRC ENTRIES and AUTHORS respectively Itincludes relationships between data tables eg ENTRY and SUBENT metadata tables are linked using an EntryID relationship The current databaseschema provides a glimpse into the present system storage of experimentalnuclear reaction data sets
312 Database System Operation
The EXFOR operation includes contributions from the data groups affil-iated with the network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) [33] andNon-EXFOR data sources The NRDC supplies the database with new andrevised data compilations dictionaries and manual updates Bibliographicalmetadata original publication PDF files and data renormalization informa-tion are provided through separate channels All of these nuclear science andbibliographical data are processed and stored in a relational database thatincorporates text compilation and articledocument PDF files for the major-ity of EXFOR entries Due to major publishersrsquo subscription rules the PDFfiles are not available for external users The Java-based computer programsprocess contributions and fetch data retrievals as EXFOR-formatted filesZVView plots PDF files and many other custom formats for remote Weband local users The EXFOR database operation workflow diagram is shownin Fig 6
13
SubentID= EntryID=
ReacodeID=
ReacodeID=
SubentID=
HEADER
DatasetID
SubentID iCol
Pointer
flagCD Header
Units
KEYWORD
SubentID
iKeyword EntryID
Entry
SubAcc
SubAccNum KeyWord
Pointer Code
FreeText
REACSTR
ReacstrID
SubentID ReacodeID
iReacstr
Pointer
nCodes Code
Target Reaction
Product Projectile
Category
Quant SF1SF9
SF58
ZTarg
elTarg aTarg
sTarg zProd elProd
sProd
ztProd
atProd
TransID=
ENTRY
EntryID
Entry TransID
UpdateNo
Area
DateDebut FileSrc
nInstitutes
Institute1 nAuthors
Author1Ini Author1
nReferences Reference1
YearRef1
X4TRANS
TransID
UpdateNo
TransDate TransFile
nEntries
nSubentries
nDatalines
EntryID=EntryID
X4UPDATE
UpdateNo
UpdateDate UpdateFlag
UpdateNo=
PRODUCT SubentID
ReacodeID
Fld Element
Mass
Isomer Product
Prod
X4SRC
SubentID SubAcc
Entry Coding
Source
Relations
Many to one
One to one
SubentID=
SUBENT
SubentID
SubAcc EntryID
Entry
TransID
UpdateNo SubAcc1
StatusSPSDD DateUpd
nReac nReacstr
EnMin
EnMax CdatasetID
CnCol
CnRow
DdatasetId DnCol
DnRow
REACODE
ReacodeID
SubentID
SubAcc
Pointer nReacstr
nDataLines
eMin eMax
fullCode
AUTHORS EntryID
Entry
iAuthor AuthorIni
Author
INSTITUT EntryID
Entry
iInstitute Institute
Code
Area Country
REFERS EntryID
Entry
iReference Reference
Ref
Title DateRef
NsrKeyno
AuthorsList
DOI
Figure 5 The EXFOR database schema
14
Non-EXFOR sources
EXFOR (NRDC)
Dictionaries
Manual
PDF files
BibTeX files
Expert corrections
So
ftw
are
EXFOR X4+ X4plusmn
Plots ZVD R33
T4 C4 C5 C5M XC4
PDF Web-Journals
X4xml X4html
Links to ENDF NSR
C4renormalized
EXFOR
Database
EXFOR files
Web-
User
EXFOR-Master
EXFOR-Uploading
Compiler
Temp-files
Input-files
SG30
Isolated
User
So
ftw
are
NSR
Database We
b R
etr
ieva
l sy
ste
m
pro
gra
ms
fil
es
(CD
F
TP
)
Figure 6 The EXFOR operation workflow
32 EXFOR Web Interface
Since introduction of the World Wide Web it is essential for data and re-search centers to provide direct access to nuclear databases [18 34 35 36 37]The EXFOR Web retrieval interface is an integral part of both IAEA andNNDC Web Services [18 34] To provide more robust scalable architecturesatisfy cyber security requirements and protect nuclear data services from asingle-point failure the Web and database servers are physically separatedThe Web server has the ApacheTomcat [38 39] Web production environ-ment installed All servers are running the Linux (Red Hat SUSE etc)operating system The initial version of the present interface became opera-tional fifteen years ago and eventually grew to its current state The interfaceis based on current computer technologies and provides retrieval of databasecontent in HTML Text BibTex and PDF formats It also produces special-ized outputs in C4C5 Application Programing Interface (API)XML andR33 for nuclear model codes application developers and Ion Beam AnalysisNuclear Data Library (IBANDL) [40] users community respectively
Data plotting is performed using the ZVView software package that hasbeen written in C and designed for evaluators of nuclear reaction data toperform efficient interactive analyses of cross section data retrieved from thenuclear data libraries [22] The main function of ZVView is to plot these data
15
for comparison using a variety of options to study graphical numerical andbibliographic information along with the possibility of analyzing the resultsof the userrsquos evaluations Since 2010 the ZVView program has been extendedto plot 2-dimensional arrays Z(XY) with the main purpose of displaying cor-relation matrices The package allows users to change plotting parameterssuch as type of data view (curve histogram map 3D animation symbolsof points colors error bars) logarithmic and linear scales zoom split plotto sub-windows smoothing by least-squares method choice of data and au-thors to be plotted scans of their points and changing language on the flyThe Web-ZVView program implements the majority of these functions asintegrated part of EXFOR and ENDF Web retrieval systems
The current Web interface is a very sophisticated product that reflectsthe overall complexity of nuclear reaction data The immense variety andvolume of the archived quantities require advanced data retrieval capabilitiesat the same time a large number of EXFOR users are still looking for simpleretrievals of reaction cross sections To accommodate these different usergroups four levels of EXFOR retrievals have been introduced basic (simple)extended keywords and expert
321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
The majority of EXFOR users are not familiar with the databasersquos ad-vanced structure or its philosophy This user group includes nuclear scien-tists engineers and graduate students that need direct access to the latestnuclear reaction data sets To satisfy their needs the authors have developedsimple EXFOR retrievals that are based on target reaction experimentalquantity product energy range authors publication year and accessionnumber search parameters All search fields are based on a logical ldquoORrdquooperator () that returns the Boolean value true if either of the operandsis true and returns false otherwise Therefore empty fields are ignored by adata search query and users can easily construct database queries using Webinterface search fields To demonstrate the present Web interface graphic anddata capabilities the authors will consider a case of 235U(nf) reaction crosssections Fig 7 shows a simple retrieval for the following input parameterstarget = 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs
To improve user experience a simple text string Google-like search hasbeen recently added to the EXFOR Web interface It is located on the topright side of the EXFOR front page This search is intended for less sophis-ticated EXFOR users who prefer to mine experimental data using common
16
Figure 7 An example of simple cross section retrieval for 235U(nf) reaction data in-puts for the EXFOR front and data selection pages were magnified The EXFOR WebInterface is publicly available at the websites of the Nuclear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor the National Nuclear Data Center httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor
nuclear physics concepts The EXFOR interface also contains online helpdisplayed as question mark buttons on the right side of the search boxesThese buttons produce pop-up windows that have information on text boxinput parameters and provide access to EXFOR dictionaries
322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
EXFOR is the only nuclear physics database that stores extensive de-scriptions of experimental results and facilities In fact these data representa treasure trove for investigation of research trends in nuclear physics [3] andprovide complementary background for nuclear data evaluations These datacan be extracted using extended keywords and expert requests
The extended retrieval provides additional capabilities for creating sophis-ticated database queries that include bibliographical metadata geographicalorigin (area country institute) NSR keynumbers (NSR database analoguesof EXFOR accession numbers) and compilation timing information
Keyword retrieval allows queries for experimental quantities that cannotbe easily found anywhere else detector method monitor facility incomingsource and spectrum data analysis detected particles and radiations and
17
experimental data originsThe expert retrieval supplies capabilities for searching for outgoing parti-
cle parameters data units ranges for experimental data points and EXFORcompilation centers individual compilers and data transmissions As it wasmentioned previously all text box search fields are implemented as a logicalldquoORrdquo operator and therefore missing search fields are ignored by SQL dataqueries
33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
The EXFOR system has matured over the years into a very advancedproduct and several complex features represent a challenge for new users Toovercome these issues the webpage News display box numerical and plottingexamples of requests and video guides (httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4guide)have been prepared These resources provide constant updates on new EX-FOR system features and share best user practices The EXFOR examplesare intended for user education purposes and supply additional insights on in-terface capabilities The broad scope of examples helped to improve EXFORuser experiences and such policies contributed to the worldwide popularityof the service
34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
The EXFOR interface is a gateway to the latest experimental nuclearreaction data stored at the IAEA and NNDC databases and it has a verybroad spectrum of usage worldwide In order to provide the best qualityof services the authors monitor the interface operation [18 41] Monitor-ing includes collection of web statistics geographical coverage network dataanalysis and estimates of database usage The EXFOR database retrievalstatistics are very conservative and completely based on a count of success-ful database retrievals any Web browser hits are ignored Retrievals fornon-existing entities in the database (eg author reaction target) whichproduce an empty output file are rejected Complete information for eachretrieval is recorded in separate Web statistic data files and usually sim300retrievalsday are observed from the IAEA and NNDC websites
The absolute number of Web retrievals provides only a partial estimateof product usage To further estimate the impact of the current productretrieval statistics can be complimented with the Google Scholar data TheScholar Web application allows retrieval of information on the EXFOR Webapplication usage from research articles A simple Google Scholar search for
18
2 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 50
5 0
1 0 0
1 5 0
2 0 0
2 5 0
3 0 0
Goog
le Sc
holar
Citat
ions
Y e a r
w w w n n d c b n l g o v e x f o r w w w - n d s i a e a o r g e x f o r
Figure 8 The worldwide impact of EXFOR Web application based on the NDS IAEAand NNDC BNL citation statistics The plot shows an incremental growth of websiteGoogle Scholar citations over the years
the NDS httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor and NNDC httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfortext strings results in sim1100 and sim770 citations respectively These cita-tions originate from research papers where the EXFOR interface address wasmentioned The growth curve shown in Fig 8 is well matched with the Webretrieval statistics [41] The agreement between these trends provides a ver-ification of the present analysis and confirms a broad usage of the EXFORWeb interface
Complementary insights on EXFOR usage can be obtained from the Webinterface usage pattern pie chart shown in Fig 9 The chart is based on aGoogle Analytics analysis of NNDC and NDS Web traffic sim100000 interac-tions per year (data searches are not included) and sim2500 unique users permonth The EXFOR plot X4plusmn interactive tree (iTree) X4+ interpretedT4 simplified and original format retrievals constitute 232 206 185 125and 88 of total operations respectively Other noticeable contributionsinclude access of publisher Digital Object Identifier (DOI) links and NSRdatabase downloads of plotted data and PDF files and covariance matrixcalculation using experimental uncertainties Usage of the retrieval system
19
2 3 2 P l o t2 0 6 X 4 i T r e e1 8 5 X 4 + I n t e r p r e t e d1 2 5 T 4 S i m p l i f i e d
8 8 X 4 O r i g i n a l6 4 P u b l i s h e r L i n k s3 9 D o w n l o a d P l o t t e d2 1 P D F1 3 C r e a t e C o v M a t r i x1 1 N S R - k e y n o1 6 O t h e r s
Figure 9 Google Analytics statistical analysis for EXFOR Web interface
can be summarized as follows
bull EXFOR data downloads in various interpreted formats (iTree X4+T4 - sim50) These data transfers exceed the original EXFOR formatretrievals (lt9)
bull EXFOR plotting with the subsequent download of plotted data as textor html tables (sim27) and construction of covariance matrices usingexperimental uncertainties (sim1)
bull DOI access of publisher web sites (64) and NSR web retrieval system(sim1) and download of PDF copies (sim2) The last option is availablefor authorized users only due to copyright restrictions
bull Other tools and operations (lt2) for example extremely valuablefor nuclear physicist or engineer EXFOR cross section renormalization(fifty-two unique clients in 2016 represent sim01 of all operations)
4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
The EXFOR computer database is an integral part of nuclear data Webservices is firmly related to nuclear reaction data evaluations and requiresaccess to nuclear bibliography The combined development of the experi-mental evaluated and bibliographical nuclear reaction databases was a costeffective solution that allowed reuse of Java classes Web implementation of
20
plotting packages and reduction of overall time for application developmentand testing
41 ENDF
ENDF is a core nuclear reaction database containing evaluated (recom-mended) cross sections spectra angular distributions fission product yieldsthermal neutron scattering and photo-atomic and other data with an em-phasis on neutron-induced reactions ENDF library evaluations are basedon theoretical calculations normalized to experimental data with an excep-tion of neutron resonance region where priority is given to experimentaldata ENDF evaluations consist of complete neutron reaction data setsfor particular isotope or element (ENDF material) They cover all neu-tron reaction channels within the 10minus5 eV - 20 MeV energy range Nowa-days in many evaluated data libraries this energy range is extended tohigher energies All these data sets are stored in the internationally-adoptedENDF-6 format that is maintained by the Cross Section Evaluation Work-ing Group (CSEWG) and publicly available at the NNDC and NDS web-sites httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf and httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf re-spectively Cross section evaluations are of great importance for nuclearenergy and science applications and they are performed internationally forENDF JEFF TENDL JENDL ROSFOND and CENDL libraries [24 2526 27 28 29] in the USA Europe Japan Russian Federation and Chinarespectively
The EXFOR project is a primary source of experimental nuclear reac-tion data for neutron cross section evaluations In practice many ENDFevaluations are produced using nuclear reaction model codes EMPIRE orTALYS [42 43] that contain EXFOR database connectivity modules Thecomputer codes are used for calculation neutron-induced reaction theoreticalcurves data analysis and comparison with experimental data These eval-uations are critically important for many applications because they provideevaluated neutron cross sections for operation of nuclear power plants andGEANT and MCNP computer codes [44 45]
The ENDF Web interface takes its contents from a separate ENDF re-lational database It contains the most complete international collection ofevaluated nuclear reaction libraries includes data analysis capabilities andintegrated with experimental data The interface shown in Fig 10 servesevaluated data in many output formats and incorporates the ZVView pro-gram [22] The IAEA and NNDC interfaces are slightly different on a client
21
ENDF
Figure 10 ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated and experimental cross sectionsfor 235U(nf) reaction data inputs for the ENDF data selection pages were magni-fied The visualized evaluated data have been processed with the PREPRO code [46]at T=29316 K ENDF Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovendf
side and completely identical on the server side These differences have beenintroduced to reflect different user requirements Both interfaces allow usersto search a large number of evaluated libraries for relevant evaluations us-ing target reaction quantity product and other parameters For exampleconsider ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated nuclear data retrieval for235U(nf) reaction cross sections in conjunction with experimental data li-brary = ENDFB-VII1 JEFF-32 target = 235U reaction = nf and quan-tity = cs This retrieval can be accomplished from the main ENDF interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf) or as shown here by clicking an ENDF but-ton next to the experimental cross sections plotted in Fig 7 The ENDFdatabase output demonstrates that ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluatedcross sections agree well with experimental values
42 CINDA
Nuclear bibliography is essential for nuclear reaction data compilationsCINDA contains many historic publications that are not available in anyother database These publications are grouped by experiment and thedatabase allows application of energy range criteria for data searches Theseunique capabilities are still in demand by nuclear data evaluators Currently
22
CINDA
Figure 11 Nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf) reaction experimental cross sec-tions The CINDA Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovcinda
separate CINDA data compilations are terminated and CINDA contents areextended by new information from the EXFOR and NSR databases
CINDA contains the most extensive nuclear reaction bibliography it isintegrated with the EXFOR Web retrieval system and allows users to searchfor information that is not available in EXFOR The database interface in-cludes all major EXFOR search fields and provides data outputs in text andHTML formats For example to retrieve nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf)reaction cross sections the following input parameters are assumed target= 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs As shown in Fig 11 CINDAdatabase output consists of 2406 publications and 2736 reactions
5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
Originally EXFOR Web Interface was created to perform only basic op-erations data search retrieval and presentation It is now part of a largeand developed Web System including extended functionality and tools forregular [external or traditional] users EXFOR compilers and ENDF andENSDF [47] evaluators There are many interesting EXFOR Web interface
23
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
The EXFOR database has been successfully integrated with the Evalu-ated Nuclear Data File (ENDF) libraries [23 24 25 26 27 28 29] bibli-ographical Computer Index of Nuclear (reaction) DAta (CINDA) [30 31]and Nuclear Science References databases [19] Its contents are also used inSigma Web Interface [20] some of its components are used in JANIS (JAva-based Nuclear data Information System independently developed by the NEADatabank) [32] The EXFOR relational database project has evolved andmatured substantially in the last fifteen years compared to its initial version[21 18] and an extensive description of its latest features is presented below
311 EXFOR Database Schema
The schema describes a database structure in a formal language supportedby the database management system In a relational database the schemadefines the tables fields relationships views indexes procedures and otherelements
The simplified version of EXFOR relational database schema is shown inFig 5 The EXFOR schema includes tables that contain data metadataand dictionaries such as X4SRC ENTRIES and AUTHORS respectively Itincludes relationships between data tables eg ENTRY and SUBENT metadata tables are linked using an EntryID relationship The current databaseschema provides a glimpse into the present system storage of experimentalnuclear reaction data sets
312 Database System Operation
The EXFOR operation includes contributions from the data groups affil-iated with the network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) [33] andNon-EXFOR data sources The NRDC supplies the database with new andrevised data compilations dictionaries and manual updates Bibliographicalmetadata original publication PDF files and data renormalization informa-tion are provided through separate channels All of these nuclear science andbibliographical data are processed and stored in a relational database thatincorporates text compilation and articledocument PDF files for the major-ity of EXFOR entries Due to major publishersrsquo subscription rules the PDFfiles are not available for external users The Java-based computer programsprocess contributions and fetch data retrievals as EXFOR-formatted filesZVView plots PDF files and many other custom formats for remote Weband local users The EXFOR database operation workflow diagram is shownin Fig 6
13
SubentID= EntryID=
ReacodeID=
ReacodeID=
SubentID=
HEADER
DatasetID
SubentID iCol
Pointer
flagCD Header
Units
KEYWORD
SubentID
iKeyword EntryID
Entry
SubAcc
SubAccNum KeyWord
Pointer Code
FreeText
REACSTR
ReacstrID
SubentID ReacodeID
iReacstr
Pointer
nCodes Code
Target Reaction
Product Projectile
Category
Quant SF1SF9
SF58
ZTarg
elTarg aTarg
sTarg zProd elProd
sProd
ztProd
atProd
TransID=
ENTRY
EntryID
Entry TransID
UpdateNo
Area
DateDebut FileSrc
nInstitutes
Institute1 nAuthors
Author1Ini Author1
nReferences Reference1
YearRef1
X4TRANS
TransID
UpdateNo
TransDate TransFile
nEntries
nSubentries
nDatalines
EntryID=EntryID
X4UPDATE
UpdateNo
UpdateDate UpdateFlag
UpdateNo=
PRODUCT SubentID
ReacodeID
Fld Element
Mass
Isomer Product
Prod
X4SRC
SubentID SubAcc
Entry Coding
Source
Relations
Many to one
One to one
SubentID=
SUBENT
SubentID
SubAcc EntryID
Entry
TransID
UpdateNo SubAcc1
StatusSPSDD DateUpd
nReac nReacstr
EnMin
EnMax CdatasetID
CnCol
CnRow
DdatasetId DnCol
DnRow
REACODE
ReacodeID
SubentID
SubAcc
Pointer nReacstr
nDataLines
eMin eMax
fullCode
AUTHORS EntryID
Entry
iAuthor AuthorIni
Author
INSTITUT EntryID
Entry
iInstitute Institute
Code
Area Country
REFERS EntryID
Entry
iReference Reference
Ref
Title DateRef
NsrKeyno
AuthorsList
DOI
Figure 5 The EXFOR database schema
14
Non-EXFOR sources
EXFOR (NRDC)
Dictionaries
Manual
PDF files
BibTeX files
Expert corrections
So
ftw
are
EXFOR X4+ X4plusmn
Plots ZVD R33
T4 C4 C5 C5M XC4
PDF Web-Journals
X4xml X4html
Links to ENDF NSR
C4renormalized
EXFOR
Database
EXFOR files
Web-
User
EXFOR-Master
EXFOR-Uploading
Compiler
Temp-files
Input-files
SG30
Isolated
User
So
ftw
are
NSR
Database We
b R
etr
ieva
l sy
ste
m
pro
gra
ms
fil
es
(CD
F
TP
)
Figure 6 The EXFOR operation workflow
32 EXFOR Web Interface
Since introduction of the World Wide Web it is essential for data and re-search centers to provide direct access to nuclear databases [18 34 35 36 37]The EXFOR Web retrieval interface is an integral part of both IAEA andNNDC Web Services [18 34] To provide more robust scalable architecturesatisfy cyber security requirements and protect nuclear data services from asingle-point failure the Web and database servers are physically separatedThe Web server has the ApacheTomcat [38 39] Web production environ-ment installed All servers are running the Linux (Red Hat SUSE etc)operating system The initial version of the present interface became opera-tional fifteen years ago and eventually grew to its current state The interfaceis based on current computer technologies and provides retrieval of databasecontent in HTML Text BibTex and PDF formats It also produces special-ized outputs in C4C5 Application Programing Interface (API)XML andR33 for nuclear model codes application developers and Ion Beam AnalysisNuclear Data Library (IBANDL) [40] users community respectively
Data plotting is performed using the ZVView software package that hasbeen written in C and designed for evaluators of nuclear reaction data toperform efficient interactive analyses of cross section data retrieved from thenuclear data libraries [22] The main function of ZVView is to plot these data
15
for comparison using a variety of options to study graphical numerical andbibliographic information along with the possibility of analyzing the resultsof the userrsquos evaluations Since 2010 the ZVView program has been extendedto plot 2-dimensional arrays Z(XY) with the main purpose of displaying cor-relation matrices The package allows users to change plotting parameterssuch as type of data view (curve histogram map 3D animation symbolsof points colors error bars) logarithmic and linear scales zoom split plotto sub-windows smoothing by least-squares method choice of data and au-thors to be plotted scans of their points and changing language on the flyThe Web-ZVView program implements the majority of these functions asintegrated part of EXFOR and ENDF Web retrieval systems
The current Web interface is a very sophisticated product that reflectsthe overall complexity of nuclear reaction data The immense variety andvolume of the archived quantities require advanced data retrieval capabilitiesat the same time a large number of EXFOR users are still looking for simpleretrievals of reaction cross sections To accommodate these different usergroups four levels of EXFOR retrievals have been introduced basic (simple)extended keywords and expert
321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
The majority of EXFOR users are not familiar with the databasersquos ad-vanced structure or its philosophy This user group includes nuclear scien-tists engineers and graduate students that need direct access to the latestnuclear reaction data sets To satisfy their needs the authors have developedsimple EXFOR retrievals that are based on target reaction experimentalquantity product energy range authors publication year and accessionnumber search parameters All search fields are based on a logical ldquoORrdquooperator () that returns the Boolean value true if either of the operandsis true and returns false otherwise Therefore empty fields are ignored by adata search query and users can easily construct database queries using Webinterface search fields To demonstrate the present Web interface graphic anddata capabilities the authors will consider a case of 235U(nf) reaction crosssections Fig 7 shows a simple retrieval for the following input parameterstarget = 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs
To improve user experience a simple text string Google-like search hasbeen recently added to the EXFOR Web interface It is located on the topright side of the EXFOR front page This search is intended for less sophis-ticated EXFOR users who prefer to mine experimental data using common
16
Figure 7 An example of simple cross section retrieval for 235U(nf) reaction data in-puts for the EXFOR front and data selection pages were magnified The EXFOR WebInterface is publicly available at the websites of the Nuclear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor the National Nuclear Data Center httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor
nuclear physics concepts The EXFOR interface also contains online helpdisplayed as question mark buttons on the right side of the search boxesThese buttons produce pop-up windows that have information on text boxinput parameters and provide access to EXFOR dictionaries
322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
EXFOR is the only nuclear physics database that stores extensive de-scriptions of experimental results and facilities In fact these data representa treasure trove for investigation of research trends in nuclear physics [3] andprovide complementary background for nuclear data evaluations These datacan be extracted using extended keywords and expert requests
The extended retrieval provides additional capabilities for creating sophis-ticated database queries that include bibliographical metadata geographicalorigin (area country institute) NSR keynumbers (NSR database analoguesof EXFOR accession numbers) and compilation timing information
Keyword retrieval allows queries for experimental quantities that cannotbe easily found anywhere else detector method monitor facility incomingsource and spectrum data analysis detected particles and radiations and
17
experimental data originsThe expert retrieval supplies capabilities for searching for outgoing parti-
cle parameters data units ranges for experimental data points and EXFORcompilation centers individual compilers and data transmissions As it wasmentioned previously all text box search fields are implemented as a logicalldquoORrdquo operator and therefore missing search fields are ignored by SQL dataqueries
33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
The EXFOR system has matured over the years into a very advancedproduct and several complex features represent a challenge for new users Toovercome these issues the webpage News display box numerical and plottingexamples of requests and video guides (httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4guide)have been prepared These resources provide constant updates on new EX-FOR system features and share best user practices The EXFOR examplesare intended for user education purposes and supply additional insights on in-terface capabilities The broad scope of examples helped to improve EXFORuser experiences and such policies contributed to the worldwide popularityof the service
34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
The EXFOR interface is a gateway to the latest experimental nuclearreaction data stored at the IAEA and NNDC databases and it has a verybroad spectrum of usage worldwide In order to provide the best qualityof services the authors monitor the interface operation [18 41] Monitor-ing includes collection of web statistics geographical coverage network dataanalysis and estimates of database usage The EXFOR database retrievalstatistics are very conservative and completely based on a count of success-ful database retrievals any Web browser hits are ignored Retrievals fornon-existing entities in the database (eg author reaction target) whichproduce an empty output file are rejected Complete information for eachretrieval is recorded in separate Web statistic data files and usually sim300retrievalsday are observed from the IAEA and NNDC websites
The absolute number of Web retrievals provides only a partial estimateof product usage To further estimate the impact of the current productretrieval statistics can be complimented with the Google Scholar data TheScholar Web application allows retrieval of information on the EXFOR Webapplication usage from research articles A simple Google Scholar search for
18
2 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 50
5 0
1 0 0
1 5 0
2 0 0
2 5 0
3 0 0
Goog
le Sc
holar
Citat
ions
Y e a r
w w w n n d c b n l g o v e x f o r w w w - n d s i a e a o r g e x f o r
Figure 8 The worldwide impact of EXFOR Web application based on the NDS IAEAand NNDC BNL citation statistics The plot shows an incremental growth of websiteGoogle Scholar citations over the years
the NDS httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor and NNDC httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfortext strings results in sim1100 and sim770 citations respectively These cita-tions originate from research papers where the EXFOR interface address wasmentioned The growth curve shown in Fig 8 is well matched with the Webretrieval statistics [41] The agreement between these trends provides a ver-ification of the present analysis and confirms a broad usage of the EXFORWeb interface
Complementary insights on EXFOR usage can be obtained from the Webinterface usage pattern pie chart shown in Fig 9 The chart is based on aGoogle Analytics analysis of NNDC and NDS Web traffic sim100000 interac-tions per year (data searches are not included) and sim2500 unique users permonth The EXFOR plot X4plusmn interactive tree (iTree) X4+ interpretedT4 simplified and original format retrievals constitute 232 206 185 125and 88 of total operations respectively Other noticeable contributionsinclude access of publisher Digital Object Identifier (DOI) links and NSRdatabase downloads of plotted data and PDF files and covariance matrixcalculation using experimental uncertainties Usage of the retrieval system
19
2 3 2 P l o t2 0 6 X 4 i T r e e1 8 5 X 4 + I n t e r p r e t e d1 2 5 T 4 S i m p l i f i e d
8 8 X 4 O r i g i n a l6 4 P u b l i s h e r L i n k s3 9 D o w n l o a d P l o t t e d2 1 P D F1 3 C r e a t e C o v M a t r i x1 1 N S R - k e y n o1 6 O t h e r s
Figure 9 Google Analytics statistical analysis for EXFOR Web interface
can be summarized as follows
bull EXFOR data downloads in various interpreted formats (iTree X4+T4 - sim50) These data transfers exceed the original EXFOR formatretrievals (lt9)
bull EXFOR plotting with the subsequent download of plotted data as textor html tables (sim27) and construction of covariance matrices usingexperimental uncertainties (sim1)
bull DOI access of publisher web sites (64) and NSR web retrieval system(sim1) and download of PDF copies (sim2) The last option is availablefor authorized users only due to copyright restrictions
bull Other tools and operations (lt2) for example extremely valuablefor nuclear physicist or engineer EXFOR cross section renormalization(fifty-two unique clients in 2016 represent sim01 of all operations)
4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
The EXFOR computer database is an integral part of nuclear data Webservices is firmly related to nuclear reaction data evaluations and requiresaccess to nuclear bibliography The combined development of the experi-mental evaluated and bibliographical nuclear reaction databases was a costeffective solution that allowed reuse of Java classes Web implementation of
20
plotting packages and reduction of overall time for application developmentand testing
41 ENDF
ENDF is a core nuclear reaction database containing evaluated (recom-mended) cross sections spectra angular distributions fission product yieldsthermal neutron scattering and photo-atomic and other data with an em-phasis on neutron-induced reactions ENDF library evaluations are basedon theoretical calculations normalized to experimental data with an excep-tion of neutron resonance region where priority is given to experimentaldata ENDF evaluations consist of complete neutron reaction data setsfor particular isotope or element (ENDF material) They cover all neu-tron reaction channels within the 10minus5 eV - 20 MeV energy range Nowa-days in many evaluated data libraries this energy range is extended tohigher energies All these data sets are stored in the internationally-adoptedENDF-6 format that is maintained by the Cross Section Evaluation Work-ing Group (CSEWG) and publicly available at the NNDC and NDS web-sites httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf and httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf re-spectively Cross section evaluations are of great importance for nuclearenergy and science applications and they are performed internationally forENDF JEFF TENDL JENDL ROSFOND and CENDL libraries [24 2526 27 28 29] in the USA Europe Japan Russian Federation and Chinarespectively
The EXFOR project is a primary source of experimental nuclear reac-tion data for neutron cross section evaluations In practice many ENDFevaluations are produced using nuclear reaction model codes EMPIRE orTALYS [42 43] that contain EXFOR database connectivity modules Thecomputer codes are used for calculation neutron-induced reaction theoreticalcurves data analysis and comparison with experimental data These eval-uations are critically important for many applications because they provideevaluated neutron cross sections for operation of nuclear power plants andGEANT and MCNP computer codes [44 45]
The ENDF Web interface takes its contents from a separate ENDF re-lational database It contains the most complete international collection ofevaluated nuclear reaction libraries includes data analysis capabilities andintegrated with experimental data The interface shown in Fig 10 servesevaluated data in many output formats and incorporates the ZVView pro-gram [22] The IAEA and NNDC interfaces are slightly different on a client
21
ENDF
Figure 10 ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated and experimental cross sectionsfor 235U(nf) reaction data inputs for the ENDF data selection pages were magni-fied The visualized evaluated data have been processed with the PREPRO code [46]at T=29316 K ENDF Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovendf
side and completely identical on the server side These differences have beenintroduced to reflect different user requirements Both interfaces allow usersto search a large number of evaluated libraries for relevant evaluations us-ing target reaction quantity product and other parameters For exampleconsider ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated nuclear data retrieval for235U(nf) reaction cross sections in conjunction with experimental data li-brary = ENDFB-VII1 JEFF-32 target = 235U reaction = nf and quan-tity = cs This retrieval can be accomplished from the main ENDF interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf) or as shown here by clicking an ENDF but-ton next to the experimental cross sections plotted in Fig 7 The ENDFdatabase output demonstrates that ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluatedcross sections agree well with experimental values
42 CINDA
Nuclear bibliography is essential for nuclear reaction data compilationsCINDA contains many historic publications that are not available in anyother database These publications are grouped by experiment and thedatabase allows application of energy range criteria for data searches Theseunique capabilities are still in demand by nuclear data evaluators Currently
22
CINDA
Figure 11 Nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf) reaction experimental cross sec-tions The CINDA Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovcinda
separate CINDA data compilations are terminated and CINDA contents areextended by new information from the EXFOR and NSR databases
CINDA contains the most extensive nuclear reaction bibliography it isintegrated with the EXFOR Web retrieval system and allows users to searchfor information that is not available in EXFOR The database interface in-cludes all major EXFOR search fields and provides data outputs in text andHTML formats For example to retrieve nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf)reaction cross sections the following input parameters are assumed target= 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs As shown in Fig 11 CINDAdatabase output consists of 2406 publications and 2736 reactions
5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
Originally EXFOR Web Interface was created to perform only basic op-erations data search retrieval and presentation It is now part of a largeand developed Web System including extended functionality and tools forregular [external or traditional] users EXFOR compilers and ENDF andENSDF [47] evaluators There are many interesting EXFOR Web interface
23
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
SubentID= EntryID=
ReacodeID=
ReacodeID=
SubentID=
HEADER
DatasetID
SubentID iCol
Pointer
flagCD Header
Units
KEYWORD
SubentID
iKeyword EntryID
Entry
SubAcc
SubAccNum KeyWord
Pointer Code
FreeText
REACSTR
ReacstrID
SubentID ReacodeID
iReacstr
Pointer
nCodes Code
Target Reaction
Product Projectile
Category
Quant SF1SF9
SF58
ZTarg
elTarg aTarg
sTarg zProd elProd
sProd
ztProd
atProd
TransID=
ENTRY
EntryID
Entry TransID
UpdateNo
Area
DateDebut FileSrc
nInstitutes
Institute1 nAuthors
Author1Ini Author1
nReferences Reference1
YearRef1
X4TRANS
TransID
UpdateNo
TransDate TransFile
nEntries
nSubentries
nDatalines
EntryID=EntryID
X4UPDATE
UpdateNo
UpdateDate UpdateFlag
UpdateNo=
PRODUCT SubentID
ReacodeID
Fld Element
Mass
Isomer Product
Prod
X4SRC
SubentID SubAcc
Entry Coding
Source
Relations
Many to one
One to one
SubentID=
SUBENT
SubentID
SubAcc EntryID
Entry
TransID
UpdateNo SubAcc1
StatusSPSDD DateUpd
nReac nReacstr
EnMin
EnMax CdatasetID
CnCol
CnRow
DdatasetId DnCol
DnRow
REACODE
ReacodeID
SubentID
SubAcc
Pointer nReacstr
nDataLines
eMin eMax
fullCode
AUTHORS EntryID
Entry
iAuthor AuthorIni
Author
INSTITUT EntryID
Entry
iInstitute Institute
Code
Area Country
REFERS EntryID
Entry
iReference Reference
Ref
Title DateRef
NsrKeyno
AuthorsList
DOI
Figure 5 The EXFOR database schema
14
Non-EXFOR sources
EXFOR (NRDC)
Dictionaries
Manual
PDF files
BibTeX files
Expert corrections
So
ftw
are
EXFOR X4+ X4plusmn
Plots ZVD R33
T4 C4 C5 C5M XC4
PDF Web-Journals
X4xml X4html
Links to ENDF NSR
C4renormalized
EXFOR
Database
EXFOR files
Web-
User
EXFOR-Master
EXFOR-Uploading
Compiler
Temp-files
Input-files
SG30
Isolated
User
So
ftw
are
NSR
Database We
b R
etr
ieva
l sy
ste
m
pro
gra
ms
fil
es
(CD
F
TP
)
Figure 6 The EXFOR operation workflow
32 EXFOR Web Interface
Since introduction of the World Wide Web it is essential for data and re-search centers to provide direct access to nuclear databases [18 34 35 36 37]The EXFOR Web retrieval interface is an integral part of both IAEA andNNDC Web Services [18 34] To provide more robust scalable architecturesatisfy cyber security requirements and protect nuclear data services from asingle-point failure the Web and database servers are physically separatedThe Web server has the ApacheTomcat [38 39] Web production environ-ment installed All servers are running the Linux (Red Hat SUSE etc)operating system The initial version of the present interface became opera-tional fifteen years ago and eventually grew to its current state The interfaceis based on current computer technologies and provides retrieval of databasecontent in HTML Text BibTex and PDF formats It also produces special-ized outputs in C4C5 Application Programing Interface (API)XML andR33 for nuclear model codes application developers and Ion Beam AnalysisNuclear Data Library (IBANDL) [40] users community respectively
Data plotting is performed using the ZVView software package that hasbeen written in C and designed for evaluators of nuclear reaction data toperform efficient interactive analyses of cross section data retrieved from thenuclear data libraries [22] The main function of ZVView is to plot these data
15
for comparison using a variety of options to study graphical numerical andbibliographic information along with the possibility of analyzing the resultsof the userrsquos evaluations Since 2010 the ZVView program has been extendedto plot 2-dimensional arrays Z(XY) with the main purpose of displaying cor-relation matrices The package allows users to change plotting parameterssuch as type of data view (curve histogram map 3D animation symbolsof points colors error bars) logarithmic and linear scales zoom split plotto sub-windows smoothing by least-squares method choice of data and au-thors to be plotted scans of their points and changing language on the flyThe Web-ZVView program implements the majority of these functions asintegrated part of EXFOR and ENDF Web retrieval systems
The current Web interface is a very sophisticated product that reflectsthe overall complexity of nuclear reaction data The immense variety andvolume of the archived quantities require advanced data retrieval capabilitiesat the same time a large number of EXFOR users are still looking for simpleretrievals of reaction cross sections To accommodate these different usergroups four levels of EXFOR retrievals have been introduced basic (simple)extended keywords and expert
321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
The majority of EXFOR users are not familiar with the databasersquos ad-vanced structure or its philosophy This user group includes nuclear scien-tists engineers and graduate students that need direct access to the latestnuclear reaction data sets To satisfy their needs the authors have developedsimple EXFOR retrievals that are based on target reaction experimentalquantity product energy range authors publication year and accessionnumber search parameters All search fields are based on a logical ldquoORrdquooperator () that returns the Boolean value true if either of the operandsis true and returns false otherwise Therefore empty fields are ignored by adata search query and users can easily construct database queries using Webinterface search fields To demonstrate the present Web interface graphic anddata capabilities the authors will consider a case of 235U(nf) reaction crosssections Fig 7 shows a simple retrieval for the following input parameterstarget = 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs
To improve user experience a simple text string Google-like search hasbeen recently added to the EXFOR Web interface It is located on the topright side of the EXFOR front page This search is intended for less sophis-ticated EXFOR users who prefer to mine experimental data using common
16
Figure 7 An example of simple cross section retrieval for 235U(nf) reaction data in-puts for the EXFOR front and data selection pages were magnified The EXFOR WebInterface is publicly available at the websites of the Nuclear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor the National Nuclear Data Center httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor
nuclear physics concepts The EXFOR interface also contains online helpdisplayed as question mark buttons on the right side of the search boxesThese buttons produce pop-up windows that have information on text boxinput parameters and provide access to EXFOR dictionaries
322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
EXFOR is the only nuclear physics database that stores extensive de-scriptions of experimental results and facilities In fact these data representa treasure trove for investigation of research trends in nuclear physics [3] andprovide complementary background for nuclear data evaluations These datacan be extracted using extended keywords and expert requests
The extended retrieval provides additional capabilities for creating sophis-ticated database queries that include bibliographical metadata geographicalorigin (area country institute) NSR keynumbers (NSR database analoguesof EXFOR accession numbers) and compilation timing information
Keyword retrieval allows queries for experimental quantities that cannotbe easily found anywhere else detector method monitor facility incomingsource and spectrum data analysis detected particles and radiations and
17
experimental data originsThe expert retrieval supplies capabilities for searching for outgoing parti-
cle parameters data units ranges for experimental data points and EXFORcompilation centers individual compilers and data transmissions As it wasmentioned previously all text box search fields are implemented as a logicalldquoORrdquo operator and therefore missing search fields are ignored by SQL dataqueries
33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
The EXFOR system has matured over the years into a very advancedproduct and several complex features represent a challenge for new users Toovercome these issues the webpage News display box numerical and plottingexamples of requests and video guides (httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4guide)have been prepared These resources provide constant updates on new EX-FOR system features and share best user practices The EXFOR examplesare intended for user education purposes and supply additional insights on in-terface capabilities The broad scope of examples helped to improve EXFORuser experiences and such policies contributed to the worldwide popularityof the service
34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
The EXFOR interface is a gateway to the latest experimental nuclearreaction data stored at the IAEA and NNDC databases and it has a verybroad spectrum of usage worldwide In order to provide the best qualityof services the authors monitor the interface operation [18 41] Monitor-ing includes collection of web statistics geographical coverage network dataanalysis and estimates of database usage The EXFOR database retrievalstatistics are very conservative and completely based on a count of success-ful database retrievals any Web browser hits are ignored Retrievals fornon-existing entities in the database (eg author reaction target) whichproduce an empty output file are rejected Complete information for eachretrieval is recorded in separate Web statistic data files and usually sim300retrievalsday are observed from the IAEA and NNDC websites
The absolute number of Web retrievals provides only a partial estimateof product usage To further estimate the impact of the current productretrieval statistics can be complimented with the Google Scholar data TheScholar Web application allows retrieval of information on the EXFOR Webapplication usage from research articles A simple Google Scholar search for
18
2 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 50
5 0
1 0 0
1 5 0
2 0 0
2 5 0
3 0 0
Goog
le Sc
holar
Citat
ions
Y e a r
w w w n n d c b n l g o v e x f o r w w w - n d s i a e a o r g e x f o r
Figure 8 The worldwide impact of EXFOR Web application based on the NDS IAEAand NNDC BNL citation statistics The plot shows an incremental growth of websiteGoogle Scholar citations over the years
the NDS httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor and NNDC httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfortext strings results in sim1100 and sim770 citations respectively These cita-tions originate from research papers where the EXFOR interface address wasmentioned The growth curve shown in Fig 8 is well matched with the Webretrieval statistics [41] The agreement between these trends provides a ver-ification of the present analysis and confirms a broad usage of the EXFORWeb interface
Complementary insights on EXFOR usage can be obtained from the Webinterface usage pattern pie chart shown in Fig 9 The chart is based on aGoogle Analytics analysis of NNDC and NDS Web traffic sim100000 interac-tions per year (data searches are not included) and sim2500 unique users permonth The EXFOR plot X4plusmn interactive tree (iTree) X4+ interpretedT4 simplified and original format retrievals constitute 232 206 185 125and 88 of total operations respectively Other noticeable contributionsinclude access of publisher Digital Object Identifier (DOI) links and NSRdatabase downloads of plotted data and PDF files and covariance matrixcalculation using experimental uncertainties Usage of the retrieval system
19
2 3 2 P l o t2 0 6 X 4 i T r e e1 8 5 X 4 + I n t e r p r e t e d1 2 5 T 4 S i m p l i f i e d
8 8 X 4 O r i g i n a l6 4 P u b l i s h e r L i n k s3 9 D o w n l o a d P l o t t e d2 1 P D F1 3 C r e a t e C o v M a t r i x1 1 N S R - k e y n o1 6 O t h e r s
Figure 9 Google Analytics statistical analysis for EXFOR Web interface
can be summarized as follows
bull EXFOR data downloads in various interpreted formats (iTree X4+T4 - sim50) These data transfers exceed the original EXFOR formatretrievals (lt9)
bull EXFOR plotting with the subsequent download of plotted data as textor html tables (sim27) and construction of covariance matrices usingexperimental uncertainties (sim1)
bull DOI access of publisher web sites (64) and NSR web retrieval system(sim1) and download of PDF copies (sim2) The last option is availablefor authorized users only due to copyright restrictions
bull Other tools and operations (lt2) for example extremely valuablefor nuclear physicist or engineer EXFOR cross section renormalization(fifty-two unique clients in 2016 represent sim01 of all operations)
4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
The EXFOR computer database is an integral part of nuclear data Webservices is firmly related to nuclear reaction data evaluations and requiresaccess to nuclear bibliography The combined development of the experi-mental evaluated and bibliographical nuclear reaction databases was a costeffective solution that allowed reuse of Java classes Web implementation of
20
plotting packages and reduction of overall time for application developmentand testing
41 ENDF
ENDF is a core nuclear reaction database containing evaluated (recom-mended) cross sections spectra angular distributions fission product yieldsthermal neutron scattering and photo-atomic and other data with an em-phasis on neutron-induced reactions ENDF library evaluations are basedon theoretical calculations normalized to experimental data with an excep-tion of neutron resonance region where priority is given to experimentaldata ENDF evaluations consist of complete neutron reaction data setsfor particular isotope or element (ENDF material) They cover all neu-tron reaction channels within the 10minus5 eV - 20 MeV energy range Nowa-days in many evaluated data libraries this energy range is extended tohigher energies All these data sets are stored in the internationally-adoptedENDF-6 format that is maintained by the Cross Section Evaluation Work-ing Group (CSEWG) and publicly available at the NNDC and NDS web-sites httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf and httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf re-spectively Cross section evaluations are of great importance for nuclearenergy and science applications and they are performed internationally forENDF JEFF TENDL JENDL ROSFOND and CENDL libraries [24 2526 27 28 29] in the USA Europe Japan Russian Federation and Chinarespectively
The EXFOR project is a primary source of experimental nuclear reac-tion data for neutron cross section evaluations In practice many ENDFevaluations are produced using nuclear reaction model codes EMPIRE orTALYS [42 43] that contain EXFOR database connectivity modules Thecomputer codes are used for calculation neutron-induced reaction theoreticalcurves data analysis and comparison with experimental data These eval-uations are critically important for many applications because they provideevaluated neutron cross sections for operation of nuclear power plants andGEANT and MCNP computer codes [44 45]
The ENDF Web interface takes its contents from a separate ENDF re-lational database It contains the most complete international collection ofevaluated nuclear reaction libraries includes data analysis capabilities andintegrated with experimental data The interface shown in Fig 10 servesevaluated data in many output formats and incorporates the ZVView pro-gram [22] The IAEA and NNDC interfaces are slightly different on a client
21
ENDF
Figure 10 ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated and experimental cross sectionsfor 235U(nf) reaction data inputs for the ENDF data selection pages were magni-fied The visualized evaluated data have been processed with the PREPRO code [46]at T=29316 K ENDF Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovendf
side and completely identical on the server side These differences have beenintroduced to reflect different user requirements Both interfaces allow usersto search a large number of evaluated libraries for relevant evaluations us-ing target reaction quantity product and other parameters For exampleconsider ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated nuclear data retrieval for235U(nf) reaction cross sections in conjunction with experimental data li-brary = ENDFB-VII1 JEFF-32 target = 235U reaction = nf and quan-tity = cs This retrieval can be accomplished from the main ENDF interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf) or as shown here by clicking an ENDF but-ton next to the experimental cross sections plotted in Fig 7 The ENDFdatabase output demonstrates that ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluatedcross sections agree well with experimental values
42 CINDA
Nuclear bibliography is essential for nuclear reaction data compilationsCINDA contains many historic publications that are not available in anyother database These publications are grouped by experiment and thedatabase allows application of energy range criteria for data searches Theseunique capabilities are still in demand by nuclear data evaluators Currently
22
CINDA
Figure 11 Nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf) reaction experimental cross sec-tions The CINDA Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovcinda
separate CINDA data compilations are terminated and CINDA contents areextended by new information from the EXFOR and NSR databases
CINDA contains the most extensive nuclear reaction bibliography it isintegrated with the EXFOR Web retrieval system and allows users to searchfor information that is not available in EXFOR The database interface in-cludes all major EXFOR search fields and provides data outputs in text andHTML formats For example to retrieve nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf)reaction cross sections the following input parameters are assumed target= 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs As shown in Fig 11 CINDAdatabase output consists of 2406 publications and 2736 reactions
5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
Originally EXFOR Web Interface was created to perform only basic op-erations data search retrieval and presentation It is now part of a largeand developed Web System including extended functionality and tools forregular [external or traditional] users EXFOR compilers and ENDF andENSDF [47] evaluators There are many interesting EXFOR Web interface
23
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
Non-EXFOR sources
EXFOR (NRDC)
Dictionaries
Manual
PDF files
BibTeX files
Expert corrections
So
ftw
are
EXFOR X4+ X4plusmn
Plots ZVD R33
T4 C4 C5 C5M XC4
PDF Web-Journals
X4xml X4html
Links to ENDF NSR
C4renormalized
EXFOR
Database
EXFOR files
Web-
User
EXFOR-Master
EXFOR-Uploading
Compiler
Temp-files
Input-files
SG30
Isolated
User
So
ftw
are
NSR
Database We
b R
etr
ieva
l sy
ste
m
pro
gra
ms
fil
es
(CD
F
TP
)
Figure 6 The EXFOR operation workflow
32 EXFOR Web Interface
Since introduction of the World Wide Web it is essential for data and re-search centers to provide direct access to nuclear databases [18 34 35 36 37]The EXFOR Web retrieval interface is an integral part of both IAEA andNNDC Web Services [18 34] To provide more robust scalable architecturesatisfy cyber security requirements and protect nuclear data services from asingle-point failure the Web and database servers are physically separatedThe Web server has the ApacheTomcat [38 39] Web production environ-ment installed All servers are running the Linux (Red Hat SUSE etc)operating system The initial version of the present interface became opera-tional fifteen years ago and eventually grew to its current state The interfaceis based on current computer technologies and provides retrieval of databasecontent in HTML Text BibTex and PDF formats It also produces special-ized outputs in C4C5 Application Programing Interface (API)XML andR33 for nuclear model codes application developers and Ion Beam AnalysisNuclear Data Library (IBANDL) [40] users community respectively
Data plotting is performed using the ZVView software package that hasbeen written in C and designed for evaluators of nuclear reaction data toperform efficient interactive analyses of cross section data retrieved from thenuclear data libraries [22] The main function of ZVView is to plot these data
15
for comparison using a variety of options to study graphical numerical andbibliographic information along with the possibility of analyzing the resultsof the userrsquos evaluations Since 2010 the ZVView program has been extendedto plot 2-dimensional arrays Z(XY) with the main purpose of displaying cor-relation matrices The package allows users to change plotting parameterssuch as type of data view (curve histogram map 3D animation symbolsof points colors error bars) logarithmic and linear scales zoom split plotto sub-windows smoothing by least-squares method choice of data and au-thors to be plotted scans of their points and changing language on the flyThe Web-ZVView program implements the majority of these functions asintegrated part of EXFOR and ENDF Web retrieval systems
The current Web interface is a very sophisticated product that reflectsthe overall complexity of nuclear reaction data The immense variety andvolume of the archived quantities require advanced data retrieval capabilitiesat the same time a large number of EXFOR users are still looking for simpleretrievals of reaction cross sections To accommodate these different usergroups four levels of EXFOR retrievals have been introduced basic (simple)extended keywords and expert
321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
The majority of EXFOR users are not familiar with the databasersquos ad-vanced structure or its philosophy This user group includes nuclear scien-tists engineers and graduate students that need direct access to the latestnuclear reaction data sets To satisfy their needs the authors have developedsimple EXFOR retrievals that are based on target reaction experimentalquantity product energy range authors publication year and accessionnumber search parameters All search fields are based on a logical ldquoORrdquooperator () that returns the Boolean value true if either of the operandsis true and returns false otherwise Therefore empty fields are ignored by adata search query and users can easily construct database queries using Webinterface search fields To demonstrate the present Web interface graphic anddata capabilities the authors will consider a case of 235U(nf) reaction crosssections Fig 7 shows a simple retrieval for the following input parameterstarget = 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs
To improve user experience a simple text string Google-like search hasbeen recently added to the EXFOR Web interface It is located on the topright side of the EXFOR front page This search is intended for less sophis-ticated EXFOR users who prefer to mine experimental data using common
16
Figure 7 An example of simple cross section retrieval for 235U(nf) reaction data in-puts for the EXFOR front and data selection pages were magnified The EXFOR WebInterface is publicly available at the websites of the Nuclear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor the National Nuclear Data Center httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor
nuclear physics concepts The EXFOR interface also contains online helpdisplayed as question mark buttons on the right side of the search boxesThese buttons produce pop-up windows that have information on text boxinput parameters and provide access to EXFOR dictionaries
322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
EXFOR is the only nuclear physics database that stores extensive de-scriptions of experimental results and facilities In fact these data representa treasure trove for investigation of research trends in nuclear physics [3] andprovide complementary background for nuclear data evaluations These datacan be extracted using extended keywords and expert requests
The extended retrieval provides additional capabilities for creating sophis-ticated database queries that include bibliographical metadata geographicalorigin (area country institute) NSR keynumbers (NSR database analoguesof EXFOR accession numbers) and compilation timing information
Keyword retrieval allows queries for experimental quantities that cannotbe easily found anywhere else detector method monitor facility incomingsource and spectrum data analysis detected particles and radiations and
17
experimental data originsThe expert retrieval supplies capabilities for searching for outgoing parti-
cle parameters data units ranges for experimental data points and EXFORcompilation centers individual compilers and data transmissions As it wasmentioned previously all text box search fields are implemented as a logicalldquoORrdquo operator and therefore missing search fields are ignored by SQL dataqueries
33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
The EXFOR system has matured over the years into a very advancedproduct and several complex features represent a challenge for new users Toovercome these issues the webpage News display box numerical and plottingexamples of requests and video guides (httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4guide)have been prepared These resources provide constant updates on new EX-FOR system features and share best user practices The EXFOR examplesare intended for user education purposes and supply additional insights on in-terface capabilities The broad scope of examples helped to improve EXFORuser experiences and such policies contributed to the worldwide popularityof the service
34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
The EXFOR interface is a gateway to the latest experimental nuclearreaction data stored at the IAEA and NNDC databases and it has a verybroad spectrum of usage worldwide In order to provide the best qualityof services the authors monitor the interface operation [18 41] Monitor-ing includes collection of web statistics geographical coverage network dataanalysis and estimates of database usage The EXFOR database retrievalstatistics are very conservative and completely based on a count of success-ful database retrievals any Web browser hits are ignored Retrievals fornon-existing entities in the database (eg author reaction target) whichproduce an empty output file are rejected Complete information for eachretrieval is recorded in separate Web statistic data files and usually sim300retrievalsday are observed from the IAEA and NNDC websites
The absolute number of Web retrievals provides only a partial estimateof product usage To further estimate the impact of the current productretrieval statistics can be complimented with the Google Scholar data TheScholar Web application allows retrieval of information on the EXFOR Webapplication usage from research articles A simple Google Scholar search for
18
2 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 50
5 0
1 0 0
1 5 0
2 0 0
2 5 0
3 0 0
Goog
le Sc
holar
Citat
ions
Y e a r
w w w n n d c b n l g o v e x f o r w w w - n d s i a e a o r g e x f o r
Figure 8 The worldwide impact of EXFOR Web application based on the NDS IAEAand NNDC BNL citation statistics The plot shows an incremental growth of websiteGoogle Scholar citations over the years
the NDS httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor and NNDC httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfortext strings results in sim1100 and sim770 citations respectively These cita-tions originate from research papers where the EXFOR interface address wasmentioned The growth curve shown in Fig 8 is well matched with the Webretrieval statistics [41] The agreement between these trends provides a ver-ification of the present analysis and confirms a broad usage of the EXFORWeb interface
Complementary insights on EXFOR usage can be obtained from the Webinterface usage pattern pie chart shown in Fig 9 The chart is based on aGoogle Analytics analysis of NNDC and NDS Web traffic sim100000 interac-tions per year (data searches are not included) and sim2500 unique users permonth The EXFOR plot X4plusmn interactive tree (iTree) X4+ interpretedT4 simplified and original format retrievals constitute 232 206 185 125and 88 of total operations respectively Other noticeable contributionsinclude access of publisher Digital Object Identifier (DOI) links and NSRdatabase downloads of plotted data and PDF files and covariance matrixcalculation using experimental uncertainties Usage of the retrieval system
19
2 3 2 P l o t2 0 6 X 4 i T r e e1 8 5 X 4 + I n t e r p r e t e d1 2 5 T 4 S i m p l i f i e d
8 8 X 4 O r i g i n a l6 4 P u b l i s h e r L i n k s3 9 D o w n l o a d P l o t t e d2 1 P D F1 3 C r e a t e C o v M a t r i x1 1 N S R - k e y n o1 6 O t h e r s
Figure 9 Google Analytics statistical analysis for EXFOR Web interface
can be summarized as follows
bull EXFOR data downloads in various interpreted formats (iTree X4+T4 - sim50) These data transfers exceed the original EXFOR formatretrievals (lt9)
bull EXFOR plotting with the subsequent download of plotted data as textor html tables (sim27) and construction of covariance matrices usingexperimental uncertainties (sim1)
bull DOI access of publisher web sites (64) and NSR web retrieval system(sim1) and download of PDF copies (sim2) The last option is availablefor authorized users only due to copyright restrictions
bull Other tools and operations (lt2) for example extremely valuablefor nuclear physicist or engineer EXFOR cross section renormalization(fifty-two unique clients in 2016 represent sim01 of all operations)
4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
The EXFOR computer database is an integral part of nuclear data Webservices is firmly related to nuclear reaction data evaluations and requiresaccess to nuclear bibliography The combined development of the experi-mental evaluated and bibliographical nuclear reaction databases was a costeffective solution that allowed reuse of Java classes Web implementation of
20
plotting packages and reduction of overall time for application developmentand testing
41 ENDF
ENDF is a core nuclear reaction database containing evaluated (recom-mended) cross sections spectra angular distributions fission product yieldsthermal neutron scattering and photo-atomic and other data with an em-phasis on neutron-induced reactions ENDF library evaluations are basedon theoretical calculations normalized to experimental data with an excep-tion of neutron resonance region where priority is given to experimentaldata ENDF evaluations consist of complete neutron reaction data setsfor particular isotope or element (ENDF material) They cover all neu-tron reaction channels within the 10minus5 eV - 20 MeV energy range Nowa-days in many evaluated data libraries this energy range is extended tohigher energies All these data sets are stored in the internationally-adoptedENDF-6 format that is maintained by the Cross Section Evaluation Work-ing Group (CSEWG) and publicly available at the NNDC and NDS web-sites httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf and httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf re-spectively Cross section evaluations are of great importance for nuclearenergy and science applications and they are performed internationally forENDF JEFF TENDL JENDL ROSFOND and CENDL libraries [24 2526 27 28 29] in the USA Europe Japan Russian Federation and Chinarespectively
The EXFOR project is a primary source of experimental nuclear reac-tion data for neutron cross section evaluations In practice many ENDFevaluations are produced using nuclear reaction model codes EMPIRE orTALYS [42 43] that contain EXFOR database connectivity modules Thecomputer codes are used for calculation neutron-induced reaction theoreticalcurves data analysis and comparison with experimental data These eval-uations are critically important for many applications because they provideevaluated neutron cross sections for operation of nuclear power plants andGEANT and MCNP computer codes [44 45]
The ENDF Web interface takes its contents from a separate ENDF re-lational database It contains the most complete international collection ofevaluated nuclear reaction libraries includes data analysis capabilities andintegrated with experimental data The interface shown in Fig 10 servesevaluated data in many output formats and incorporates the ZVView pro-gram [22] The IAEA and NNDC interfaces are slightly different on a client
21
ENDF
Figure 10 ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated and experimental cross sectionsfor 235U(nf) reaction data inputs for the ENDF data selection pages were magni-fied The visualized evaluated data have been processed with the PREPRO code [46]at T=29316 K ENDF Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovendf
side and completely identical on the server side These differences have beenintroduced to reflect different user requirements Both interfaces allow usersto search a large number of evaluated libraries for relevant evaluations us-ing target reaction quantity product and other parameters For exampleconsider ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated nuclear data retrieval for235U(nf) reaction cross sections in conjunction with experimental data li-brary = ENDFB-VII1 JEFF-32 target = 235U reaction = nf and quan-tity = cs This retrieval can be accomplished from the main ENDF interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf) or as shown here by clicking an ENDF but-ton next to the experimental cross sections plotted in Fig 7 The ENDFdatabase output demonstrates that ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluatedcross sections agree well with experimental values
42 CINDA
Nuclear bibliography is essential for nuclear reaction data compilationsCINDA contains many historic publications that are not available in anyother database These publications are grouped by experiment and thedatabase allows application of energy range criteria for data searches Theseunique capabilities are still in demand by nuclear data evaluators Currently
22
CINDA
Figure 11 Nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf) reaction experimental cross sec-tions The CINDA Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovcinda
separate CINDA data compilations are terminated and CINDA contents areextended by new information from the EXFOR and NSR databases
CINDA contains the most extensive nuclear reaction bibliography it isintegrated with the EXFOR Web retrieval system and allows users to searchfor information that is not available in EXFOR The database interface in-cludes all major EXFOR search fields and provides data outputs in text andHTML formats For example to retrieve nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf)reaction cross sections the following input parameters are assumed target= 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs As shown in Fig 11 CINDAdatabase output consists of 2406 publications and 2736 reactions
5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
Originally EXFOR Web Interface was created to perform only basic op-erations data search retrieval and presentation It is now part of a largeand developed Web System including extended functionality and tools forregular [external or traditional] users EXFOR compilers and ENDF andENSDF [47] evaluators There are many interesting EXFOR Web interface
23
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
for comparison using a variety of options to study graphical numerical andbibliographic information along with the possibility of analyzing the resultsof the userrsquos evaluations Since 2010 the ZVView program has been extendedto plot 2-dimensional arrays Z(XY) with the main purpose of displaying cor-relation matrices The package allows users to change plotting parameterssuch as type of data view (curve histogram map 3D animation symbolsof points colors error bars) logarithmic and linear scales zoom split plotto sub-windows smoothing by least-squares method choice of data and au-thors to be plotted scans of their points and changing language on the flyThe Web-ZVView program implements the majority of these functions asintegrated part of EXFOR and ENDF Web retrieval systems
The current Web interface is a very sophisticated product that reflectsthe overall complexity of nuclear reaction data The immense variety andvolume of the archived quantities require advanced data retrieval capabilitiesat the same time a large number of EXFOR users are still looking for simpleretrievals of reaction cross sections To accommodate these different usergroups four levels of EXFOR retrievals have been introduced basic (simple)extended keywords and expert
321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
The majority of EXFOR users are not familiar with the databasersquos ad-vanced structure or its philosophy This user group includes nuclear scien-tists engineers and graduate students that need direct access to the latestnuclear reaction data sets To satisfy their needs the authors have developedsimple EXFOR retrievals that are based on target reaction experimentalquantity product energy range authors publication year and accessionnumber search parameters All search fields are based on a logical ldquoORrdquooperator () that returns the Boolean value true if either of the operandsis true and returns false otherwise Therefore empty fields are ignored by adata search query and users can easily construct database queries using Webinterface search fields To demonstrate the present Web interface graphic anddata capabilities the authors will consider a case of 235U(nf) reaction crosssections Fig 7 shows a simple retrieval for the following input parameterstarget = 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs
To improve user experience a simple text string Google-like search hasbeen recently added to the EXFOR Web interface It is located on the topright side of the EXFOR front page This search is intended for less sophis-ticated EXFOR users who prefer to mine experimental data using common
16
Figure 7 An example of simple cross section retrieval for 235U(nf) reaction data in-puts for the EXFOR front and data selection pages were magnified The EXFOR WebInterface is publicly available at the websites of the Nuclear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor the National Nuclear Data Center httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor
nuclear physics concepts The EXFOR interface also contains online helpdisplayed as question mark buttons on the right side of the search boxesThese buttons produce pop-up windows that have information on text boxinput parameters and provide access to EXFOR dictionaries
322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
EXFOR is the only nuclear physics database that stores extensive de-scriptions of experimental results and facilities In fact these data representa treasure trove for investigation of research trends in nuclear physics [3] andprovide complementary background for nuclear data evaluations These datacan be extracted using extended keywords and expert requests
The extended retrieval provides additional capabilities for creating sophis-ticated database queries that include bibliographical metadata geographicalorigin (area country institute) NSR keynumbers (NSR database analoguesof EXFOR accession numbers) and compilation timing information
Keyword retrieval allows queries for experimental quantities that cannotbe easily found anywhere else detector method monitor facility incomingsource and spectrum data analysis detected particles and radiations and
17
experimental data originsThe expert retrieval supplies capabilities for searching for outgoing parti-
cle parameters data units ranges for experimental data points and EXFORcompilation centers individual compilers and data transmissions As it wasmentioned previously all text box search fields are implemented as a logicalldquoORrdquo operator and therefore missing search fields are ignored by SQL dataqueries
33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
The EXFOR system has matured over the years into a very advancedproduct and several complex features represent a challenge for new users Toovercome these issues the webpage News display box numerical and plottingexamples of requests and video guides (httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4guide)have been prepared These resources provide constant updates on new EX-FOR system features and share best user practices The EXFOR examplesare intended for user education purposes and supply additional insights on in-terface capabilities The broad scope of examples helped to improve EXFORuser experiences and such policies contributed to the worldwide popularityof the service
34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
The EXFOR interface is a gateway to the latest experimental nuclearreaction data stored at the IAEA and NNDC databases and it has a verybroad spectrum of usage worldwide In order to provide the best qualityof services the authors monitor the interface operation [18 41] Monitor-ing includes collection of web statistics geographical coverage network dataanalysis and estimates of database usage The EXFOR database retrievalstatistics are very conservative and completely based on a count of success-ful database retrievals any Web browser hits are ignored Retrievals fornon-existing entities in the database (eg author reaction target) whichproduce an empty output file are rejected Complete information for eachretrieval is recorded in separate Web statistic data files and usually sim300retrievalsday are observed from the IAEA and NNDC websites
The absolute number of Web retrievals provides only a partial estimateof product usage To further estimate the impact of the current productretrieval statistics can be complimented with the Google Scholar data TheScholar Web application allows retrieval of information on the EXFOR Webapplication usage from research articles A simple Google Scholar search for
18
2 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 50
5 0
1 0 0
1 5 0
2 0 0
2 5 0
3 0 0
Goog
le Sc
holar
Citat
ions
Y e a r
w w w n n d c b n l g o v e x f o r w w w - n d s i a e a o r g e x f o r
Figure 8 The worldwide impact of EXFOR Web application based on the NDS IAEAand NNDC BNL citation statistics The plot shows an incremental growth of websiteGoogle Scholar citations over the years
the NDS httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor and NNDC httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfortext strings results in sim1100 and sim770 citations respectively These cita-tions originate from research papers where the EXFOR interface address wasmentioned The growth curve shown in Fig 8 is well matched with the Webretrieval statistics [41] The agreement between these trends provides a ver-ification of the present analysis and confirms a broad usage of the EXFORWeb interface
Complementary insights on EXFOR usage can be obtained from the Webinterface usage pattern pie chart shown in Fig 9 The chart is based on aGoogle Analytics analysis of NNDC and NDS Web traffic sim100000 interac-tions per year (data searches are not included) and sim2500 unique users permonth The EXFOR plot X4plusmn interactive tree (iTree) X4+ interpretedT4 simplified and original format retrievals constitute 232 206 185 125and 88 of total operations respectively Other noticeable contributionsinclude access of publisher Digital Object Identifier (DOI) links and NSRdatabase downloads of plotted data and PDF files and covariance matrixcalculation using experimental uncertainties Usage of the retrieval system
19
2 3 2 P l o t2 0 6 X 4 i T r e e1 8 5 X 4 + I n t e r p r e t e d1 2 5 T 4 S i m p l i f i e d
8 8 X 4 O r i g i n a l6 4 P u b l i s h e r L i n k s3 9 D o w n l o a d P l o t t e d2 1 P D F1 3 C r e a t e C o v M a t r i x1 1 N S R - k e y n o1 6 O t h e r s
Figure 9 Google Analytics statistical analysis for EXFOR Web interface
can be summarized as follows
bull EXFOR data downloads in various interpreted formats (iTree X4+T4 - sim50) These data transfers exceed the original EXFOR formatretrievals (lt9)
bull EXFOR plotting with the subsequent download of plotted data as textor html tables (sim27) and construction of covariance matrices usingexperimental uncertainties (sim1)
bull DOI access of publisher web sites (64) and NSR web retrieval system(sim1) and download of PDF copies (sim2) The last option is availablefor authorized users only due to copyright restrictions
bull Other tools and operations (lt2) for example extremely valuablefor nuclear physicist or engineer EXFOR cross section renormalization(fifty-two unique clients in 2016 represent sim01 of all operations)
4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
The EXFOR computer database is an integral part of nuclear data Webservices is firmly related to nuclear reaction data evaluations and requiresaccess to nuclear bibliography The combined development of the experi-mental evaluated and bibliographical nuclear reaction databases was a costeffective solution that allowed reuse of Java classes Web implementation of
20
plotting packages and reduction of overall time for application developmentand testing
41 ENDF
ENDF is a core nuclear reaction database containing evaluated (recom-mended) cross sections spectra angular distributions fission product yieldsthermal neutron scattering and photo-atomic and other data with an em-phasis on neutron-induced reactions ENDF library evaluations are basedon theoretical calculations normalized to experimental data with an excep-tion of neutron resonance region where priority is given to experimentaldata ENDF evaluations consist of complete neutron reaction data setsfor particular isotope or element (ENDF material) They cover all neu-tron reaction channels within the 10minus5 eV - 20 MeV energy range Nowa-days in many evaluated data libraries this energy range is extended tohigher energies All these data sets are stored in the internationally-adoptedENDF-6 format that is maintained by the Cross Section Evaluation Work-ing Group (CSEWG) and publicly available at the NNDC and NDS web-sites httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf and httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf re-spectively Cross section evaluations are of great importance for nuclearenergy and science applications and they are performed internationally forENDF JEFF TENDL JENDL ROSFOND and CENDL libraries [24 2526 27 28 29] in the USA Europe Japan Russian Federation and Chinarespectively
The EXFOR project is a primary source of experimental nuclear reac-tion data for neutron cross section evaluations In practice many ENDFevaluations are produced using nuclear reaction model codes EMPIRE orTALYS [42 43] that contain EXFOR database connectivity modules Thecomputer codes are used for calculation neutron-induced reaction theoreticalcurves data analysis and comparison with experimental data These eval-uations are critically important for many applications because they provideevaluated neutron cross sections for operation of nuclear power plants andGEANT and MCNP computer codes [44 45]
The ENDF Web interface takes its contents from a separate ENDF re-lational database It contains the most complete international collection ofevaluated nuclear reaction libraries includes data analysis capabilities andintegrated with experimental data The interface shown in Fig 10 servesevaluated data in many output formats and incorporates the ZVView pro-gram [22] The IAEA and NNDC interfaces are slightly different on a client
21
ENDF
Figure 10 ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated and experimental cross sectionsfor 235U(nf) reaction data inputs for the ENDF data selection pages were magni-fied The visualized evaluated data have been processed with the PREPRO code [46]at T=29316 K ENDF Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovendf
side and completely identical on the server side These differences have beenintroduced to reflect different user requirements Both interfaces allow usersto search a large number of evaluated libraries for relevant evaluations us-ing target reaction quantity product and other parameters For exampleconsider ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated nuclear data retrieval for235U(nf) reaction cross sections in conjunction with experimental data li-brary = ENDFB-VII1 JEFF-32 target = 235U reaction = nf and quan-tity = cs This retrieval can be accomplished from the main ENDF interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf) or as shown here by clicking an ENDF but-ton next to the experimental cross sections plotted in Fig 7 The ENDFdatabase output demonstrates that ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluatedcross sections agree well with experimental values
42 CINDA
Nuclear bibliography is essential for nuclear reaction data compilationsCINDA contains many historic publications that are not available in anyother database These publications are grouped by experiment and thedatabase allows application of energy range criteria for data searches Theseunique capabilities are still in demand by nuclear data evaluators Currently
22
CINDA
Figure 11 Nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf) reaction experimental cross sec-tions The CINDA Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovcinda
separate CINDA data compilations are terminated and CINDA contents areextended by new information from the EXFOR and NSR databases
CINDA contains the most extensive nuclear reaction bibliography it isintegrated with the EXFOR Web retrieval system and allows users to searchfor information that is not available in EXFOR The database interface in-cludes all major EXFOR search fields and provides data outputs in text andHTML formats For example to retrieve nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf)reaction cross sections the following input parameters are assumed target= 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs As shown in Fig 11 CINDAdatabase output consists of 2406 publications and 2736 reactions
5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
Originally EXFOR Web Interface was created to perform only basic op-erations data search retrieval and presentation It is now part of a largeand developed Web System including extended functionality and tools forregular [external or traditional] users EXFOR compilers and ENDF andENSDF [47] evaluators There are many interesting EXFOR Web interface
23
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
Figure 7 An example of simple cross section retrieval for 235U(nf) reaction data in-puts for the EXFOR front and data selection pages were magnified The EXFOR WebInterface is publicly available at the websites of the Nuclear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor the National Nuclear Data Center httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor
nuclear physics concepts The EXFOR interface also contains online helpdisplayed as question mark buttons on the right side of the search boxesThese buttons produce pop-up windows that have information on text boxinput parameters and provide access to EXFOR dictionaries
322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
EXFOR is the only nuclear physics database that stores extensive de-scriptions of experimental results and facilities In fact these data representa treasure trove for investigation of research trends in nuclear physics [3] andprovide complementary background for nuclear data evaluations These datacan be extracted using extended keywords and expert requests
The extended retrieval provides additional capabilities for creating sophis-ticated database queries that include bibliographical metadata geographicalorigin (area country institute) NSR keynumbers (NSR database analoguesof EXFOR accession numbers) and compilation timing information
Keyword retrieval allows queries for experimental quantities that cannotbe easily found anywhere else detector method monitor facility incomingsource and spectrum data analysis detected particles and radiations and
17
experimental data originsThe expert retrieval supplies capabilities for searching for outgoing parti-
cle parameters data units ranges for experimental data points and EXFORcompilation centers individual compilers and data transmissions As it wasmentioned previously all text box search fields are implemented as a logicalldquoORrdquo operator and therefore missing search fields are ignored by SQL dataqueries
33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
The EXFOR system has matured over the years into a very advancedproduct and several complex features represent a challenge for new users Toovercome these issues the webpage News display box numerical and plottingexamples of requests and video guides (httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4guide)have been prepared These resources provide constant updates on new EX-FOR system features and share best user practices The EXFOR examplesare intended for user education purposes and supply additional insights on in-terface capabilities The broad scope of examples helped to improve EXFORuser experiences and such policies contributed to the worldwide popularityof the service
34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
The EXFOR interface is a gateway to the latest experimental nuclearreaction data stored at the IAEA and NNDC databases and it has a verybroad spectrum of usage worldwide In order to provide the best qualityof services the authors monitor the interface operation [18 41] Monitor-ing includes collection of web statistics geographical coverage network dataanalysis and estimates of database usage The EXFOR database retrievalstatistics are very conservative and completely based on a count of success-ful database retrievals any Web browser hits are ignored Retrievals fornon-existing entities in the database (eg author reaction target) whichproduce an empty output file are rejected Complete information for eachretrieval is recorded in separate Web statistic data files and usually sim300retrievalsday are observed from the IAEA and NNDC websites
The absolute number of Web retrievals provides only a partial estimateof product usage To further estimate the impact of the current productretrieval statistics can be complimented with the Google Scholar data TheScholar Web application allows retrieval of information on the EXFOR Webapplication usage from research articles A simple Google Scholar search for
18
2 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 50
5 0
1 0 0
1 5 0
2 0 0
2 5 0
3 0 0
Goog
le Sc
holar
Citat
ions
Y e a r
w w w n n d c b n l g o v e x f o r w w w - n d s i a e a o r g e x f o r
Figure 8 The worldwide impact of EXFOR Web application based on the NDS IAEAand NNDC BNL citation statistics The plot shows an incremental growth of websiteGoogle Scholar citations over the years
the NDS httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor and NNDC httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfortext strings results in sim1100 and sim770 citations respectively These cita-tions originate from research papers where the EXFOR interface address wasmentioned The growth curve shown in Fig 8 is well matched with the Webretrieval statistics [41] The agreement between these trends provides a ver-ification of the present analysis and confirms a broad usage of the EXFORWeb interface
Complementary insights on EXFOR usage can be obtained from the Webinterface usage pattern pie chart shown in Fig 9 The chart is based on aGoogle Analytics analysis of NNDC and NDS Web traffic sim100000 interac-tions per year (data searches are not included) and sim2500 unique users permonth The EXFOR plot X4plusmn interactive tree (iTree) X4+ interpretedT4 simplified and original format retrievals constitute 232 206 185 125and 88 of total operations respectively Other noticeable contributionsinclude access of publisher Digital Object Identifier (DOI) links and NSRdatabase downloads of plotted data and PDF files and covariance matrixcalculation using experimental uncertainties Usage of the retrieval system
19
2 3 2 P l o t2 0 6 X 4 i T r e e1 8 5 X 4 + I n t e r p r e t e d1 2 5 T 4 S i m p l i f i e d
8 8 X 4 O r i g i n a l6 4 P u b l i s h e r L i n k s3 9 D o w n l o a d P l o t t e d2 1 P D F1 3 C r e a t e C o v M a t r i x1 1 N S R - k e y n o1 6 O t h e r s
Figure 9 Google Analytics statistical analysis for EXFOR Web interface
can be summarized as follows
bull EXFOR data downloads in various interpreted formats (iTree X4+T4 - sim50) These data transfers exceed the original EXFOR formatretrievals (lt9)
bull EXFOR plotting with the subsequent download of plotted data as textor html tables (sim27) and construction of covariance matrices usingexperimental uncertainties (sim1)
bull DOI access of publisher web sites (64) and NSR web retrieval system(sim1) and download of PDF copies (sim2) The last option is availablefor authorized users only due to copyright restrictions
bull Other tools and operations (lt2) for example extremely valuablefor nuclear physicist or engineer EXFOR cross section renormalization(fifty-two unique clients in 2016 represent sim01 of all operations)
4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
The EXFOR computer database is an integral part of nuclear data Webservices is firmly related to nuclear reaction data evaluations and requiresaccess to nuclear bibliography The combined development of the experi-mental evaluated and bibliographical nuclear reaction databases was a costeffective solution that allowed reuse of Java classes Web implementation of
20
plotting packages and reduction of overall time for application developmentand testing
41 ENDF
ENDF is a core nuclear reaction database containing evaluated (recom-mended) cross sections spectra angular distributions fission product yieldsthermal neutron scattering and photo-atomic and other data with an em-phasis on neutron-induced reactions ENDF library evaluations are basedon theoretical calculations normalized to experimental data with an excep-tion of neutron resonance region where priority is given to experimentaldata ENDF evaluations consist of complete neutron reaction data setsfor particular isotope or element (ENDF material) They cover all neu-tron reaction channels within the 10minus5 eV - 20 MeV energy range Nowa-days in many evaluated data libraries this energy range is extended tohigher energies All these data sets are stored in the internationally-adoptedENDF-6 format that is maintained by the Cross Section Evaluation Work-ing Group (CSEWG) and publicly available at the NNDC and NDS web-sites httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf and httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf re-spectively Cross section evaluations are of great importance for nuclearenergy and science applications and they are performed internationally forENDF JEFF TENDL JENDL ROSFOND and CENDL libraries [24 2526 27 28 29] in the USA Europe Japan Russian Federation and Chinarespectively
The EXFOR project is a primary source of experimental nuclear reac-tion data for neutron cross section evaluations In practice many ENDFevaluations are produced using nuclear reaction model codes EMPIRE orTALYS [42 43] that contain EXFOR database connectivity modules Thecomputer codes are used for calculation neutron-induced reaction theoreticalcurves data analysis and comparison with experimental data These eval-uations are critically important for many applications because they provideevaluated neutron cross sections for operation of nuclear power plants andGEANT and MCNP computer codes [44 45]
The ENDF Web interface takes its contents from a separate ENDF re-lational database It contains the most complete international collection ofevaluated nuclear reaction libraries includes data analysis capabilities andintegrated with experimental data The interface shown in Fig 10 servesevaluated data in many output formats and incorporates the ZVView pro-gram [22] The IAEA and NNDC interfaces are slightly different on a client
21
ENDF
Figure 10 ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated and experimental cross sectionsfor 235U(nf) reaction data inputs for the ENDF data selection pages were magni-fied The visualized evaluated data have been processed with the PREPRO code [46]at T=29316 K ENDF Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovendf
side and completely identical on the server side These differences have beenintroduced to reflect different user requirements Both interfaces allow usersto search a large number of evaluated libraries for relevant evaluations us-ing target reaction quantity product and other parameters For exampleconsider ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated nuclear data retrieval for235U(nf) reaction cross sections in conjunction with experimental data li-brary = ENDFB-VII1 JEFF-32 target = 235U reaction = nf and quan-tity = cs This retrieval can be accomplished from the main ENDF interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf) or as shown here by clicking an ENDF but-ton next to the experimental cross sections plotted in Fig 7 The ENDFdatabase output demonstrates that ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluatedcross sections agree well with experimental values
42 CINDA
Nuclear bibliography is essential for nuclear reaction data compilationsCINDA contains many historic publications that are not available in anyother database These publications are grouped by experiment and thedatabase allows application of energy range criteria for data searches Theseunique capabilities are still in demand by nuclear data evaluators Currently
22
CINDA
Figure 11 Nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf) reaction experimental cross sec-tions The CINDA Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovcinda
separate CINDA data compilations are terminated and CINDA contents areextended by new information from the EXFOR and NSR databases
CINDA contains the most extensive nuclear reaction bibliography it isintegrated with the EXFOR Web retrieval system and allows users to searchfor information that is not available in EXFOR The database interface in-cludes all major EXFOR search fields and provides data outputs in text andHTML formats For example to retrieve nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf)reaction cross sections the following input parameters are assumed target= 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs As shown in Fig 11 CINDAdatabase output consists of 2406 publications and 2736 reactions
5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
Originally EXFOR Web Interface was created to perform only basic op-erations data search retrieval and presentation It is now part of a largeand developed Web System including extended functionality and tools forregular [external or traditional] users EXFOR compilers and ENDF andENSDF [47] evaluators There are many interesting EXFOR Web interface
23
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
experimental data originsThe expert retrieval supplies capabilities for searching for outgoing parti-
cle parameters data units ranges for experimental data points and EXFORcompilation centers individual compilers and data transmissions As it wasmentioned previously all text box search fields are implemented as a logicalldquoORrdquo operator and therefore missing search fields are ignored by SQL dataqueries
33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
The EXFOR system has matured over the years into a very advancedproduct and several complex features represent a challenge for new users Toovercome these issues the webpage News display box numerical and plottingexamples of requests and video guides (httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4guide)have been prepared These resources provide constant updates on new EX-FOR system features and share best user practices The EXFOR examplesare intended for user education purposes and supply additional insights on in-terface capabilities The broad scope of examples helped to improve EXFORuser experiences and such policies contributed to the worldwide popularityof the service
34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
The EXFOR interface is a gateway to the latest experimental nuclearreaction data stored at the IAEA and NNDC databases and it has a verybroad spectrum of usage worldwide In order to provide the best qualityof services the authors monitor the interface operation [18 41] Monitor-ing includes collection of web statistics geographical coverage network dataanalysis and estimates of database usage The EXFOR database retrievalstatistics are very conservative and completely based on a count of success-ful database retrievals any Web browser hits are ignored Retrievals fornon-existing entities in the database (eg author reaction target) whichproduce an empty output file are rejected Complete information for eachretrieval is recorded in separate Web statistic data files and usually sim300retrievalsday are observed from the IAEA and NNDC websites
The absolute number of Web retrievals provides only a partial estimateof product usage To further estimate the impact of the current productretrieval statistics can be complimented with the Google Scholar data TheScholar Web application allows retrieval of information on the EXFOR Webapplication usage from research articles A simple Google Scholar search for
18
2 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 50
5 0
1 0 0
1 5 0
2 0 0
2 5 0
3 0 0
Goog
le Sc
holar
Citat
ions
Y e a r
w w w n n d c b n l g o v e x f o r w w w - n d s i a e a o r g e x f o r
Figure 8 The worldwide impact of EXFOR Web application based on the NDS IAEAand NNDC BNL citation statistics The plot shows an incremental growth of websiteGoogle Scholar citations over the years
the NDS httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor and NNDC httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfortext strings results in sim1100 and sim770 citations respectively These cita-tions originate from research papers where the EXFOR interface address wasmentioned The growth curve shown in Fig 8 is well matched with the Webretrieval statistics [41] The agreement between these trends provides a ver-ification of the present analysis and confirms a broad usage of the EXFORWeb interface
Complementary insights on EXFOR usage can be obtained from the Webinterface usage pattern pie chart shown in Fig 9 The chart is based on aGoogle Analytics analysis of NNDC and NDS Web traffic sim100000 interac-tions per year (data searches are not included) and sim2500 unique users permonth The EXFOR plot X4plusmn interactive tree (iTree) X4+ interpretedT4 simplified and original format retrievals constitute 232 206 185 125and 88 of total operations respectively Other noticeable contributionsinclude access of publisher Digital Object Identifier (DOI) links and NSRdatabase downloads of plotted data and PDF files and covariance matrixcalculation using experimental uncertainties Usage of the retrieval system
19
2 3 2 P l o t2 0 6 X 4 i T r e e1 8 5 X 4 + I n t e r p r e t e d1 2 5 T 4 S i m p l i f i e d
8 8 X 4 O r i g i n a l6 4 P u b l i s h e r L i n k s3 9 D o w n l o a d P l o t t e d2 1 P D F1 3 C r e a t e C o v M a t r i x1 1 N S R - k e y n o1 6 O t h e r s
Figure 9 Google Analytics statistical analysis for EXFOR Web interface
can be summarized as follows
bull EXFOR data downloads in various interpreted formats (iTree X4+T4 - sim50) These data transfers exceed the original EXFOR formatretrievals (lt9)
bull EXFOR plotting with the subsequent download of plotted data as textor html tables (sim27) and construction of covariance matrices usingexperimental uncertainties (sim1)
bull DOI access of publisher web sites (64) and NSR web retrieval system(sim1) and download of PDF copies (sim2) The last option is availablefor authorized users only due to copyright restrictions
bull Other tools and operations (lt2) for example extremely valuablefor nuclear physicist or engineer EXFOR cross section renormalization(fifty-two unique clients in 2016 represent sim01 of all operations)
4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
The EXFOR computer database is an integral part of nuclear data Webservices is firmly related to nuclear reaction data evaluations and requiresaccess to nuclear bibliography The combined development of the experi-mental evaluated and bibliographical nuclear reaction databases was a costeffective solution that allowed reuse of Java classes Web implementation of
20
plotting packages and reduction of overall time for application developmentand testing
41 ENDF
ENDF is a core nuclear reaction database containing evaluated (recom-mended) cross sections spectra angular distributions fission product yieldsthermal neutron scattering and photo-atomic and other data with an em-phasis on neutron-induced reactions ENDF library evaluations are basedon theoretical calculations normalized to experimental data with an excep-tion of neutron resonance region where priority is given to experimentaldata ENDF evaluations consist of complete neutron reaction data setsfor particular isotope or element (ENDF material) They cover all neu-tron reaction channels within the 10minus5 eV - 20 MeV energy range Nowa-days in many evaluated data libraries this energy range is extended tohigher energies All these data sets are stored in the internationally-adoptedENDF-6 format that is maintained by the Cross Section Evaluation Work-ing Group (CSEWG) and publicly available at the NNDC and NDS web-sites httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf and httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf re-spectively Cross section evaluations are of great importance for nuclearenergy and science applications and they are performed internationally forENDF JEFF TENDL JENDL ROSFOND and CENDL libraries [24 2526 27 28 29] in the USA Europe Japan Russian Federation and Chinarespectively
The EXFOR project is a primary source of experimental nuclear reac-tion data for neutron cross section evaluations In practice many ENDFevaluations are produced using nuclear reaction model codes EMPIRE orTALYS [42 43] that contain EXFOR database connectivity modules Thecomputer codes are used for calculation neutron-induced reaction theoreticalcurves data analysis and comparison with experimental data These eval-uations are critically important for many applications because they provideevaluated neutron cross sections for operation of nuclear power plants andGEANT and MCNP computer codes [44 45]
The ENDF Web interface takes its contents from a separate ENDF re-lational database It contains the most complete international collection ofevaluated nuclear reaction libraries includes data analysis capabilities andintegrated with experimental data The interface shown in Fig 10 servesevaluated data in many output formats and incorporates the ZVView pro-gram [22] The IAEA and NNDC interfaces are slightly different on a client
21
ENDF
Figure 10 ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated and experimental cross sectionsfor 235U(nf) reaction data inputs for the ENDF data selection pages were magni-fied The visualized evaluated data have been processed with the PREPRO code [46]at T=29316 K ENDF Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovendf
side and completely identical on the server side These differences have beenintroduced to reflect different user requirements Both interfaces allow usersto search a large number of evaluated libraries for relevant evaluations us-ing target reaction quantity product and other parameters For exampleconsider ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated nuclear data retrieval for235U(nf) reaction cross sections in conjunction with experimental data li-brary = ENDFB-VII1 JEFF-32 target = 235U reaction = nf and quan-tity = cs This retrieval can be accomplished from the main ENDF interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf) or as shown here by clicking an ENDF but-ton next to the experimental cross sections plotted in Fig 7 The ENDFdatabase output demonstrates that ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluatedcross sections agree well with experimental values
42 CINDA
Nuclear bibliography is essential for nuclear reaction data compilationsCINDA contains many historic publications that are not available in anyother database These publications are grouped by experiment and thedatabase allows application of energy range criteria for data searches Theseunique capabilities are still in demand by nuclear data evaluators Currently
22
CINDA
Figure 11 Nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf) reaction experimental cross sec-tions The CINDA Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovcinda
separate CINDA data compilations are terminated and CINDA contents areextended by new information from the EXFOR and NSR databases
CINDA contains the most extensive nuclear reaction bibliography it isintegrated with the EXFOR Web retrieval system and allows users to searchfor information that is not available in EXFOR The database interface in-cludes all major EXFOR search fields and provides data outputs in text andHTML formats For example to retrieve nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf)reaction cross sections the following input parameters are assumed target= 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs As shown in Fig 11 CINDAdatabase output consists of 2406 publications and 2736 reactions
5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
Originally EXFOR Web Interface was created to perform only basic op-erations data search retrieval and presentation It is now part of a largeand developed Web System including extended functionality and tools forregular [external or traditional] users EXFOR compilers and ENDF andENSDF [47] evaluators There are many interesting EXFOR Web interface
23
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
2 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 50
5 0
1 0 0
1 5 0
2 0 0
2 5 0
3 0 0
Goog
le Sc
holar
Citat
ions
Y e a r
w w w n n d c b n l g o v e x f o r w w w - n d s i a e a o r g e x f o r
Figure 8 The worldwide impact of EXFOR Web application based on the NDS IAEAand NNDC BNL citation statistics The plot shows an incremental growth of websiteGoogle Scholar citations over the years
the NDS httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor and NNDC httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfortext strings results in sim1100 and sim770 citations respectively These cita-tions originate from research papers where the EXFOR interface address wasmentioned The growth curve shown in Fig 8 is well matched with the Webretrieval statistics [41] The agreement between these trends provides a ver-ification of the present analysis and confirms a broad usage of the EXFORWeb interface
Complementary insights on EXFOR usage can be obtained from the Webinterface usage pattern pie chart shown in Fig 9 The chart is based on aGoogle Analytics analysis of NNDC and NDS Web traffic sim100000 interac-tions per year (data searches are not included) and sim2500 unique users permonth The EXFOR plot X4plusmn interactive tree (iTree) X4+ interpretedT4 simplified and original format retrievals constitute 232 206 185 125and 88 of total operations respectively Other noticeable contributionsinclude access of publisher Digital Object Identifier (DOI) links and NSRdatabase downloads of plotted data and PDF files and covariance matrixcalculation using experimental uncertainties Usage of the retrieval system
19
2 3 2 P l o t2 0 6 X 4 i T r e e1 8 5 X 4 + I n t e r p r e t e d1 2 5 T 4 S i m p l i f i e d
8 8 X 4 O r i g i n a l6 4 P u b l i s h e r L i n k s3 9 D o w n l o a d P l o t t e d2 1 P D F1 3 C r e a t e C o v M a t r i x1 1 N S R - k e y n o1 6 O t h e r s
Figure 9 Google Analytics statistical analysis for EXFOR Web interface
can be summarized as follows
bull EXFOR data downloads in various interpreted formats (iTree X4+T4 - sim50) These data transfers exceed the original EXFOR formatretrievals (lt9)
bull EXFOR plotting with the subsequent download of plotted data as textor html tables (sim27) and construction of covariance matrices usingexperimental uncertainties (sim1)
bull DOI access of publisher web sites (64) and NSR web retrieval system(sim1) and download of PDF copies (sim2) The last option is availablefor authorized users only due to copyright restrictions
bull Other tools and operations (lt2) for example extremely valuablefor nuclear physicist or engineer EXFOR cross section renormalization(fifty-two unique clients in 2016 represent sim01 of all operations)
4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
The EXFOR computer database is an integral part of nuclear data Webservices is firmly related to nuclear reaction data evaluations and requiresaccess to nuclear bibliography The combined development of the experi-mental evaluated and bibliographical nuclear reaction databases was a costeffective solution that allowed reuse of Java classes Web implementation of
20
plotting packages and reduction of overall time for application developmentand testing
41 ENDF
ENDF is a core nuclear reaction database containing evaluated (recom-mended) cross sections spectra angular distributions fission product yieldsthermal neutron scattering and photo-atomic and other data with an em-phasis on neutron-induced reactions ENDF library evaluations are basedon theoretical calculations normalized to experimental data with an excep-tion of neutron resonance region where priority is given to experimentaldata ENDF evaluations consist of complete neutron reaction data setsfor particular isotope or element (ENDF material) They cover all neu-tron reaction channels within the 10minus5 eV - 20 MeV energy range Nowa-days in many evaluated data libraries this energy range is extended tohigher energies All these data sets are stored in the internationally-adoptedENDF-6 format that is maintained by the Cross Section Evaluation Work-ing Group (CSEWG) and publicly available at the NNDC and NDS web-sites httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf and httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf re-spectively Cross section evaluations are of great importance for nuclearenergy and science applications and they are performed internationally forENDF JEFF TENDL JENDL ROSFOND and CENDL libraries [24 2526 27 28 29] in the USA Europe Japan Russian Federation and Chinarespectively
The EXFOR project is a primary source of experimental nuclear reac-tion data for neutron cross section evaluations In practice many ENDFevaluations are produced using nuclear reaction model codes EMPIRE orTALYS [42 43] that contain EXFOR database connectivity modules Thecomputer codes are used for calculation neutron-induced reaction theoreticalcurves data analysis and comparison with experimental data These eval-uations are critically important for many applications because they provideevaluated neutron cross sections for operation of nuclear power plants andGEANT and MCNP computer codes [44 45]
The ENDF Web interface takes its contents from a separate ENDF re-lational database It contains the most complete international collection ofevaluated nuclear reaction libraries includes data analysis capabilities andintegrated with experimental data The interface shown in Fig 10 servesevaluated data in many output formats and incorporates the ZVView pro-gram [22] The IAEA and NNDC interfaces are slightly different on a client
21
ENDF
Figure 10 ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated and experimental cross sectionsfor 235U(nf) reaction data inputs for the ENDF data selection pages were magni-fied The visualized evaluated data have been processed with the PREPRO code [46]at T=29316 K ENDF Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovendf
side and completely identical on the server side These differences have beenintroduced to reflect different user requirements Both interfaces allow usersto search a large number of evaluated libraries for relevant evaluations us-ing target reaction quantity product and other parameters For exampleconsider ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated nuclear data retrieval for235U(nf) reaction cross sections in conjunction with experimental data li-brary = ENDFB-VII1 JEFF-32 target = 235U reaction = nf and quan-tity = cs This retrieval can be accomplished from the main ENDF interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf) or as shown here by clicking an ENDF but-ton next to the experimental cross sections plotted in Fig 7 The ENDFdatabase output demonstrates that ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluatedcross sections agree well with experimental values
42 CINDA
Nuclear bibliography is essential for nuclear reaction data compilationsCINDA contains many historic publications that are not available in anyother database These publications are grouped by experiment and thedatabase allows application of energy range criteria for data searches Theseunique capabilities are still in demand by nuclear data evaluators Currently
22
CINDA
Figure 11 Nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf) reaction experimental cross sec-tions The CINDA Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovcinda
separate CINDA data compilations are terminated and CINDA contents areextended by new information from the EXFOR and NSR databases
CINDA contains the most extensive nuclear reaction bibliography it isintegrated with the EXFOR Web retrieval system and allows users to searchfor information that is not available in EXFOR The database interface in-cludes all major EXFOR search fields and provides data outputs in text andHTML formats For example to retrieve nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf)reaction cross sections the following input parameters are assumed target= 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs As shown in Fig 11 CINDAdatabase output consists of 2406 publications and 2736 reactions
5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
Originally EXFOR Web Interface was created to perform only basic op-erations data search retrieval and presentation It is now part of a largeand developed Web System including extended functionality and tools forregular [external or traditional] users EXFOR compilers and ENDF andENSDF [47] evaluators There are many interesting EXFOR Web interface
23
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
2 3 2 P l o t2 0 6 X 4 i T r e e1 8 5 X 4 + I n t e r p r e t e d1 2 5 T 4 S i m p l i f i e d
8 8 X 4 O r i g i n a l6 4 P u b l i s h e r L i n k s3 9 D o w n l o a d P l o t t e d2 1 P D F1 3 C r e a t e C o v M a t r i x1 1 N S R - k e y n o1 6 O t h e r s
Figure 9 Google Analytics statistical analysis for EXFOR Web interface
can be summarized as follows
bull EXFOR data downloads in various interpreted formats (iTree X4+T4 - sim50) These data transfers exceed the original EXFOR formatretrievals (lt9)
bull EXFOR plotting with the subsequent download of plotted data as textor html tables (sim27) and construction of covariance matrices usingexperimental uncertainties (sim1)
bull DOI access of publisher web sites (64) and NSR web retrieval system(sim1) and download of PDF copies (sim2) The last option is availablefor authorized users only due to copyright restrictions
bull Other tools and operations (lt2) for example extremely valuablefor nuclear physicist or engineer EXFOR cross section renormalization(fifty-two unique clients in 2016 represent sim01 of all operations)
4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
The EXFOR computer database is an integral part of nuclear data Webservices is firmly related to nuclear reaction data evaluations and requiresaccess to nuclear bibliography The combined development of the experi-mental evaluated and bibliographical nuclear reaction databases was a costeffective solution that allowed reuse of Java classes Web implementation of
20
plotting packages and reduction of overall time for application developmentand testing
41 ENDF
ENDF is a core nuclear reaction database containing evaluated (recom-mended) cross sections spectra angular distributions fission product yieldsthermal neutron scattering and photo-atomic and other data with an em-phasis on neutron-induced reactions ENDF library evaluations are basedon theoretical calculations normalized to experimental data with an excep-tion of neutron resonance region where priority is given to experimentaldata ENDF evaluations consist of complete neutron reaction data setsfor particular isotope or element (ENDF material) They cover all neu-tron reaction channels within the 10minus5 eV - 20 MeV energy range Nowa-days in many evaluated data libraries this energy range is extended tohigher energies All these data sets are stored in the internationally-adoptedENDF-6 format that is maintained by the Cross Section Evaluation Work-ing Group (CSEWG) and publicly available at the NNDC and NDS web-sites httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf and httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf re-spectively Cross section evaluations are of great importance for nuclearenergy and science applications and they are performed internationally forENDF JEFF TENDL JENDL ROSFOND and CENDL libraries [24 2526 27 28 29] in the USA Europe Japan Russian Federation and Chinarespectively
The EXFOR project is a primary source of experimental nuclear reac-tion data for neutron cross section evaluations In practice many ENDFevaluations are produced using nuclear reaction model codes EMPIRE orTALYS [42 43] that contain EXFOR database connectivity modules Thecomputer codes are used for calculation neutron-induced reaction theoreticalcurves data analysis and comparison with experimental data These eval-uations are critically important for many applications because they provideevaluated neutron cross sections for operation of nuclear power plants andGEANT and MCNP computer codes [44 45]
The ENDF Web interface takes its contents from a separate ENDF re-lational database It contains the most complete international collection ofevaluated nuclear reaction libraries includes data analysis capabilities andintegrated with experimental data The interface shown in Fig 10 servesevaluated data in many output formats and incorporates the ZVView pro-gram [22] The IAEA and NNDC interfaces are slightly different on a client
21
ENDF
Figure 10 ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated and experimental cross sectionsfor 235U(nf) reaction data inputs for the ENDF data selection pages were magni-fied The visualized evaluated data have been processed with the PREPRO code [46]at T=29316 K ENDF Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovendf
side and completely identical on the server side These differences have beenintroduced to reflect different user requirements Both interfaces allow usersto search a large number of evaluated libraries for relevant evaluations us-ing target reaction quantity product and other parameters For exampleconsider ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated nuclear data retrieval for235U(nf) reaction cross sections in conjunction with experimental data li-brary = ENDFB-VII1 JEFF-32 target = 235U reaction = nf and quan-tity = cs This retrieval can be accomplished from the main ENDF interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf) or as shown here by clicking an ENDF but-ton next to the experimental cross sections plotted in Fig 7 The ENDFdatabase output demonstrates that ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluatedcross sections agree well with experimental values
42 CINDA
Nuclear bibliography is essential for nuclear reaction data compilationsCINDA contains many historic publications that are not available in anyother database These publications are grouped by experiment and thedatabase allows application of energy range criteria for data searches Theseunique capabilities are still in demand by nuclear data evaluators Currently
22
CINDA
Figure 11 Nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf) reaction experimental cross sec-tions The CINDA Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovcinda
separate CINDA data compilations are terminated and CINDA contents areextended by new information from the EXFOR and NSR databases
CINDA contains the most extensive nuclear reaction bibliography it isintegrated with the EXFOR Web retrieval system and allows users to searchfor information that is not available in EXFOR The database interface in-cludes all major EXFOR search fields and provides data outputs in text andHTML formats For example to retrieve nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf)reaction cross sections the following input parameters are assumed target= 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs As shown in Fig 11 CINDAdatabase output consists of 2406 publications and 2736 reactions
5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
Originally EXFOR Web Interface was created to perform only basic op-erations data search retrieval and presentation It is now part of a largeand developed Web System including extended functionality and tools forregular [external or traditional] users EXFOR compilers and ENDF andENSDF [47] evaluators There are many interesting EXFOR Web interface
23
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
plotting packages and reduction of overall time for application developmentand testing
41 ENDF
ENDF is a core nuclear reaction database containing evaluated (recom-mended) cross sections spectra angular distributions fission product yieldsthermal neutron scattering and photo-atomic and other data with an em-phasis on neutron-induced reactions ENDF library evaluations are basedon theoretical calculations normalized to experimental data with an excep-tion of neutron resonance region where priority is given to experimentaldata ENDF evaluations consist of complete neutron reaction data setsfor particular isotope or element (ENDF material) They cover all neu-tron reaction channels within the 10minus5 eV - 20 MeV energy range Nowa-days in many evaluated data libraries this energy range is extended tohigher energies All these data sets are stored in the internationally-adoptedENDF-6 format that is maintained by the Cross Section Evaluation Work-ing Group (CSEWG) and publicly available at the NNDC and NDS web-sites httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf and httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf re-spectively Cross section evaluations are of great importance for nuclearenergy and science applications and they are performed internationally forENDF JEFF TENDL JENDL ROSFOND and CENDL libraries [24 2526 27 28 29] in the USA Europe Japan Russian Federation and Chinarespectively
The EXFOR project is a primary source of experimental nuclear reac-tion data for neutron cross section evaluations In practice many ENDFevaluations are produced using nuclear reaction model codes EMPIRE orTALYS [42 43] that contain EXFOR database connectivity modules Thecomputer codes are used for calculation neutron-induced reaction theoreticalcurves data analysis and comparison with experimental data These eval-uations are critically important for many applications because they provideevaluated neutron cross sections for operation of nuclear power plants andGEANT and MCNP computer codes [44 45]
The ENDF Web interface takes its contents from a separate ENDF re-lational database It contains the most complete international collection ofevaluated nuclear reaction libraries includes data analysis capabilities andintegrated with experimental data The interface shown in Fig 10 servesevaluated data in many output formats and incorporates the ZVView pro-gram [22] The IAEA and NNDC interfaces are slightly different on a client
21
ENDF
Figure 10 ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated and experimental cross sectionsfor 235U(nf) reaction data inputs for the ENDF data selection pages were magni-fied The visualized evaluated data have been processed with the PREPRO code [46]at T=29316 K ENDF Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovendf
side and completely identical on the server side These differences have beenintroduced to reflect different user requirements Both interfaces allow usersto search a large number of evaluated libraries for relevant evaluations us-ing target reaction quantity product and other parameters For exampleconsider ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated nuclear data retrieval for235U(nf) reaction cross sections in conjunction with experimental data li-brary = ENDFB-VII1 JEFF-32 target = 235U reaction = nf and quan-tity = cs This retrieval can be accomplished from the main ENDF interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf) or as shown here by clicking an ENDF but-ton next to the experimental cross sections plotted in Fig 7 The ENDFdatabase output demonstrates that ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluatedcross sections agree well with experimental values
42 CINDA
Nuclear bibliography is essential for nuclear reaction data compilationsCINDA contains many historic publications that are not available in anyother database These publications are grouped by experiment and thedatabase allows application of energy range criteria for data searches Theseunique capabilities are still in demand by nuclear data evaluators Currently
22
CINDA
Figure 11 Nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf) reaction experimental cross sec-tions The CINDA Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovcinda
separate CINDA data compilations are terminated and CINDA contents areextended by new information from the EXFOR and NSR databases
CINDA contains the most extensive nuclear reaction bibliography it isintegrated with the EXFOR Web retrieval system and allows users to searchfor information that is not available in EXFOR The database interface in-cludes all major EXFOR search fields and provides data outputs in text andHTML formats For example to retrieve nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf)reaction cross sections the following input parameters are assumed target= 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs As shown in Fig 11 CINDAdatabase output consists of 2406 publications and 2736 reactions
5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
Originally EXFOR Web Interface was created to perform only basic op-erations data search retrieval and presentation It is now part of a largeand developed Web System including extended functionality and tools forregular [external or traditional] users EXFOR compilers and ENDF andENSDF [47] evaluators There are many interesting EXFOR Web interface
23
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
ENDF
Figure 10 ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated and experimental cross sectionsfor 235U(nf) reaction data inputs for the ENDF data selection pages were magni-fied The visualized evaluated data have been processed with the PREPRO code [46]at T=29316 K ENDF Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgendf the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovendf
side and completely identical on the server side These differences have beenintroduced to reflect different user requirements Both interfaces allow usersto search a large number of evaluated libraries for relevant evaluations us-ing target reaction quantity product and other parameters For exampleconsider ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluated nuclear data retrieval for235U(nf) reaction cross sections in conjunction with experimental data li-brary = ENDFB-VII1 JEFF-32 target = 235U reaction = nf and quan-tity = cs This retrieval can be accomplished from the main ENDF interface(httpwwwnndcbnlgovendf) or as shown here by clicking an ENDF but-ton next to the experimental cross sections plotted in Fig 7 The ENDFdatabase output demonstrates that ENDFB-VII1 and JEFF-32 evaluatedcross sections agree well with experimental values
42 CINDA
Nuclear bibliography is essential for nuclear reaction data compilationsCINDA contains many historic publications that are not available in anyother database These publications are grouped by experiment and thedatabase allows application of energy range criteria for data searches Theseunique capabilities are still in demand by nuclear data evaluators Currently
22
CINDA
Figure 11 Nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf) reaction experimental cross sec-tions The CINDA Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovcinda
separate CINDA data compilations are terminated and CINDA contents areextended by new information from the EXFOR and NSR databases
CINDA contains the most extensive nuclear reaction bibliography it isintegrated with the EXFOR Web retrieval system and allows users to searchfor information that is not available in EXFOR The database interface in-cludes all major EXFOR search fields and provides data outputs in text andHTML formats For example to retrieve nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf)reaction cross sections the following input parameters are assumed target= 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs As shown in Fig 11 CINDAdatabase output consists of 2406 publications and 2736 reactions
5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
Originally EXFOR Web Interface was created to perform only basic op-erations data search retrieval and presentation It is now part of a largeand developed Web System including extended functionality and tools forregular [external or traditional] users EXFOR compilers and ENDF andENSDF [47] evaluators There are many interesting EXFOR Web interface
23
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
CINDA
Figure 11 Nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf) reaction experimental cross sec-tions The CINDA Web Interface is publicly available at the websites of the Nu-clear Data Section httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda the National Nuclear Data Centerhttpwwwnndcbnlgovcinda
separate CINDA data compilations are terminated and CINDA contents areextended by new information from the EXFOR and NSR databases
CINDA contains the most extensive nuclear reaction bibliography it isintegrated with the EXFOR Web retrieval system and allows users to searchfor information that is not available in EXFOR The database interface in-cludes all major EXFOR search fields and provides data outputs in text andHTML formats For example to retrieve nuclear bibliography for 235U(nf)reaction cross sections the following input parameters are assumed target= 235U reaction = nf and quantity = cs As shown in Fig 11 CINDAdatabase output consists of 2406 publications and 2736 reactions
5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
Originally EXFOR Web Interface was created to perform only basic op-erations data search retrieval and presentation It is now part of a largeand developed Web System including extended functionality and tools forregular [external or traditional] users EXFOR compilers and ENDF andENSDF [47] evaluators There are many interesting EXFOR Web interface
23
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
features that have been developed in recent years and readers may explorethem using the News display box information and the search textbox linksdisplayed above The next section will concentrate on experimental dataprocessing renormalization covariance matrix and inverse reaction crosssection calculations
51 User Data Uploads
EXFOR library compilations are conducted by the NRDC compilers incooperation with researchers The compilers often interact with the scientistsin order to obtain original data and complementary details they are requiredto discuss EXFOR compilations before submitting them to the database Onthe other hand scientists often need to compare their latest findings with theexisting data sets Consequently a direct link between research and compila-tion activities is necessary It can be accomplished with a simple Email inter-action using the httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4submithtm webpage forguidance or using a sophisticated Web tool interface httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexforx4datahtmThe Web tool system does not require a password however users have toauthenticate themselves with an ldquoIrsquom not a robotrdquo test On the followingpage scientists can provide author reaction method information and datadescription and copy and paste their data in x y δy or user-specified for-mats into the corresponding text box Upon completion of this operationdata and associated metadata are converted to EXFOR format and sent toEXFOR Web retrieval system for data operations such as plotting calcu-lations and comparisons with existing data from the EXFOR and ENDFdatabases Users can process their data by utilizing Web tools for construct-ing covariance matrices or inverse reaction cross section calculations Theinterface also can be used for new data submissions to the NRDC networkfor further analysis and compilation
The complementary general purpose myPlot package provides additionalavenues for uploading and displaying Web interface usersrsquo data This Web-ZVView program extension is available under httpswww-ndsiaeaorgexformyplothtm
52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
Experimental results are never perfect they rather represent the best ef-fort of a particular group of authors and emulate the overall understandingof nuclear physics processes and technology development at the time Inpresent days nuclear scientists and data evaluators have a better grasp of
24
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
25-MN-55(NA)23-V-52EXFOR Request 40311 2017-Oct-02 194607
Incident Energy (MeV)
Cro
ss S
ectio
n (b
arns
)
13 14 15 16 17 18
0020
0025
0030
1980 Zupranska1980 Zupranska
Figure 12 Automatic EXFOR data renormalization for the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reac-tion data of E Zupranska et al [50] The original and renormalized data are shown asrhomb and square symbols respectively
nuclear physics processes and limitations of experimental techniques Be-sides many results in the past were produced relative to presently-outdatednuclear standards (monitor measurements) these standards have improvedover time and data reanalysis and corrections are urgently needed
The EXFOR interface addresses these issues with a set of options au-tomatic data renormalization to new monitor data [48] or user and expertrecommended corrections [49] The automatic renormalization is availablefor EXFOR compilations that include information on monitor reaction dataAn example of automatic EXFOR data renormalization is shown in Fig 12Here the 25-MN-55(nα)23-V-52 reaction data and their uncertainties [50]were renormalized using the latest monitor data [51 49] with energy depen-dent correction factor varying from 1016 to 1125 Additional details onthis subject can be obtained from the EXFOR examples and video guide(httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforx4guidex4renorm2indexhtm)
53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
During the last few years there is a growing interest in covariance dataamong the nuclear physics community The experimental nuclear data co-variances are needed by data evaluators nuclear model code developers andexperimentalists The EXFOR database contains a limited number of co-
25
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
Result of the reconstruction of the full matrix (Fig3 Appendix-5) is different from reported by the authors only in one point (Total reconstructed uncertainties are systematically lower then authorsrsquo values probably because of different rounding ndash this needs further checking)
En MeV Err-T Original matrix Err-T Constructed matrix 834 65 100 64 100 915 57 35 100 56 35 100 1333 46 37 42 100 45 37 42 100 161 46 38 43 53 100 45 38 43 53 100 1716 44 40 45 57 58 100 43 40 45 57 58 100 179 44 41 45 57 59 84 100 43 41 45 57 59 84 100 1936 82 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 81 21 24 30 31 39 39 100 1995 58 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 57 30 34 44 45 58 59 51 100 2061 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 65 100 88 20 22 29 30 40 42 39 66 100
Fig 3 Experimental (left) and constructed correlation matrices using full ldquoreciperdquo provided by the authors (right)
Concluding remarks
The Web tool has two parts translation of EXFOR files to C5 and interactive construction of a correlation matrix
The first part allows construction of a rough estimation of the covariance matrix on the basis of statistical and systematic uncertainties without any assumptions and it can be directly used by some program packages Although this part does not use additional knowledge about specific partial uncertainties it leads to significant progress in covariance data
The second (interactive) part of the tool relies on the experience of evaluators and their assumptions about correlations This part is intuitive and therefore subjective It can help in individual evaluations but probably not as a routine part in large packages
Such a tool may be the only practical way to construct covariance matrices for old data stored in the EXFOR database
Discussion Practicing with such a tool can improve understanding and formulation of recipes for constructing covariance matrices based on providing partial errors and correlation components for different cases It can also help in the development of the EXFOR format via formalization of parameters from these recipes
After comprehensive testing and discussion in the nuclear data community it can be recommended to experimentalists for calculation of the final correlation matrices from partial uncertainties [10] and supply the recipe for reconstruction of the matrices to the EXFOR compilers to store them in the EXFOR database
Acknowledgment I thank to V Pronyaev and D Smith for useful discussions
Figure 13 Original (left) and Web-constructed correlation (right) matrices Matrix ele-ments were calculated by the Web tool [52] using the C Sage et al prescription [53]
variances and extensive compilations of total statistical and systematicaluncertainties A recently-developed EXFOR Web interface tool [52] solvesthis problem by interactive calculations of covariance matrix elements usingexperimental uncertainties An example of covariance (correlation) matrixcalculation is presented in Fig 13
54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
The EXFOR Web interface collection of data evaluation tools has beenrecently complimented with an inverse reaction calculator which is basedon the nuclear reaction reciprocity theorem [54 55] It allows extracting areaction cross section if an inverse reaction is known For 1 + 2 rarr 3 + 4and 3 + 4 rarr 1 + 2 processes the cross section ratio is
σ34σ12
=m3m4E34(2J3 + 1)(2J4 + 1)(1 + δ12)
m1m2E12(2J1 + 1)(2J1 + 1)(1 + δ34) (1)
where E12 E34 are kinetic energies in the cm system J is angular momen-tum and δ12=δ34=0
As an example of application of nuclear astrophysics reaction data forcalculations of reactor data one of the major neutron sources for s-processnucleosynthesis is 13C + α rarr16 O + n reaction and its inverse reaction isone of the major nuclear reactor neutron poisons The alpha-induced re-actions have been extensively studied due to general availability of heliumbeams while the inverse neutron reaction measurements are more challeng-ing Therefore it is wise to use the well-known alpha-induced reaction oncarbon for the oxygen neutron capture cross section estimates Using the re-cent measurement of 13C+α reaction by S Harissopulos et al [56] for inversereaction cross section calculations the corresponding Web interface inputsare target = 13C reaction = an quantity = cs and product = 16O On thenext screen the example use the S Harissopulos et al data set marking
26
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
Figure 14 Results of 16O+n reaction cross section calculation using the 13C+α reactionmeasurement of S Harissopulos et al [56] The direct and inverse reaction cross sectionsare shown as red crosses and blue rhombs respectively
the ldquoinvert data to reaction 8-O-16(NA)6-C-13SIGrdquo checkbox Finally thecalculated reaction cross section sections for the 16O+n reaction are shown inFig 14 Such calculations can be performed on all EXFOR data sets or usersubmitted data sets where the reciprocity theorem is applicable The presenttool also allows calculations of angular distributions for inverse reactions
6 Conclusion and Outlook
EXFOR is the major nuclear physics database for low- and intermediate-energy nuclear reactions The database and its Web interface are publiclyavailable through the IAEA (httpwww-ndsiaeaorgexfor) BNL (httpwwwnndcbnlgovexfor)and mirror websites The Web interfaces provide transparent and easy ac-cess to nuclear reaction and associated bibliographic information with directlinks to the original data sets and articles where possible Recent applica-tion developments include many features for nuclear scientists and engineerssuch as user-friendly data uploads data renormalization covariance matrixand inverse reaction calculations The authors will continue to address theapplied and fundamental science user needs by developing new data accessprocessing dissemination and analysis capabilities
Further implementation of the advanced analysis features and integrationwith ENDF and NSR databases improves database completeness extends
27
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
EXFOR scope and ensures the high quality of its contents A complementaryGoogle Scholar citation data analysis shows a broad impact of the currentinterface on nuclear energy and physics research worldwide The EXFORdatabase and its Web interface represent a robust system that has evolvedover the last fifteen years into a premier nuclear reaction data portal Thissystem is based on the latest computer technologies and is well-positionedto satisfy current and future nuclear science and technology needs and chal-lenges
7 Acknowledgments
EXFOR is a large nuclear physics project that includes contributionsfrom many responsible parties over the last 65 years and we are grateful tothe NRDC network members for the tireless work on EXFOR data compi-lations and overall database improvements We would like to acknowledgeVP Pronyaev O Schwerer (IAEA) and the late V McLane (BNL) for pro-ductive discussions and constructive contributions and V Unferth (ViterboUniversity) for a careful reading of the manuscript and valuable suggestionsWe appreciate useful consultations with KI Zolotarev (IPPE Obninsk) andS Simakov (Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe) on data renormalization and in-verse reaction calculations respectively This work at Brookhaven NationalLaboratory was sponsored in part by the Office of Nuclear Physics Office ofScience of the US Department of Energy under Contract No DE-AC02-98CH10886 with Brookhaven Science Associates LLC
References
[1] N Holden ldquoA Short History of CSISRS At the Cutting Edge ofNuclear Data Information Storage and Retrieval Systems and its Re-lationship to CINDA EXFOR and ENDF (2005)rdquo Available from〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovexforcompilationsCSISRSHistorypdf〉
[2] N Otuka E Dupont V Semkova et alldquoTowards a More Completeand Accurate Experimental Nuclear Reaction Data Library (EXFOR)International Collaboration between Nuclear Reaction Data Centres(NRDC)rdquo Nucl Data Sheets 120 272 (2014)
[3] B Pritychenko ldquoIntriguing Trends in Nuclear Physics AuthorshiprdquoScientometrics 105 1781 (2015)
28
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
[4] S Pearlstein ldquoThe NNCSC Its History and Functionsrdquo Nucl Newsp 73 - 76 (1970)
[5] A Koning A Mengoni E Dupont et al ldquo Quality Improvementof the EXFOR database Nuclear Energy Agency NEAWPEC-30NEANSCWPECDOC 428 (2010)
[6] JL Kammerdiener ldquoNeutron Spectra Emitted by 239Pu 238U 235UPb Nb Ni Al and C Irradiated by 14 MeV Neutronsrdquo PhD ThesisUniversity of California Davis (1972) Lawrence Livermore NationalLaboratory Report UCRL-51232 (1972)
[7] G Pikulina S Taova ldquoDevelopment of Compilation Tools for the EX-FOR Libraryrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2016-37 (2016)
[8] A Makinaga ldquoNew Functions of GSYS and Compilation Toolsrdquo EX-FOR Compilation Workshop IAEA Vienna August 27-30 (2013)Available from 〈httpwwwjcprgorggsys〉
[9] CM Mattoon BR Beck NR Patel et al ldquoGeneralized Nuclear DataA New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling NuclearDatardquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 3145 (2012)
[10] V McLane ldquoEXFOR Basics A Short Guide to the Nuclear Reac-tion Data Exchange Formatrdquo Brookhaven National Laboratory Re-port BNL-NCS-63380-200005-Rev (2000) O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR For-mats Description for Users (EXFOR Basics)rdquo International AtomicEnergy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-206 June 2008 Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0206-200806pdf〉
[11] O Schwerer ldquoLEXFOR (EXFOR Compilerrsquos Manual)rdquo Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-208 Rev 201508(2015) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0208-201508pdf〉
[12] O Schwerer ldquoEXFOR Formats Manualrdquo International Atomic EnergyAgency Report IAEA-NDS-207 Rev 201508 (2015) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0207-201508pdf〉
[13] DECullen ATrkov ldquoPROGRAM X4TOC4 (Version 2001-3) Trans-lation of Experimental Data from the EXFOR Format to a
29
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
Computation Formatrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Re-port NDS-80 Rev1 March 2001 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicationsiaea-ndsiaea-nds-0080pdf〉
[14] O Schwerer N Otuka ldquoEXFORCINDA Dictionary Manualrdquo Inter-national Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-213 Rev 201412(2014) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdcnrdc dociaea-nds-0213-201412pdf〉
[15] V Pronyaev D Winchell V Zerkin et al ldquoRequirements for the NextGeneration of Nuclear Databases and Servicesrdquo J Nucl Sci TechSuppl 2 1476 (2002)
[16] Proc of Workshop on Relational Database and Java Tech for NuclearData BNL September 11-15 2000 edited by R Arcilla D WinchellY Sanborn unpublished
[17] V Zerkin ldquoEXFOR as a Multi-Platform Relational Database CurrentStatus of Developmentrdquo NRDC Working Paper WP2001-25 (2001)
[18] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni DF Winchell et al ldquoNuclear Reac-tion and Structure Data Services of the National Nuclear Data CenterrdquoAnn Nucl Energy 33 390 (2006)
[19] B Pritychenko E Betak MA Kellett B Singh J Totans ldquo The Nu-clear Science References (NSR) Database and Web Retrieval SystemrdquoNucl Instr and Meth A 640 213 (2011)
[20] B Pritychenko AA Sonzogni ldquoSigma Web Retrieval Interface forNuclear Reaction Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 109 (2008) 2822
[21] VV Zerkin V McLane MW Herman CL Dunford ldquoEXFOR-CINDA-ENDF Migration of Databases to Give Higher-Quality NuclearData Servicesrdquo AIP Conf Proc of Intern Conf on NuclData for Science and Technology 769 586 (2005) Santa FeNew Mexico 2004
[22] V Zerkin ldquoInteractive Visual Analysis of RemoteLocal Nuclear Datawith ZVViewrdquo pp 45-48 in Summary Report on Technical Meetingon ldquoInternational Reactor Dosimetry File IRDF-2002rdquo Vienna Aus-tria 27-29 August 2002 INDC(NDS)-435 (2002) ldquoDINAMOZVView
30
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
Software for Interactive Visual Analysis of Nuclear Datardquo NRDCWorking Paper WP1999-18 (1999) Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpubliczvview〉
[23] A Trkov M Herman DA Brown ldquoENDF-6 Formats ManualrdquoBrookhaven National Laboratory Report BNL-90365-2009 (2011)
[24] MB Chadwick M Herman P Oblozinsky et al ldquoENDFB-VII1Nuclear Data for Science and Technology Cross Sections CovariancesFission Product Yields and Decay Datardquo Nucl Data Sheets 1122887 (2011)
[25] A J Koning E Bauge CJ Dean et al ldquoStatus of the JEFF NuclearData Libraryrdquo J Korean Physical Society 59 No 2 1057 (2011)
[26] AJ Koning D Rochman J Kopecky et al ldquoTENDL-2015TALYS-based Evaluated Nuclear Data Libraryrdquo Available from〈httpstendlwebpsichtendl 2015tendl2015html〉
[27] K Shibata T Kawano T Nakagawa et al ldquoJENDL-40 A New Li-brary for Nuclear Science and Engineeringrdquo J Nucl Science andTechnology 48 1 (2011)
[28] SV Zabrodskaya AV Ignatyuk VN Koscheev et al ldquoROSFOND -Rossiyskaya Natsionalnaya Biblioteka Nejtronnykh Dannykhrdquo VANTNuclear Constants 1-2 3 (2007)
[29] ZG Ge ZX Zhao HH Xia et al ldquoThe Updated Version of ChineseEvaluated Nuclear Data Library (CENDL-31)rdquo J Korean Physical So-ciety 59 (2) 1052 (2011)
[30] Computer Index of Nuclear Reaction Data (CINDA) Available from〈httpwww-ndsiaeaorgcinda〉
[31] H Henriksson ldquoCINDA Compilers Manualrdquo NEA Databank documentNEADBDOC(2008)3 May 14 (2008)
[32] N Soppera M Bossant O Cabellos E Dupont CJ Diez ldquoJANISNEA JAva-based Nuclear Data Information Systemrdquo EPJ Web Conf146 07006 (2017)
31
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
[33] Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC) network Availablefrom 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgnrdc〉
[34] V Zerkin A Trkov ldquoDevelopment of IAEA Nuclear ReactionDatabases and Servicesrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Data forSci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editors OBersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDP Sci-ences 769 (2008)
[35] A Hasegawa H Henriksson FJ Mompean et al ldquoNuclear data activ-ities at the NEA Data Bankrdquo Proc Inter Conf on Nucl Datafor Sci and Technology April 22-27 2007 Nice France editorsO Bersillon F Gunsing E Bauge R Jacqmin and S Leray EDPSciences 206 (2008)
[36] TJ Mertzimekis K Stamou A Psaltis ldquoAn Online Database of Nu-clear Electromagnetic Momentsrdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys ResA 807 56 (2016)
[37] AV Karpov AS Denikin MA Naumenko et al ldquoNRV Web Knowl-edge Base on Low-Energy Nuclear Physicsrdquo Nucl Instrum andMeth Phys Res A 859 112 (2017)
[38] The Apache Software Foundation Available from〈httpwwwapacheorg〉
[39] The Apache Jakarta project Available from〈httpwwwjakartaapacheorg〉
[40] Ion Beam Analysis Nuclear Data Library (IBANDL) Available from〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgibandl〉
[41] B Pritychenko M Herman ldquoNational Nuclear Data Center A World-wide User Facilityrdquo Nucl Phys News 22 Issue 3 23 (2012)
[42] M Herman R Capote BV Carlson et al ldquoEMPIRE Nuclear Reac-tion Model Code System for Data Evaluationrdquo Nucl Data Sheets108 2655 (2007)
[43] AJ Koning D Rochman ldquoModern Nuclear Data Evaluation with theTALYS Code Systemrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 113 2841 (2012)
32
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
[44] J Allison K Amako J Apostolakis et al ldquoRecent Developments inGeant4rdquo Nucl Instrum Meth Phys Res A 835 186 (2016)
[45] X-5 Monte Carlo Team ldquoMCNP - A General Monte CarloN-Particle Transport Code Version 5rdquo Los Alamos NationalLaboratory Report LA-UR-03-1987 (2003) Available from〈httpslawslanlgovvhostsmcnplanlgovpdf filesla-ur-03-1987pdf〉
[46] DE Cullen ldquo PREPRO 2015 2015 ENDFB Pre-processingCodesrdquo International Atomic Energy Agency Report IAEA-NDS-39(2015) Rev 16 January 31 2015 Available from 〈httpswww-ndsiaeaorgpublicendfprepro〉
[47] TW Burrows ldquoThe evaluated nuclear structure data file Philosophycontent and usesrdquo Nucl Instrum and Meth Phys Res A 286595 (1990) Available from 〈httpwwwnndcbnlgovensdf〉
[48] VV Zerkin ldquoEXFOR Data Correction System Progress in 2011-2012rdquoNRDC Meeting Paris (2012)
[49] KI Zolotarev ldquoNew Russian Evaluations for IRDF-2002rdquo InternationalReactor Dosimetry File 2002 (IRDF-2002) IAEA Technical Reports Se-ries No 452 (2006)
[50] E Zupranska K Rusek J Turkiewicz P Zupranski ldquoExcitation Func-tions for (nα) Reactions in the Neutron Energy Range from 13 to 18MeVrdquo Acta Phys Pol B11 853 (1980)
[51] AD Carlson VG Pronyaev DL Smith et al ldquoInternational Evalua-tion of Neutron Cross Section Standardsrdquo Nucl Data Sheets 1103215 (2009)
[52] V Zerkin ldquoWeb Tool for Constructing a Covariance Matrix from EX-FOR Uncertaintiesrdquo EPJ Web of Conferences 27 00009 (2012)
[53] C Sage V Semkova O Bouland et al ldquoHigh resolution measurementsof the 241Am(n2n) reaction cross sectionrdquo Phys Rev C 81 064604(2010)
33
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-
[54] CE Rolfs and WS Rodney Cauldrons in the Cosmos The Uni-versity of Chicago Press (1988)
[55] NM Larson ldquoUpdated Users Guide for SAMMY Multilevel R-MatrixFits to Neutron Data Using Bayes Equationsrdquo Oak Ridge National Lab-oratory Report ORNLTM-9179R8 (2008)
[56] S Harissopulos HW Becker JW Hammer et al ldquoCross Section ofthe 13C(α n)16O Reaction A Background for the Measurement of Geo-neutrinosrdquo Phys Rev C 72 062801 (2005)
34
- 1 Introduction
- 2 EXFOR Database
-
- 21 EXFOR Data Compilation
- 22 EXFOR Format
- 23 EXFOR Database Dictionaries
- 24 EXFOR Manual
-
- 3 Platform-Independent Data Storage and Dissemination System
-
- 31 EXFOR Relational Database
-
- 311 EXFOR Database Schema
- 312 Database System Operation
-
- 32 EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 321 Simple EXFOR retrievals
- 322 Advanced EXFOR retrievals
-
- 33 EXFOR Examples of Requests and Video Guides
- 34 Worldwide Impact of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 4 Related Nuclear Reaction Data Projects
-
- 41 ENDF
- 42 CINDA
-
- 5 New Features of EXFOR Web Interface
-
- 51 User Data Uploads
- 52 Data Renormalization and Expert Corrections
- 53 Covariance Matrix Calculation using Experimental Uncertainties
- 54 Inverse Reaction Calculation
-
- 6 Conclusion and Outlook
- 7 Acknowledgments
-