Geant4 9.2-beta-01 Release Notes -------------------------------- 4 July 2008 List of main features and fixes included in this Beta release since 9.1.p02: o Configuration: ------------- + Integrated improvements to Qt setup. + Embedded AIDA setup in central configuration scripts, simplified GNUmakefiles in examples. o Environments: ------------ + Updated G4Py configure scripts and fixed some minor bugs. o Event ----- + Fixed problem of out of bounds array access in G4SPSEneDistribution. Added accessors to G4SPSAngDistribution, addressing problem report #1013. o Geometry: -------- + management: o G4Region: changed condition inside ScanVolumeTree() to check for the existence of a valid material-scanner pointer to apply the material scan instead of using the flag for nested structures. o G4GeometryManager: do not apply optimisation on the current volume if it has been defined as a regular structure. o Addresses problem report #990. + solids/CSG: o G4Tubs: fix in DistanceToIn(p,v, ...) in case of point on surface with very small tangent direction; now returning kInfinity and no longer zero. It fixes observed cases of zero value returned by both DistanceToIn() and DistanceToOut(), causing stuck tracks with zero step length. o G4Sphere: fixed calculation of roots in DistanceToOut(p,v,...) for theta-conical surfaces interserctions and for sTheta<=90 degree intersection. Addresses issue reported when running PET application with optical photons about mis-computation of distance on half-sphere constructs. + solids/specific: o Enhanced GetPointOnSurface() for generic G4Polycone and G4Polyhedra constructs. o Global: ------ + G4UnitsTable: added units for electric-field, V/m. + G4PhysicsVector: introduced cubic spline interpolation, optionally selectable. Optimised implementation of GetValue() method. + G4LPhysicsFreeVector: corrected use of GetValue() to adopt implementation available from the base class. + Modified G4RandomDirection global function to use unit radius sphere surface algorithm instead of 8-quadrants technique, giving ~30% performance boost in dedicated stress tests. + Changed date for 9.2-beta release. o Intercoms --------- + Added a new function in G4UIcommandTree to find a subtree. o Interfaces ---------- + Improvements for layout in Qt driver for Qt3. o Materials: --------- + G4NistElementBuilder: provide unique name for each isotope of an element. + G4IonisParamElm: added Fermi velocity and L-factor (both used for parameterizations of the effective charge and straggling of ions). G4IonisParamMat: use Fermi velocity and L-factor from G4IonisParamElm. + Added virtual destructor to G4SurfaceProperty and derivated. Addresses problem report #1014. + G4Element: added more safe check of consistence between Z and A in the constructor. Improved printout of errors and warnings. o Particles: --------- + Added UI command for setting the verbosity level on the particle-table. + Modified proton mass to be equal to 'proton_mass_c2' from updated PDG-2006 values in CLHEP (difference is 10 eV). o Persistency (GDML): ------------------ + Introducing GDML writer: material properties; support for parameterised volumes; division volumes; replica volumes; matrices; naming of physical volumes; Twistedtrap, Twistedtubs, Tet, Twistedbox, Twistedtrd, Hype, Orb, Para, Ellipsoid, Ellipticaltube, Polyhedra, Torus, Cone, Tube, Extruded, Boolean (intersection, subtraction, union), Reflections (using scaled transformation) solids; elements and composite materials. + Added support for modular files in GDML writer and reader. Added handling of precision and optional rounding of errors for imported/exported values. Added schema validation mechanism and schema files. + Added features to reader: physical-volumes name; temperature, pressure and state of materials; NIST support. Added support for border surface and skin surface properties. + Added optional handling if precision on values loaded. o Physics Lists: ------------- + Updated FTF* lists and physics NOT to use quasi-elastic from CHIPS. FTF now has quasi-elastic included in the FTF model itself. + Updated option2 EM physics (EMX) and added option3. For these options it is now defined 'linLossLimit' per particle type; added hadron induced bremsstrahlung and pair production; using Spline interpolation for physics tables. + New helper class G4PhysListFactory for building Physics Lists. + Removed obsolete class G4HadronProcessStore. o Electromagnetic Processes: ------------------------- + Low Energy: o Added PIXE cross section, L-shells, for protons in G4OrlicLCrossSection. Added semi-Empirical model implementation for L-SubShells-Cross-Section with protons projectiles. o New charge transfer process by incident protons (two cross-section and one final state policy classes). o Added Doppler broadening to G4LowEnergyCompton, based on "Y.Namito, S.Ban and H.Hirayama, NIM A 349, pp. 489-494, 1994". Added Doppler broadening in G4LowEnergyComptonPolarized, same model as in G4LowEnergyCompton. o Allow for loading the complete Auger dataset on initialization. o Requires new data set G4EMLOW.6.1. + High Energy: o Added new Bremsstrahlung and pair-production models for hadrons. o Added initialization of 'SubType' for all processes. + Muons: o Several fixes and further developments in G4Mu* models and associated processes. + Standard: o New multiple-scattering model G4WentzelVIModel used in new muon physics processes. o Cloned G4UrbanMscModel class into G4UrbanMscModel2; introduced several fixes and tunings to G4UrbanMscModel2 variant. o New process G4eMultipleScattering specialized for e+,e-. o G4eBremsstrahlungHEModel: new model, an extension of the standard Bremsstrahlung model but using a more sophisticated LPM approach. o G4PAIxSection: new functions for resonance and Rutherford collisions. o Fixed nuclear size correction for the G4BetheBlochModel. o G4ionGasIonisation: fixed bug in update of the dynamic charge of an ion. o G4IonFluctuations: added protection to the computation of the correction factor to dispersion which provide smooth transition to small velocities of an ion; added protection in computation of dispersion on allowing have a corrected dispersion below Bohr value. o G4eCoulombScatteringModel: speedup run-time computations using precomputed nuclear form-factors per element. o G4WaterStopping: using Spline interpolation. o Added initialization of 'SubType' for all processes. + Utils: o New class G4VMscModel to define general multiple-scattering parameters. o New class G4EmElementSelector, a helper class to sample random G4Element in a compound material. o Added new correction methods in order to provide a smooth transition between low-energy parameterization and Bethe-Bloch model in EM standard processes. Added new G4EmSaturation helper class. o G4VEnergyLossProcess: fixed computation of NIEL at the last step of a particle. o G4LossTableManager: fixed logic in compute dEdx table for an inactive process. + Xrays: o Added scintillation with Birk's law and make now use of G4EmSaturation to implement Birks correction. o Hadronic Processes: ------------------ + management: o Added class G4HadronicProcessStore, helper class to keep pointers to all registered hadronic processes. + models/coherent_elastic: o G4HadronElastic: added counts of abnornal sampling results and printing out values in the destructor. + models/de_excitation: o G4PhotonEvaporation: atomic relaxation model is no longer applied following internal electron conversion. Instead the vacant shell index is passed to radioactive decay model, where the ARM is applied. o Fixed minor memory leak in G4ExcitationHandler. + models/high_energy: o G4HEInelastic: removed abnormally high pt secondaries due to incident strange particles by prohibiting the assignment of leading particle to anything that goes backward in the CM frame. + models/neutron_hp: o Improved energy and angular distributions for both scattered neutron and recoil targets. Fixed missing inelastic gamma-ray lines. Addresses problem report #1008. o Fixed bug for missed pouch-out particles + models/parton_string: o Revised string fragmentation and tuned parameters in FTF model for Pi+P and pion-nucleon interactions. Implemented quasi-elastic hadron-nucleus scattering in FTF and formation time; tuned string tension. + models/qmd: o Fixed and changed sampling method of impact parameter in G4QMDReaction. o Fixed minor memory leaks. + models/radioactive_decay: o G4NuclearDecayChannel: ARM is no longer applied in photon-evaporation for IT mode and is now applied at the end of DecayIt(); now using the correct shell index in appling ARM and switching on Auger electron production. Checking the residual kinetic energy after ARM and adding it to the atom. + models/rpg: o Fixed energy non-conservation problem in G4RPGFragmentation and in G4RPGReaction. Fixed K0 ID problem in G4RPGInelastic. o Generic Processes: ----------------- + Biasing: o Fixed use of 'WeightCutOff' now correctly working in a mass geometry. o Archived obsolete class G4CellFinder. + Cuts: o Added G4ProductionCutsTableMessenger class. + Decay: o G4DecayWithSpin: modified DecayIt() to allow spin precession also for EM fields. + Scoring: o Added copying of non-ionizing energy deposit in G4Step. o Run: --- + Invoke G4Particle::DeleteAllParticles() in the destructor of G4VUserPhysicsList to clear leaks induced by particles created in the user application. o Tracking & Track: ---------------- + Fix in G4SteppingManager for properly update of 'fTouchableHandle'. Addressing problem report #1009. + Reset non-ionizing energy loss in G4Step::ResetTotalEnergyDeposit() in order to initialize NIEL in each step. o Visualization: ------------- + Fixed remaining gcc-4.3.0 compiler warnings. + OpenGL: o Fixed DBL_MAX problem in 2D drawing. o Improvements in Qt driver and setup. o Examples: -------- + Various fixes, improvements, adoption of new features. + advanced/hadrontherapy: o Reviewed example to update to the new beam line setup. + advanced/microdosimetry: o New application simulating 10 keV tracks Helium+ (positive charge is +e) particle in liquid water using only G4DNA processes. + extended/gdml: o general polishing and new convention for running. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Technical Notes --------------- o Official platforms: + Linux, gcc-3.4.6. Tested on 32 bits architectures and 64 bits architectures (Intel or AMD) with the Scientific Linux CERN 4 (SLC4) distribution (based on RedHat Linux Enterprise 4). Versions of Geant4 have also been compiled successfully on other Linux distributions, like Debian, Suse or other RedHat systems. + MacOSX 10.5, gcc-4.0.1 + Windows/XP and CygWin Tools with: Visual C++ 9.0 (Visual Studio 2008) o More verified configurations: + Linux, gcc-4.3.1 + Linux, Intel-icc 10.1 o Geant4 9.2-beta-01 requires the installation of CLHEP-2.0.3.3. Please refer to the Geant4 User Documentation: http://cern.ch/geant4/support/userdocuments.shtml for further information about using Geant4.