Data Formats

Input Data Files

Experimental data files are plain text files with four whitespace-delimited columns of real numbers (decimal or scientific notation):

Column

Description

1

Forward-kinematic laboratory frame energy (MeV)

2

Forward-kinematic laboratory frame angle (degrees)

3

Forward-kinematic laboratory frame cross section (barns or barns/sr)

4

Forward-kinematic laboratory frame cross section uncertainty (barns or barns/sr)

Example data file:

0.500  90.0  1.234e-03  5.6e-05
0.600  90.0  2.345e-03  7.8e-05
0.700  90.0  3.456e-03  9.0e-05
0.800  90.0  4.567e-03  1.2e-04

Notes on Data Files

  • Angle column: must always be present, even for angle-integrated data. In that case the angle is a dummy value and is not used in the calculation.

  • Sorting: data may be entered in any order. However, for plotting purposes it is useful to sort by energy (for excitation curves) or by angle (for angular distributions).

  • Frame: all input data must be in the laboratory frame with forward kinematics (light particle as projectile, heavy particle as target).

  • Units: energies in MeV, angles in degrees, cross sections in barns (angle-integrated) or barns/sr (differential).

  • Format: columns can be separated by spaces or tabs.

Phase Shift Data

Phase shift data follows the same four-column format, but the third column contains the phase shift value (in degrees) and the fourth column contains its uncertainty. The convention is \(-90° < \theta_\text{lab} < 90°\).

Temperature Files

For reaction rate calculations, a temperature file is a single-column text file listing temperatures in GK (gigakelvin):

0.01
0.05
0.10
0.50
1.00
2.00
5.00
10.0

Project Files (.azr)

The AZURE2 Input File (.azr) stores the complete project configuration in a structured text format. While the format is not formally documented, it is a plain text file that advanced users can modify directly for batch processing.

The file contains sections for:

  • Configuration settings (formalism, directories, runtime options)

  • Particle pair definitions

  • Level and channel information

  • Data segment definitions

  • Test segment definitions

  • Experimental effects configuration

  • Fitting parameter settings

  • MCMC settings (if enabled)

Tip

The recommended practice is to always use the GUI to create and edit .azr files. The internal format may change between versions.