NCFS-Pack : A Scientific Analysis Toolbox

In the process of analysis and interpretation of observational data

a variety of mathematical, statistical and numerical methods is

invoked in general.

The same is true for the preparatory phases of large projects,

in which the responses of detection devices are simulated in detail

to guide the design of complex experimental setups.

Various (commercial) software packages are available to perform the

necessary calculations. However, all these different packages have

their own specific user interface and I/O format.

As such it is very difficult, if not impossible, to use these various

facilities in an integrated manner and analyse the produced information

in a generic way.

In view of the upcoming large CERN-LHC experiments, an effort was started

in the early 90's to overcome the drawbacks as mentioned above.

This resulted in a C++ based software framework called ROOT, which is

freely available from CERN (http://root.cern.ch).

The ROOT framework consists of an interactive C++ interpreter interface

and combines various basic tasks like a machine independent I/O structure,

histogramming facilities and a whole scala of graphical user interfaces.

In order to comply with the specific needs concerning the analysis of

data produced by complex particle physics detectors like the LHC experiment

ALICE, the ROOT package was extended with additional software modules.

These additional software tools, developed by Nick van Eijndhoven, were

originally meant to serve only the ALICE data analysis and as such the

resulting toolbox was called RALICE (Root based ALICE analysis tools).

However, the approach turned out to be so generic and flexible that the

RALICE package provided a nice basis for a much more versatile package

which could serve a much broader range of scientific analysis projects

and classroom exercise sessions as well.

The resulting generic set of software tools is available as a Root based

C++ software framework called NCFS-Pack.

For several years this NCFS framework has been used very successfully in

the analysis of various international research projects like the Batse

gamma ray burst detector onboard NASA's Compton Gamma Ray Observatory,

several heavy-ion experiments at the CERN accelerator complex and

analysis of signals from the IceCube neutrino telescope at the South Pole.

In this course (a subset of) the NCFS framework is used to simulate and

analyse high-energy particle collision processes in a classroom environment.

Apart from getting experience with the generic event and I/O structures,

various statistical aspects will be addressed and the interpretation of the

results and their accuracy will be discussed in a (astro)physics context.

Lecture Notes :

Registered students, NCFS users and guests with login-id have access