MADX

MAD-X, short for Methodical Accelerator Design, is a free, open-source software package used in accelerator physics to design, model, and optimize particle accelerators. It provides tools for defining accelerator lattices, computing beam optics, and studying beam dynamics. Users define lattice elements such as dipoles, quadrupoles, sextupoles, cavities, drifts, and markers, arrange them into sequences, and compute optical properties including beta and alpha functions, dispersion, phase advance, and chromaticity. The package supports both linear and nonlinear optics calculations, lattice matching, and optimization to satisfy design constraints. It can perform particle tracking through defined lattices, and offers interfaces for symbolic and numerical analysis to study stability and dynamic aperture. Outputs are typically text-based tables and reports, with plots generated by separate tooling as needed.

MAD-X originated in the CERN accelerator physics community as an evolution of the MAD family of programs and is maintained by CERN together with collaboration from universities and laboratories. It extends the original MAD8 concepts with a modern scripting language and modular architecture, enabling more flexible lattice definitions and easier integration with other analytic and tracking tools.

Usage and ecosystem: MAD-X scripts are written in its own command language; users run scripts to produce optical models, perform matching, and generate data for accelerator design and operation. The software supports standard data exchange formats and can interface with external components, such as external tracking codes, via compatible input and output formats. Documentation, tutorials, and user forums support the community of physicists and engineers who rely on MAD-X for design studies, optics verification, and performance optimization for facilities ranging from light sources to large colliders.