National Ignition Facility Shot Data Analysis Module Guidelines

This document provides the guidelines for software development of modules to be included in Shot Data Analysis (SDA) for the National Ignition Facility (NIF). An Analysis Module is a software entity that groups a set of (typically cohesive) functions, procedures and data structures for performing an analysis task relevant to NIF shot operations. Each module must have its own unique identification (module name), clear interface specifications (data inputs and outputs), and internal documentation. It is vitally important to the NIF Program that all shot-related data be processed and analyzed in a consistent way that is reviewed by scientific and engineering experts. SDA is part of a NIF Integrated Product Team (IPT) whose goal is to provide timely and accurate reporting of shot results to NIF campaign experimentalists. Other elements of the IPT include the Campaign Management Tool (CMT) for configuring experiments, a data archive and provisioning system called CMS, a calibration and configuration database (CDMS), and a shot data visualization tool (SDV). We restrict our scope at this time to guidelines for modules written in Interactive Data Language, or IDL1. This document has sections describing example IDL modules and where to find them, how to set up a development environment, IDL programming guidelines, shared IDL procedures for general use, and revision control