
EXEQ 1.0

20 April 2020

This is the LAST release of EXEQ.
The HFM/EXED project has been terminated and the BER II reactor does not run anymore.
The software may be useful as reference for the existing experimental data.
It may also be of historical interest.
The current situation is:
1. The code has been ported to Python 3.
2. The GUI has been re-written using PyQt5.
3. The instrument definition corresponds to the last real EXED setup.
This way the code may remain usable for a few years without further maintenance.
Most likely it will never be maintained again, unless the EXED instrument
is reactivated at some point.

EXEQ 0.16

24 March 2017

The upgrade of the instrument to the inelastic mode has forced a number of
changes to the geometry:
    1. The backscattering panels are now far apart and shadowed by the chopper housing.
    2. The forward panels are completely new, located in a vacuum chamber. There are
       four of them now, instead of just two.
    3. The vacuum chamber limits the magnet rotation to the range from -11.87 to 2.4 degrees.
All these changes have been implemented in the current release of EXEQ, without
changing the interface nor the underlying engine that calculates the coverage.

Therefore, the major re-write of the code is still pending; at the moment, however,
it is necessary to use the 0.16 version to produce realistic results.

EXEQ 0.15-RC3

17 June 2016

The limits of magnet rotation have been updated to match the
current situation on the real EXED instrument.
The new guide support is asymmetric, the limits of magnet rotation are:
-12.0, +8.5
Please note that the wavelength spectrum still matches the old guide,
but you can expect the flux to be the same or better for wavelengths
above 1.2 Angstrom.

EXEQ 0.15
30 November 2015

This is the bridging release towards compatibility with Mantid.
There are 3 important changes:

1. The axes directions have been re-defined so that the peak indexing
matches the Mantid definitions. Therefore, the coverage plots
will look different than before!

2. A new dependency on YAML and PyYAML has been added. It is used
to enable saving the input parameters into files, so that specific
settings or sample definitions do not have to be typed in every time.

3. A new "Configure EXED" menu has been added. It allows the users
to (de)activate detector panels, switch between diffraction and
SANS modes, install the cryostat on the upstream or downstream side,
and pick the neutron guide to be used. This affects the detector
coverage, magnet rotation range and instrument flux.


EXEQ 0.14.1
12 June 2015

Many things have changed, and they are listed in the welcome
screen visible after the software has started.
Important is, that the magnet now rotates the other way.

EXEQ 0.13.1
13 April 2015

The backscattering panels are not inverted anymore.
Also, the sample environment shadows the top of the backscattering
panels.


EXEQ 0.13.0
10 April 2015

The internals of the software have been re-written. The intensity
is now calculated separately for every pixel of the output. The
problems related to the inaccuracies of interpolation on a grid
of points do not appear anymore.

A part of the reciprocal space can now be plotted with arbitrary
precision. The precision factor in the input can only be increased
to 3, but the plotted range can be restricted in the h, k, l input
boxes, using syntax such as 1:3, -0.15:0.22, etc.

New option of plotting the detector panels makes it easier to see
the effect of the magnet cone and beamstop on the covered range.
Also, the Bragg peaks marked for plotting will also appear
on the detectors.

EXEQ 0.10.5
10 December 2014

This is a transitory version of the software. An ongoing issue
with the interpolation of the total coverage has been making
the available range appear larger than it was really the case.
In this release, the problem has been alleviated, but not
completely removed. You are welcome to keep using this version,
until the next one becomes available.

EXEQ 0.10.0
06 November 2014

This is a proof-of-concept release, showing the first implementation of:
    1. Sample-enviroment, guide, beamstop shadows on the detector,
    2. Sample rotation angles phi, chi, omega,
    3. Realistic intensity calculations from the instrument spectrum.
    
All these features are already present, albeit in a form that may be
far from the final objective. Nevertheless, the code base is now present,
and it is only a matter of a general tune-up before the software is ready
for the final users.


EXEQ 0.9.8
15 October 2014

Following the bug reports:
    1. The setting of the u, v, vectors now works correctly
       for non-cubic lattices.

EXEQ 0.9.6
15 October 2014

In an attempt to clarify some confusion:
    1. Layout plot now contains the image of the u, v vectors.
       They do not have arrowheads, however, and this will
       most likely become a serious issue with many users.
    2. The interface labels now follow STAC recommendations.
    3. The coverage maps are now more correct than ever,
       after the mismatch in the sample/detector orientation
       angles has been eliminated.

EXEQ 0.9.5
24 September 2014

More changes:
    1. Total range can now be plotted in 2D and 3D cases.
    2. Magnet rotation ragne is now -15 to +15 degrees.


EXEQ 0.9.1

More changes:
    1. A new function
        kernel.current_parameters_str("filename.txt")
       writes out all the parameters that the kernel has parsed.
       They are formatted as well.
    2. kernel.show_uv_range()
       creates a PNG file showing the extreme values of u and v vectors.
    3. Some bugs in axes labelling fixed in the 3D mode.


EXEQ 0.9.0

In response to the comments of our wider user group (i.e. both Oleksandr and Karel),
 I implemented some changes.

Changes:
    1. The beamstop now shadows the detector.
    2. The frequencies of the choppers are now calculated correctly.
    3. A welcome page tells the new users what the software is for.
    4. A "Help" button brings up a few additional explanations.
    5. A "Precision" input field adjusts the interpolation grid
        for the reciprocal-space mapping.
    6. 5 marker point input fields ("Point #") may be used to mark
        a specific position in the reciprocal space on the plot.
        If the point is within range, the relative intensity is
        shown in the plot too.
    7. The FORWARD and BACKWARD directions are marked in the plot
        signature.
    8. The 3D plot has an intensity scale.
    9. It is possible to plot the instrument layout now.

 04 September 2014, Maciej Bartkowiak