PYTHIA 5.7 and JETSET 7.4 Physics and Manual
Torbjorn Sjostrand
TL;DR
The paper documents PYTHIA 5.7 and JETSET 7.4, detailing a comprehensive Monte Carlo framework for generating high-energy physics events across e+e-, ep, and hadron-hadron collisions. It integrates hard-process matrix elements, parton showers, Lund string fragmentation, and resonance decays within a unified, configurable software system, including extensive treatment of beam remnants and underlying events. Core contributions include a thorough exposition of Monte Carlo techniques, the event record structure, and a broad, process-classified physics library (QCD, electroweak, Higgs, and beyond-Standard-Model scenarios) with detailed guidance on installation, usage, and external-process interfacing. The manual emphasizes careful, critical use, cross-checks across multiple models, and the ability to tailor simulations for detector studies, cross-section calculations, and phenomenological explorations in collider physics. Overall, it provides a foundational toolkit for realistic event generation and a framework for ongoing development and extension in high-energy phenomenology.
Abstract
This is the latest edition of the physics description and manual of the PYTHIA and JETSET programs for event generation in High Energy Physics.