NAME

ftcmparf -- converts a type 2 ARF file to a type 1 ARF file.

USAGE

ftcmparf [infile=]filename1 [outfile=]filename2 [cmpmode=]squish/expand (rows="-") (clobber=yes/no)

DESCRIPTION

The Ancillary Response File (ARF) is used in combination with the detector Redistribution Matrix File (RMF) by the XSPEC spectral fitting package. In a Type 2 ARF file multiple ARFs are packed into a single binary table, one ARF per row. A Type 1 ARF file, on the other hand, only contains a single ARF in each binary table extension. There are two ways of converting a Type 2 ARF to a Type 1 ARF. The "squish" option adds the separate ARFs together while the "expand" option places each ARF in its own binary table extension.

PARAMETERS

infile [filename]
The input file name containing the type 2 ARF.

outfile [filename]
The name of the output file for the type 1 ARF.

cmpmode [character string]
The mode to use: squish or expand.

rows [character string]
The range of rows to be processed in the input ARF 2 table. For example, "1-5,10" will process the first 5 rows as well as the 10th row. By default every row of the input file will be processed.

(clobber = yes) [boolean]
Flag specifying whether or not a pre-existing file with the same name as that requested as the output file from this task will be overwritten.

EXAMPLES

1. Add together the arfs in a type 2 file

ftcmparf type2.arf type1.arf squish
2. Expand the first four arfs in a type 2 file into their own extensions

ftcmparf type2.arf type1.arf expand rows="1-4" clobber=yes

LAST MODIFIED

January 2022