Verification Matrix =================== Purpose ------- This page is the research-facing index of what SPECTRAX-GK treats as verified, validated, exploratory, or deferred. It is meant to answer four questions for each lane: 1. what physical model is being exercised, 2. what observable is compared, 3. what the reference is, 4. what acceptance gate applies. Literature Baselines Reviewed ----------------------------- The current matrix is anchored on these published baselines: - Tronko et al., *Verification of Gyrokinetic codes: theoretical background and applications*: verification methodology, observed-order checks, and benchmark-observable framing. - Mandell et al., *GX: a GPU-native gyrokinetic turbulence code for tokamak and stellarator design*: CBC, W7-X, KBM, nonlinear transport, velocity-space convergence, and performance figure conventions. - González-Jerez et al., *Electrostatic gyrokinetic simulations in W7-X geometry*: W7-X ITG/TEM scans, zonal-flow response, and nonlinear ITG heat flux. - Nevins et al., *Characterizing electron temperature gradient turbulence*: ETG operating-point conventions. - Monreal et al., *Residual zonal flows in tokamaks and stellarators at arbitrary wavelengths*: residual-zonal-flow metrics and damping interpretation. - Merlo et al., *Linear multispecies gyrokinetic flux tube benchmarks in shaped tokamak plasmas*: shaping scans, ballooning-angle handling, Rosenbluth-Hinton residuals, and GAM damping. - González-Jerez et al., *Electrostatic microturbulence in W7-X: comparison of local gyrokinetic simulations with Doppler reflectometry measurements*: fluctuation amplitudes, frequency spectra, and zonal-flow spectral content. - Maurer et al., *Global electromagnetic turbulence simulations of W7-X-like plasmas with GENE-3D*: heavy-electron electromagnetic verification before realistic-mass stellarator production runs. Status Legend ------------- - ``Closed``: benchmark lane is accepted for research claims. - ``Open``: lane is active and expected to close. - ``Exploratory``: useful for development, not yet a paper claim. - ``Deferred``: intentionally out of scope for the current paper/release. Tokamak Linear -------------- .. list-table:: :header-rows: 1 * - Lane - Observable - Reference - Status - Baseline gate * - Cyclone ITG - ``gamma(k_y)``, ``omega(k_y)``, eigenfunction overlap - GX + CBC literature - Closed - ``rtol <= 1e-2`` except documented low-``k_y`` / near-marginal cases * - ETG - ``gamma(k_y)``, ``omega(k_y)`` - GX + ETG benchmark literature - Closed - ``rtol <= 1e-2`` on the tracked branch * - KBM - ``gamma(k_y)``, ``omega(k_y)``, branch continuity vs ``beta`` - GX - Closed - ``rtol <= 1e-2`` on the accepted branch * - KAW - branch-followed linear response - GX - Deferred - close branch identity before publication use * - TEM - ``gamma(k_y)``, ``omega(k_y)`` - GX / literature - Open - close branch-following and reference selection first * - Shaped multispecies tokamak - ``gamma``, ``omega``, eigenfunction shape - Sauter benchmark set - Open - literature-backed operating point and overlap gate required * - Shaped tokamak zonal-flow / GAM - residual level, damping rate, GAM envelope - Merlo et al. + analytical Rosenbluth-Hinton estimates where applicable - Open - residual and damping must match literature/code-backed references before publication use; signed ``Phi_zonal_mode_kxt`` is now available. The current artifact is ``docs/_static/miller_zonal_response_pilot.png`` from ``tools/generate_miller_zonal_response_pilot.py`` using Merlo Case-III Table-III parameters, an initial density perturbation, a common pre-recurrence fit window ``t≈30``, separate positive/negative-extrema damping fits, and a Hilbert-phase frequency extraction on that same window. It gives ``residual≈0.192`` against a paper-scale target of about ``0.19``, ``ω_GAM R0 / v_i≈2.20`` against a figure read-off near ``2.24``, and ``γ_GAM R0 / v_i≈-0.176`` against a figure read-off near ``-0.17``. The remaining explicit follow-up item is the later finite-moment recurrence rather than the benchmark-scale Merlo gate Frozen artifact paths for the currently closed tokamak linear lanes: - ``docs/_static/cyclone_comparison.png`` - ``docs/_static/etg_comparison.png`` - ``docs/_static/kbm_comparison.png`` - ``docs/_static/kbm_eigenfunction_overlap_summary.png`` - ``docs/_static/reference_modes/kbm_linear_gx_ky0p3000.npz`` - ``docs/_static/benchmark_core_linear_atlas.png`` Closed raw-overlay diagnostic artifacts for the KBM lane: - ``docs/_static/reference_modes/kbm_linear_spectrax_ky0p3000.csv`` - ``docs/_static/kbm_eigenfunction_reference_overlay_ky0p3000.png`` - ``docs/_static/reference_modes/kbm_eigenfunction_reference_overlay_ky0p3000.json`` - ``tools/generate_kbm_reference_overlay.py`` The refreshed bounded-cost extraction produces normalized overlap ``0.999985`` and relative ``L^2`` mismatch ``0.00721`` against the frozen GX raw mode at ``k_y \approx 0.3`` when run with the exact KBM grid contract, the selected growth-fit window, and a late-time eigenfunction tail window. The generator writes a machine-readable gate report with ``overlap >= 0.95`` and ``relative L^2 <= 0.25`` as the acceptance policy, and this raw-overlay artifact now passes. Branch-followed scan tables should use the same gate-report convention: observed-order gates for resolution or velocity-space convergence, and branch-continuity gates for adjacent ``gamma``/``omega`` jumps and successive eigenfunction overlap when overlap data are available. The tracked KBM candidate table now has a no-rerun summary path through ``tools/generate_kbm_branch_gate_summary.py`` and ``docs/_static/kbm_branch_gate_summary.json``. That summary now uses the continuity-first selected branch and passes the strict checks: ``max_rel_gamma_jump ~= 0.388``, ``max_rel_omega_jump ~= 0.320``, and no successive-overlap deficit. Observed-order convergence tables should also gate both the asymptotic finest refinement and the full set of pairwise refinement orders. The generic ``tools/generate_observed_order_gate.py`` path now records this policy in JSON. The tracked Cyclone velocity-space convergence artifact ``docs/_static/cyclone_resolution_observed_order.json`` is closed on an office/GPU ``ky=0.30`` time-path sweep with all pairwise orders positive, final-pair order above ``4.8``, and finest-grid relative growth-rate error about ``1.1e-3``. The current materialized gate reports are indexed by ``tools/make_validation_gate_index.py`` in ``docs/_static/validation_gate_index.json`` and ``docs/_static/validation_gate_index.png``. Exploratory diagnostics can set ``gate_index_include=false`` so they remain documented but do not count as release blockers. The current release-gate index has ``16/16`` tracked reports passing. Stellarator Linear ------------------ .. list-table:: :header-rows: 1 * - Lane - Observable - Reference - Status - Baseline gate * - W7-X ITG flux tube - ``gamma(k_y)``, ``omega(k_y)`` - stella/GENE benchmark paper + GX - Closed - ``rtol <= 1e-2`` on closed adiabatic-electron ITG branches. This row does not close W7-X TEM or kinetic-electron validation; those remain blocked by the explicit TEM branch audit below. * - W7-X TEM / kinetic-electron extension - ``gamma(k_y)``, ``omega(k_y)``, multi-alpha/multi-surface windows - stella/GENE benchmark paper + W7-X TEM literature - Open - ``docs/_static/tem_branch_parity_audit.json`` is outside the publication parity envelope and ``docs/_static/w7x_tem_extension_status.json`` keeps multi-alpha, multi-surface, and kinetic-electron nonlinear windows open. Do not use the closed W7-X ITG row as a TEM claim. * - W7-X zonal flow - residual level, damping envelope - stella/GENE benchmark paper + zonal-flow literature - Open; time coverage closed, residual and late-envelope gates open - a case-specific runtime/tool path exists through ``examples/benchmarks/runtime_w7x_zonal_response_vmec.toml`` and ``tools/generate_w7x_zonal_response_panel.py``. The runtime now supports the paper-facing ``init_field="phi"`` Gaussian potential initializer and writes both the older volume-weighted ``Phi_zonal_mode_kxt`` diagnostic and the W7-X line-average ``Phi_zonal_line_kxt`` observable. The frozen VMEC-backed artifact now lives at ``docs/_static/w7x_zonal_response_panel.png`` with metadata in ``docs/_static/w7x_zonal_response_panel.json`` and replayable traces in ``docs/_static/w7x_zonal_response_panel.traces.csv``; it uses line-first normalization, following the paper text. The stella/GENE Fig. 11 reference traces and inset residuals are digitized by ``tools/digitize_w7x_zonal_reference.py`` into ``docs/_static/w7x_zonal_reference_digitized.csv`` and ``docs/_static/w7x_zonal_reference_digitized_residuals.csv``. ``tools/compare_w7x_zonal_reference.py`` writes the residual/time-coverage/envelope artifact ``docs/_static/w7x_zonal_reference_compare.json`` and can now replay the comparison from the tracked combined trace CSV. ``tools/plot_w7x_zonal_contract_audit.py`` writes ``docs/_static/w7x_zonal_contract_audit.png`` as a publication-facing open-lane diagnostic, ``tools/plot_w7x_zonal_moment_tail_audit.py`` writes ``docs/_static/w7x_zonal_moment_tail_audit.png`` to track the velocity-space recurrence / moment-tail hypothesis, ``tools/plot_w7x_zonal_closure_ladder.py`` writes ``docs/_static/w7x_zonal_closure_ladder_kx070.png`` to compare bounded closure attempts at ``k_x rho_i=0.07``, ``tools/plot_w7x_zonal_state_convention_audit.py`` writes ``docs/_static/w7x_zonal_state_convention_audit.png`` to close the initializer/observable convention layer, and ``tools/plot_w7x_zonal_recurrence_sweep.py`` writes ``docs/_static/w7x_zonal_recurrence_sweep_kx070.png`` to separate moment-resolution and closure-source effects. The current SPECTRAX artifact enforces the intended test-4 ``k_x rho_i`` values ``[0.05, 0.07, 0.10, 0.30]`` with a periodic radial box for the ``k_y=0`` zonal run and reaches ``t≈3460`` for ``k_x rho_i=0.05`` and ``t≈1980`` for the other three wavelengths. Under the paper-facing normalization, residuals fail at ``k_x rho_i=0.07``, ``0.10``, and ``0.30`` and late envelopes fail for all wavelengths. The state-level audit closes the convention question with Gaussian-profile relative ``L2`` error ``1.85e-6`` and helper/manual observable agreement near ``2e-16``. The bounded recurrence sweep shows that ``Nl=12,Nm=48`` has the best no-closure trace error on ``t v_t/a <= 100`` and that constant-source closure suppresses the final Hermite tail but worsens the trace error. The remaining closure step is therefore a physical velocity-space recurrence / damping fix rather than a documentation or normalization change * - W7-X fluctuation spectra - resolved ``k_y`` spectra, ``k_x``-``k_y`` fluctuation power, and temporal spectra - W7-X nonlinear gate plus Doppler-reflectometry comparison conventions - Initial simulation diagnostic closed; experimental transfer-function validation deferred - ``tools/plot_w7x_fluctuation_spectrum_panel.py`` writes ``docs/_static/w7x_fluctuation_spectrum_panel.png`` with CSV/JSON/PDF companions from the gated W7-X ``t≈200`` nonlinear NetCDF output. The script refuses failed nonlinear gate summaries by default and marks the JSON with ``claim_level = "validated_nonlinear_simulation_spectrum_not_experimental_validation"`` and ``gate_index_include = false``. It therefore closes the reproducible spectrum-estimator layer while leaving density/zonal-frequency comparison through a Doppler-reflectometry transfer function as a future manuscript extension * - HSX - ``gamma(k_y)``, ``omega(k_y)`` - GX / internal frozen references - Closed - near-marginal deviations documented explicitly * - Electromagnetic stellarator verification - heavy-electron linear/nonlinear EM response - GENE-3D verification conventions - Open - close heavy-electron EM lane before realistic-mass claims Frozen artifact paths for the currently closed stellarator linear lanes: - ``docs/_static/w7x_linear_t2_scan.csv`` - ``docs/_static/hsx_linear_t2_scan.csv`` - ``docs/_static/w7x_linear_t2_lastvalue.csv`` - ``docs/_static/hsx_linear_t2_lastvalue.csv`` - ``docs/_static/reference_modes/w7x_linear_gx_ky0p3000.npz`` - ``docs/_static/reference_modes/w7x_linear_spectrax_ky0p3000.csv`` - ``docs/_static/w7x_eigenfunction_reference_overlay_ky0p3000.png`` - ``docs/_static/reference_modes/w7x_eigenfunction_reference_overlay_ky0p3000.json`` - ``docs/_static/benchmark_core_linear_atlas.png`` For W7-X, the whole-window scan and the late-time last-value reduction tell the same story. For HSX, the whole-window ``mean_rel_gamma`` metric is kept as an honest near-marginal stress signal, but the late-time closure should be read from ``docs/_static/hsx_linear_t2_lastvalue.csv`` because the final ``(gamma, omega)`` values are much tighter than the whole-window average. The W7-X raw eigenfunction overlay is now closed at ``k_y rho_i = 0.3`` using ``tools/generate_w7x_reference_overlay.py``. The frozen GX bundle was refreshed from the finite ``t≈2`` raw field history because the older bundle source contained non-finite late-time fields. The matched imported-geometry SPECTRAX-GK extraction uses the validated ``z_index`` diagnostic contract and gives normalized overlap ``0.9999999994`` and relative ``L^2`` mismatch ``3.33e-5`` against the frozen GX raw mode. .. image:: _static/w7x_eigenfunction_reference_overlay_ky0p3000.png :alt: W7-X raw eigenfunction overlay against the frozen GX reference :width: 100% Nonlinear Validation -------------------- .. list-table:: :header-rows: 1 * - Lane - Observable - Reference - Status - Baseline gate * - Cyclone ITG - heat-flux window mean/std/RMS, ``Wphi``, ``Wg`` - GX - Closed - current release gate ``<= 1e-1``; mature target ``<= 5e-2`` after further tightening * - Cyclone Miller - same as above - GX - Closed - allow documented low-amplitude / overlap-only adjustments * - KBM - ``Wg``, ``Wphi``, ``Wapar``, heat flux - GX - Closed - mature lane * - W7-X - heat-flux windows, saturation trend - GX + W7-X benchmark conventions - Closed - release gate ``<= 1e-1``; manuscript target tighter where feasible. The exact-state convention audit at ``docs/_static/w7x_exact_state_audit.png`` separately closes startup state, late geometry/field arrays, and scalar diagnostic reconstruction against GX dumps with maximum finite pointwise relative error ``4.62e-5`` under a ``1e-4`` gate and scalar diagnostics below ``1.8e-7``. * - HSX - heat-flux windows, saturation trend - GX / internal frozen references - Closed - near-threshold behavior documented * - ETG full-GK pilot - short-window nonlinear transport - GX + ETG operating-point convention - Exploratory - manuscript use only if the pilot is explicitly framed as such * - kinetic-electron Cyclone - electromagnetic nonlinear transport - GX - Deferred - keep out of the paper until branch identity and runtime cost are closed Frozen artifact paths for the currently closed nonlinear lanes: - ``docs/_static/nonlinear_cyclone_diag_compare_t400.png`` - ``docs/_static/nonlinear_cyclone_miller_diag_compare_t122.png`` - ``docs/_static/nonlinear_kbm_diag_compare_t400_stats.png`` - ``docs/_static/nonlinear_w7x_diag_compare_t200.png`` - ``docs/_static/hsx_nonlinear_compare_t50_true.png`` - ``docs/_static/benchmark_core_nonlinear_atlas.png`` Machine-readable nonlinear window gates are now tracked for the first refreshed subset: .. image:: _static/nonlinear_window_statistics.png :alt: Windowed nonlinear diagnostic agreement against GX :width: 100% The summary panel above is generated by ``tools/plot_nonlinear_window_statistics.py`` from the frozen gate-summary JSON files. It plots the gate statistic (windowed mean relative mismatch) and the maximum relative mismatch for each diagnostic, excluding exploratory summaries with ``gate_index_include=false``. - ``docs/_static/nonlinear_cyclone_miller_gate_summary.json``: passed at the tightened case gate ``0.095``. - ``docs/_static/nonlinear_kbm_gate_summary.json``: passed at the tightened case gate ``0.02``. - ``docs/_static/nonlinear_hsx_gate_summary.json``: passed at the tightened case gate ``0.05``. - ``docs/_static/nonlinear_w7x_gate_summary.json``: passed at the current ``0.10`` mean-relative release gate after the corrected adaptive state continuation and GX-style ``Phi2`` artifact refresh. - ``docs/_static/nonlinear_cyclone_gate_summary.json``: passed on the mature Cyclone ``t=100..400`` transport window at the current ``0.10`` mean-relative release gate. - ``docs/_static/nonlinear_cyclone_short_gate_summary.json``: retained only as an exploratory ``t=5`` startup/resolved-spectrum audit and excluded from the release-gate index. Quasilinear Diagnostics and Model Selection ------------------------------------------- The quasilinear verification surface is deliberately split between validated linear-state diagnostics, rejected absolute-flux calibration attempts, and one scoped model-selection result. A closed model-selection status must not be read as a promoted runtime predictor. .. list-table:: :header-rows: 1 * - Lane - Observable - Reference or artifact - Status - Baseline gate * - Electrostatic quasilinear weights and spectra - heat/particle weights, growth/frequency spectra, and channel metadata - ``docs/_static/quasilinear_*_spectrum.*`` and ``docs/_static/quasilinear_validated_calibration_inputs.json`` - Closed as diagnostics - electrostatic channel validation and reproducible spectrum generation; this is not calibrated absolute-flux prediction * - One-constant and simple saturation-rule absolute-flux models - train/holdout heat-flux prediction error - ``docs/_static/quasilinear_stellarator_train_holdout_report.json`` and ``docs/_static/quasilinear_saturation_rule_sweep.json`` - Rejected / unpromoted - current one-constant and simple-rule reports fail the held-out absolute-flux gate and must not be exposed as a user-facing saturation law * - ``spectral_envelope_ridge`` model selection - leave-one-geometry-out error and interval coverage - ``docs/_static/quasilinear_candidate_uncertainty.json`` and ``docs/_static/quasilinear_model_selection_status.json`` - Closed as scoped model-selection result - the accepted candidate is a manuscript model-selection result only; the status gate does not promote a runtime/TOML absolute-flux predictor, universal nonlinear transport model, or shipped saturation option * - Future absolute-flux promotion - calibrated heat-flux prediction on nonlinear holdouts - future late-window convergence metadata and promotion JSON - Open - every holdout needs finite passed post-transient convergence metadata: transient cutoff, running-mean drift, block/bootstrap uncertainty, finite sample count, and source provenance These gates do not change the deferred W7-X lanes: W7-X zonal long-window recurrence/damping and W7-X TEM / kinetic-electron validation remain outside the current manuscript/release scope. They also do not promote a universal absolute-flux model. Production nonlinear optimization is promoted only for the selected optimized-equilibrium audit now attached to the guard; nonlinear turbulence gradients and broad multi-surface claims remain separate gates. Autodiff Validation ------------------- .. list-table:: :header-rows: 1 * - Workflow - Observable - Validation type - Status * - Sensitivity analysis - ``gamma``, ``omega``, transport windows - finite-difference / complex-step / tangent consistency - Open * - Two-mode inverse problem - planted parameter recovery - gradient check + covariance estimate - Closed * - UQ / Laplace example - posterior covariance and propagated uncertainty - Hessian/Jacobian validation - Open * - Stellarator optimization prototype - low-dimensional objective reduction - gradient consistency + constrained solve behavior - Closed for reduced objective plumbing; open for production nonlinear heat-flux optimization The single-mode inverse figure is intentionally a sensitivity and non-identifiability demonstration. The two-mode figure is the closed parameter-recovery validation. Both examples now write finite-difference Jacobian checks, Jacobian rank/condition number, covariance, standard deviations, correlations, and one-sigma UQ ellipse area into their summary JSON files. Those metadata are part of the validation gate: differentiated observables are not promoted to inverse-design or UQ claims unless the derivative check is conditioned and the inverse problem is identifiable. Differentiable Geometry and Stellarator Objectives -------------------------------------------------- The VMEC/Boozer objective lane is split into three claim levels. The first two are currently release/manuscript scoped; the third remains a future promotion gate. .. list-table:: :header-rows: 1 * - Workflow - Observable - Reference or artifact - Status - Baseline gate * - VMEC/Boozer equal-arc geometry parity - ``bmag``, ``bgrad``, ``gradpar``, zero-beta metric profiles, drift profiles, ``q``, ``s_hat``, and solver Jacobian - ``docs/_static/vmec_boozer_parity_matrix.json`` - Closed for artifact-passing rows - ``mboz,nboz >= 21`` and row-level parity tolerances pass; QI scope is limited to the fixed-resolution row plus evaluated robustness variants * - Solver-ready objective gradients - linear eigenfrequency, growth, ````, electrostatic heat-flux weight, and ``gamma Q_i/k_perp^2`` - ``docs/_static/solver_objective_gradient_gate.json`` and ``docs/_static/vmec_boozer_gradient_holdout_matrix.json`` - Closed for reduced QH/Li383 gates - implicit AD/finite-difference mismatch remains within the tracked gate; current combined maximum relative mismatch is about ``2.7e-2`` after adding reduced nonlinear-window estimator rows * - VMEC/Boozer aggregate optimization promotion - aggregate objective decrease plus surface/field-line generalization - ``docs/_static/vmec_boozer_aggregate_objective_gate.json``, ``docs/_static/vmec_boozer_multi_point_objective_gate.json``, ``docs/_static/vmec_boozer_reduced_portfolio_guard.json``, ``docs/_static/vmec_boozer_aggregate_line_search_gate.json``, ``docs/_static/vmec_boozer_aggregate_line_search_comparison.json``, ``docs/_static/vmec_boozer_aggregate_alpha_holdout_gate.json``, ``docs/_static/vmec_boozer_aggregate_surface_holdout_gate.json``, ``docs/_static/vmec_boozer_second_equilibrium_aggregate_gate.json``, ``docs/_static/vmec_boozer_aggregate_holdout_promotion_gate.json``, and ``tools/check_vmec_boozer_aggregate_holdout_gate.py`` - Open for production transport claims - aggregate finite-difference and line-search artifacts must pass on the same training sample set, then an independent passed production-scope validation artifact must cover a held-out ``surface_index`` or field-line ``alpha``. Production nonlinear optimization promotion additionally requires a passed replicated nonlinear-window ensemble artifact, so a single converged window cannot by itself support an optimized-equilibrium heat-flux claim. The multi-alpha finite-difference artifact passes and the growth-vs-QL comparison shows objective-dependent descent directions. The reduced-portfolio guard now verifies that the multi-alpha rows have real VMEC/Boozer provenance, multi-alpha/multi-``k_y`` metadata, finite aggregate FD fields, finite growth/QL AD/FD diagnostics, and no production nonlinear claim. The alpha-heldout and surface-heldout splits pass as reduced generalization evidence, and Li383 passes as a second-equilibrium aggregate finite-difference/line-search check. The aggregate artifacts remain reduced optimizer-plumbing evidence. The separate production nonlinear optimization guard now includes long-window D-shaped/circular holdouts and the selected optimized-equilibrium seed/timestep audit; broader nonlinear turbulence gradients and multi-surface transport optimization are still separate gates. * - Reduced stellarator ITG optimization and UQ - objective reduction history, AD/finite-difference derivative parity, local covariance, and projected uncertainty - ``docs/_static/stellarator_itg_optimization_comparison.json`` and ``docs/_static/stellarator_itg_optimization_uq.json`` - Closed as reduced optimization plumbing - objective/UQ metadata pass for the tracked QA control vector; the nonlinear entry is a smooth reduced window estimator * - VMEC/Boozer nonlinear startup FD audit - compact startup-window heat-flux response to geometry perturbation - ``docs/_static/vmec_boozer_nonlinear_window_fd_audit.json`` - Exploratory plumbing gate - finite-output and finite-difference-response checks pass, but ``transport_average_gate = false`` * - VMEC-state nonlinear-gradient launch runbook - QL-admitted VMEC-state controls and required state-to-input mapping readiness - ``docs/_static/nonlinear_gradient_ql_seed_screen.json`` and ``docs/_static/nonlinear_gradient_state_control_runbook.json``; launch-plan and measured-response artifacts are tracked in ``docs/_static/nonlinear_gradient_state_to_input_mapping_campaign.json`` and ``docs/_static/nonlinear_gradient_state_to_input_mapping_response.json``, plus the symmetry-compatible ``docs/_static/nonlinear_gradient_asymmetric_state_to_input_mapping_campaign.json`` and ``docs/_static/nonlinear_gradient_asymmetric_state_to_input_mapping_response.json`` - Closed for checked short-bracket launch mapping; nonlinear evidence still open - the QL seed screen admits ``Rsin_mid_surface_m1`` and ``Zcos_mid_surface_m1`` as state controls. The measured ``RBC/ZBS`` response matrix has rank ``0`` and relative target residual ``1`` for both controls, but the measured ``LASYM=true`` ``RBS/ZBC`` response has rank ``2`` with condition number about ``1.02`` and residuals near machine precision. The runbook now emits explicit least-squares input directions for checked short-bracket launches; converged long-window nonlinear-gradient campaigns remain the next evidence gate * - VMEC-state short-bracket launch status - mapped state-control VMEC launch decks and bounded nonlinear campaign manifests - ``docs/_static/nonlinear_gradient_state_control_short_bracket_launch.json`` and ``docs/_static/nonlinear_gradient_state_control_short_bracket_launch_status.json`` - Closed as launch readiness; nonlinear-gradient evidence still open - the two mapped state controls are converted to explicit ``LASYM=true`` ``RBS/ZBC`` input directions with absolute ``1e-3`` scalar steps. All six baseline/plus/minus VMEC solves terminate normally, and two bounded ``t=150`` nonlinear campaign manifests are prepared. This is not a transport-gradient claim until those nonlinear campaigns pass runtime, replicated-window, central-FD, and evidence gates * - VMEC-state short-bracket nonlinear audit - bounded nonlinear runtime outputs, replicated windows, and central-FD promotion blockers for mapped state controls - ``docs/_static/nonlinear_gradient_state_control_short_bracket_nonlinear_audit_status.json`` plus the two ``qa_lowres_state_control_short_bracket_*_central_fd_gradient_gate.json`` artifacts and their replicated-window sidecars - Closed as negative short-bracket evidence; production gradient still open - all ``18`` office GPU nonlinear runs complete. The six corrected runtime-output groups and six replicated-window ensemble groups pass, with heat-flux means near ``10``. Both central-FD gates fail closed: the ``Rsin`` response fraction is about ``0.0045`` with asymmetry about ``9.5`` and uncertainty about ``7.7``; the ``Zcos`` response fraction is about ``0.0015`` with asymmetry about ``45`` and uncertainty about ``23``. A bracket-amplitude sweep or longer/lower-noise window is required before promotion * - VMEC-state bracket-amplitude sweep - bounded nonlinear outputs, replicated windows, and central-FD promotion blockers for mapped controls at larger single-control amplitudes - ``docs/_static/nonlinear_gradient_state_control_bracket_sweep_status.json`` plus the four ``qa_lowres_alpha0p*_state_control_short_bracket_*_central_fd_gradient_gate.json`` artifacts and their replicated-window sidecars - Closed as negative single-control bracket evidence; production gradient still open - all ``36`` office GPU nonlinear runs at ``alpha_delta=3e-3`` and ``1e-2`` complete with no runtime failures. Output and replicated-window gates remain stable, but all four central-FD gates fail. The best response fraction is about ``0.0045`` against the ``0.03`` gate, so the next test must reduce variance or change the observable/control basis * - Selected optimized-equilibrium nonlinear transport audit - optimized-equilibrium post-transient heat-flux average with uncertainty and nonlinear audit bars - ``docs/_static/optimized_equilibrium_replicates/optimized_equilibrium_replicate_t700_ensemble_gate.json`` and ``docs/_static/production_nonlinear_optimization_guard.json`` - Closed for selected optimized-equilibrium replicated transport audit - the selected QA optimized equilibrium passes the ``t=[350,700]`` seed and timestep ensemble gate; nonlinear turbulence-gradient and broad multi-surface/multi-field-line optimization claims remain open * - QA/ESS ``ZBS(1,0)`` 7.5% nonlinear-gradient follow-up - matched baseline/plus/minus post-transient heat-flux windows and central finite-difference response - ``docs/_static/qa_ess_zbs10_rel7p5_nonlinear_gradient_zbs_1_0_central_fd_gradient_gate.json`` plus the three replicated ensemble sidecar directories and ``docs/_static/qa_ess_zbs10_rel7p5_variance_reduction_plan.json`` - Closed as negative bounded-gradient evidence; production gradient still open - all twelve ``t=900`` office-GPU outputs pass the ``t=[450,900]`` output gates, and the central finite-difference response is resolved and local (``response_fraction = 0.0319``, ``fd_asymmetry_rel = 0.044``). The plus ensemble fails its spread gate (``0.196 > 0.15``), and propagated uncertainty remains too large (``gradient_uncertainty_rel = 1.81``), so the result is not promoted. The paired-seed runbook also fails closed: common-label plus-minus differences have relative uncertainty about ``0.984``. A midpoint common-mode control variate lowers apparent residual uncertainty to ``0.238`` but is blocked because the control mean is not independently known, motivating an independent control-mean estimate or a better-conditioned observable. The pre-run launch contract estimates ``21`` independent control-mean pairs, ``42`` new nonlinear runs, and projected combined uncertainty ``0.480``. The follow-up office campaign now completes those ``21`` matched pairs and passes the strict ``t=[600,1100]`` control-mean gate with combined response uncertainty ``0.311 < 0.5``, plus spread ``0.1268``, minus spread ``0.1193``, and no failed per-seed window rows. Use this section as the verification boundary for README figures: the VMEC/Boozer parity, gradient-holdout, and reduced optimization/UQ panels can be cited as reduced objective evidence. Startup-window finite-difference panels and reduced nonlinear-window estimators must not be cited as saturated transport-gradient validation. The optimized-equilibrium replicate panel may be cited as a post-transient transport-window audit for the selected candidate, not as a universal quasilinear absolute-flux model. Parallelization Validation -------------------------- Independent ``k_y`` and ensemble parallelization is accepted only when a serial numerical-identity gate accompanies the timing data. The current closed artifact is ``docs/_static/parallel_ky_scan_gate.png`` with metadata in ``docs/_static/parallel_ky_scan_gate.json``. It runs the real Cyclone linear solver with ``ky_batch=1`` and a fixed-shape batched scan, then requires ``max_gamma_rel_error <= 1e-8`` and ``max_omega_abs_error <= 1e-8``. The observed speedup is reported as an engineering metric, not as the gate itself. The larger CPU/GPU strong-scaling artifacts ``docs/_static/independent_ky_scan_scaling_large.json`` and ``docs/_static/quasilinear_uq_ensemble_scaling_large.json`` are the current release references for production independent-work scaling. Their split CPU and GPU companions must keep per-row identity, timing, and worker/profile metadata synchronized with the performance and validation manifests. ``docs/_static/parallelization_completion_status.json`` is the release ledger that turns those artifacts into a scoped production-closure claim while keeping nonlinear domain-decomposition speedup out of scope. Fixed-step nonlinear full-state sharding now has an engineering identity artifact at ``docs/_static/nonlinear_sharding_profile.json`` generated by ``tools/profile_nonlinear_sharding.py``. That closes the control-flow and final-state identity layer for the pjit state-sharded scan. The corresponding two-GPU office artifact, ``docs/_static/nonlinear_sharding_profile_office_gpu.json``, confirms active ``auto``/``kx`` sharding with zero final-state error on the bounded profiling grid. The large combined sweep ``docs/_static/nonlinear_sharding_strong_scaling_large.json`` is a profiler/identity artifact, not a production nonlinear speedup claim. The same diagnostic keeps ``z``-axis FFT sharding out of the release claim until it has a dedicated communication/layout design and a passing identity gate. True nonlinear domain decomposition with halo/FFT communication, conservation checks, and benchmark-size speedup remains outside the release claim. Notes ----- - A lane should not move from ``Open`` to ``Closed`` without an owning script, frozen artifact path, and literature/reference statement. - README figures should use only ``Closed`` lanes unless a panel is explicitly marked exploratory. - Raw eigenfunction overlays for manuscript use should be rendered only from frozen reference bundles checked into ``docs/_static/reference_modes/``. Do not build publication figures from transient external files or ad hoc office-machine outputs. - Experimental-facing figures such as W7-X fluctuation spectra should remain scoped as simulation diagnostics unless the diagnostic transfer function and access model are encoded directly in the repo. - Electromagnetic stellarator claims should be split explicitly into heavy-electron verification and realistic-electron research runs.