DELPHES 3: a modular framework for fast simulation of a generic collider experiment

The version 3.0 of the Delphes fast-simulation is presented. The goal of Delphes is to allow the simulation of a multipurpose detector for phenomenological studies. The simulation includes a track propagation system embedded in a magnetic field, electromagnetic and hadron calorimeters, and a muon identification system. Physics objects that can be used for data analysis are then reconstructed from the simulated detector response. These include tracks and calorimeter deposits and high level objects such as isolated electrons, jets, taus, and missing energy. The new modular approach allows for greater flexibility in the design of the simulation and reconstruction sequence. New features such as the particle-flow reconstruction approach, crucial in the first years of the LHC, and pile-up simulation and mitigation, which is needed for the simulation of the LHC detectors in the near future, have also been implemented. The Delphes framework is not meant to be used for advanced detector studies, for which more accurate tools are needed. Although some aspects of Delphes are hadron collider specific, it is flexible enough to be adapted to the needs of electron-positron collider experiments.