PLATO: A program library for the analysis of nonlinear betatronic motion

We present PLATO (Perturbative Lattice Analysis and Tracking tOols), a program library for analysing four-dimensional betatronic motion in circular particle accelerators. The 136 included routines provide both the resonant and the non-resonant perturbative series that approximate nonlinear motion (normal forms); standard numerical tools such as the Lyapunov exponent, frequency analysis and evaluation of the dynamic aperture are also available. The aim of the library is to apply these techniques, originally developed for the analysis of nonlinear dynamic systems, to realistic models of particle accelerators. To ensure the highest flexibility, the code is fully compatible with standard tracking programs commonly used in the accelerator physics community.