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Uptake of MaX codes

MaX codes are universal tools that enable a tremendous amount of research developed worldwide. The maps displayed below display the number of affiliations (worldwide and in Europe) that have cited MaX lighthouse codes in their peer-reviewed papers.

Uptake of MaX codes in 2025

World map showing the number of affiliations citing MaX codes in 2025, represented by red circles of varying sizes, with the largest concentration in Europe. A legend shows the relationship between circle size and number of affiliations, ranging from 100 to 1,000.
Map of Europe showing the number of affiliations citing MaX codes in 2025. Red circles indicate the number of affiliations for each country. The size of the circles represents the number of affiliations, with a key indicating 40, 150, and 400 affiliations.

Uptake of MaX codes in 2024

Uptake of MaX codes in 2023

Preparing MaX Lighthouse codes for the exascale era

MaX codes are by now largely modular: they use modern programming paradigms, highly tuned libraries, and computational kernels. While this is one of the main achievements of the previous phases, today the MaX project aims to maintain, port, optimise, and scale its codebase and turn it into lighthouse applications ready for use on exascale (and post-exascale) architectures.

Today, the wider materials community can benefit from:

  • Publicly available optimized code versions.
  • Accessible libraries and modules adaptable to different open-source codes.
  • Knowledge exchange through workshops and schools organised by MaX or partner institutes.
  • Strengthened ties with Centers of Excellence and seamless access to HPC facilities via PRACE (Partnership for Advanced Computing in Europe) initiatives.

Scientific impact of MaX Lighthouse Codes

MaX codes are essential tools for scientific discovery across the world. A measure of the global impact of MaX codes is their growing use in academic research, as reflected in their citation numbers. As shown in the figure below, the five MaX lighthouse codes have received over 40,000 citations to date, with a steady increase year after year. Quantum ESPRESSO and SIESTA account for most of these, due to their broad range of applications, while the more specialized codes also show strong growth. 

A stacked bar chart showing the cumulative number of citations for MaX lighthouse codes from 2005 to 2025. The chart is segmented by code: QE (red), SIESTA (orange), YAMBO (purple), BigDFT (dark blue), and FLEUR (teal). The number of citations increases over time, with SIESTA and QE codes contributing the most citations overall.