GOAT: a simulation code for high-intensity beams

A simulation code, GOAT, is developed to simulate single-bunch intensity-dependent effects and their interplay in the proton ring of the Electron-Ion Collider in China (EicC) project. GOAT is a scalable and portable macroparticle tracking code written in Python and coded by object-oriented programming technology. It allows for transverse and longitudinal tracking, including impedance, space charge effect, electron cloud effect, and beam-beam interaction. In this paper, physical models and numerical approaches for the four types of high-intensity effects, together with the benchmark results obtained through other simulation codes or theories, are presented and discussed. In addition, a numerical application of the cross-talk simulation between the beam-beam interaction and transverse impedance is shown, and a dipole instability is observed below the respective instability threshold. Different mitigation measures implemented in the code are used to suppress the instability. The flexibility, completeness, and advancement demonstrate that GOAT is a powerful tool for beam dynamics studies in the EicC project or other high-intensity accelerators.