pdg-rs

pdg-rs provides programmatic access to the Particle Data Group database of particle-physics measurements. It is independently developed and is not affiliated with the PDG; scientific uses should cite the underlying Review of Particle Physics data.

The crate exposes both a Rust API and a pdg command-line program. It works with particle, measurement, reference, and explanatory-text records rather than limiting access to a curated list of particle properties.

Searching the database

The CLI can look up PDG string identifiers, search particle records, and search the database’s text content:

pdg show S008245
pdg show M036 --summary
pdg search particles K --limit 5
pdg search text "form factors"

The first command that needs the default SQLite database downloads and verifies it in the operating system’s cache directory. Dedicated pdg db commands report, fetch, locate, or clear that cache; environment variables and an offline flag support reproducible or disconnected workflows.

Rust interface

The Rust API can resolve particles by name or Monte Carlo ID, query properties such as masses and lifetimes, and follow a result back to related measurements, references, and PDG explanatory text. Many lookups return Option because the database cannot guarantee that an arbitrary query has a matching record.

The current interface is a working foundation for broader database coverage and more interactive exploration, including a possible terminal UI for organizing related values, footnotes, and references.