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GMX-COVAR(1)			     GROMACS			    GMX-COVAR(1)

NAME
     gmx-covar - Calculate and diagonalize the covariance matrix

SYNOPSIS
	gmx covar [-f [<.xtc/.trr/...>]] [-s [<.tpr/.gro/...>]] [-n [<.ndx>]]
		  [-o [<.xvg>]] [-v [<.trr/.cpt/...>]]
		  [-av [<.gro/.g96/...>]] [-l [<.log>]] [-ascii [<.dat>]]
		  [-xpm [<.xpm>]] [-xpma [<.xpm>]] [-b <time>] [-e <time>]
		  [-dt <time>] [-tu <enum>] [-xvg <enum>] [-[no]fit]
		  [-[no]ref] [-[no]mwa] [-last <int>] [-[no]pbc]

DESCRIPTION
     gmx  covar  calculates  and diagonalizes the (mass-weighted) covariance ma-
     trix.  All structures are fitted to the structure in  the	structure  file.
     When  this  is  not a run input file periodicity will not be taken into ac-
     count. When the fit and analysis groups are identical and the  analysis  is
     non mass-weighted, the fit will also be non mass-weighted.

     The  eigenvectors	are  written  to  a trajectory file (-v).  When the same
     atoms are used for the fit  and  the  covariance  analysis,  the  reference
     structure	for  the fit is written first with t=-1.  The average (or refer-
     ence when -ref is used) structure is written with t=0, the eigenvectors are
     written as frames with the eigenvector number and eigenvalue as step number
     and timestamp, respectively.

     The eigenvectors can be analyzed with gmx anaeig.

     Option -ascii writes the whole covariance matrix to an ASCII file. The  or-
     der of the elements is: x1x1, x1y1, x1z1, x1x2, ...

     Option -xpm writes the whole covariance matrix to an .xpm file.

     Option  -xpma writes the atomic covariance matrix to an .xpm file, i.e. for
     each atom pair the sum of the xx, yy and zz covariances is written.

     Note that the diagonalization of a matrix requires  memory  and  time  that
     will  increase  at  least as fast as than the square of the number of atoms
     involved. It is easy to run out of memory, in which  case	this  tool  will
     probably  exit  with  a 'Segmentation fault'. You should consider carefully
     whether a reduced set of atoms will meet your needs for lower costs.

OPTIONS
     Options to specify input files:

     -f [<.xtc/.trr/...>] (traj.xtc)
	    Trajectory: xtc trr cpt gro g96 pdb tng h5md

     -s [<.tpr/.gro/...>] (topol.tpr)
	    Structure+mass(db): tpr gro g96 pdb brk ent

     -n [<.ndx>] (index.ndx) (Optional)
	    Index file

     Options to specify output files:

     -o [<.xvg>] (eigenval.xvg)
	    xvgr/xmgr file

     -v [<.trr/.cpt/...>] (eigenvec.trr)
	    Full precision trajectory: trr cpt tng h5md

     -av [<.gro/.g96/...>] (average.pdb)
	    Structure file: gro g96 pdb brk ent esp

     -l [<.log>] (covar.log)
	    Log file

     -ascii [<.dat>] (covar.dat) (Optional)
	    Generic data file

     -xpm [<.xpm>] (covar.xpm) (Optional)
	    X PixMap compatible matrix file

     -xpma [<.xpm>] (covara.xpm) (Optional)
	    X PixMap compatible matrix file

     Other options:

     -b <time> (0)
	    Time of first frame to read from trajectory (default unit ps)

     -e <time> (0)
	    Time of last frame to read from trajectory (default unit ps)

     -dt <time> (0)
	    Only use frame when t MOD dt = first time (default unit ps)

     -tu <enum> (ps)
	    Unit for time values: fs, ps, ns, us, ms, s

     -xvg <enum> (xmgrace)
	    xvg plot formatting: xmgrace, xmgr, none

     -[no]fit (yes)
	    Fit to a reference structure

     -[no]ref (no)
	    Use the deviation from the conformation in the  structure  file  in-
	    stead of from the average

     -[no]mwa (no)
	    Mass-weighted covariance analysis

     -last <int> (-1)
	    Last eigenvector to write away (-1 is till the last)

     -[no]pbc (yes)
	    Apply corrections for periodic boundary conditions

SEE ALSO
     gmx(1)

     More information about GROMACS is available at <http://www.gromacs.org/>.

COPYRIGHT
     2026, GROMACS development team

2026.3				  Jun 25, 2026			    GMX-COVAR(1)

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