Algorithms and codes for the Macdonald function: recent progress and comparisons

The modified Bessel function Kiν(x), also known as the Macdonald function, finds application in the Kontorovich–Lebedev integral transform when x and ν are real and positive. In this paper, a comparison of three codes for computing this function is made. These codes differ in algorithmic approach, timing, and regions of validity. One of them can be tested independent of the other two through Wronskian checks, and therefore is used as a standard against which the others are compared.