D. Turecek

Pixelman: a multi-platform data acquisition and processing software package for Medipix2, Timepix and Medipix3 detectors

The semiconductor pixel detectors Medipix2, Timepix and Medipix3 (256x256 square pixels, 55x55 μm each) are superior imaging devices in terms of spatial resolution, linearity and dynamic range. This makes them suitable for various applications such as radiography, neutronography, micro-tomography and X-ray dynamic defectoscopy. In order to control and manage such complex measurements a multi-platform software package for acquisition and data processing with a Java graphical user interface has been developed. The functionality of the original version of Pixelman package has been upgraded and extended to include the new medipix devices. The software package can be run on Microsoft Windows, Linux and Mac OS X operating systems. The architecture is very flexible and the functionality can be extended by plugins in C++, Java or combinations of both. The software package may be used as a distributed acquisition system using computers with different operating systems over a local network or the Internet.

Characterization of Medipix3 With Synchrotron Radiation

Medipix3 is the latest generation of photon counting readout chips of the Medipix family. With the same dimensions as Medipix2 (256 × 256 pixels of 55 μm × 55 μm pitch each), Medipix3 is however implemented in an 8-layer metallization 0.13 μm CMOS technology which leads to an increase in the functionality associated with each pixel over Medipix2. One of the new operational modes implemented in the front-end architecture is the Charge Summing Mode (CSM). This mode consists of a charge reconstruction and hit allocation algorithm which eliminates event-by-event the low energy counts produced by charge-shared events between adjacent pixels. The present work focuses on the study of the CSM mode and compares it to the Single Pixel Mode (SPM) which is the conventional readout method for these kind of detectors and it is also implemented in Medipix3. Tests of a Medipix3 chip bump-bonded to a 300 μm thick silicon photodiode sensor were performed at the Diamond Light Source synchrotron to evaluate the performance of the new Medipix chip. Studies showed that when Medipix3 is operated in CSM mode, it generates a single count per detected event and consequently the charge sharing effect between adjacent pixels is eliminated. However in CSM mode, it was also observed that an incorrect allocation of X-rays counts in the pixels occurred due to an unexpectedly high pixel-to-pixel threshold variation. The present experiment helped to better understand the CSM operating mode and to redesign the Medipix3 to overcome this pixel-to-pixel mismatch.

Characterization of the Medipix3 pixel readout chip

The Medipix3 chip is a hybrid pixel detector readout chip working in Single Photon Counting Mode. It has been developed with a new front-end architecture aimed at eliminating the spectral distortion produced by charge diffusion in highly segmented semiconductor detectors. In the new architecture charge deposited in overlapping clusters of four pixels is summed event-by-event and the incoming quantum is assigned as a single hit to the summing circuit with the biggest charge deposit (this mode of operation is called Charge Summing Mode (CSM)). In Single Pixel Mode (SPM) the charge reconstruction and the communication between neighbouring pixels is disabled. This is the operating mode in traditional detector systems. This paper presents the results of the characterization of the chip with electrical stimuli and radioactive sources.

Small Dosimeter based on Timepix device for International Space Station

The radiation environment in space is different, more complex and more intense than on Earth. Conventional devices and detection methods used nowadays do not allow to discriminate single particle types and the energy of the single particles. The Timepix detector is a position sensitive pixelated detector developed at CERN in a frame of the Medipix collaboration that provides capability to visualize tracks and measure energy of single particles. This information can be used for sorting the particles into different categories. It is possible to distinguish light charged particles such as electrons or heavy charged particles such as ions. Moreover, the Linear Energy Transfer (LET) for charged particles can be determined. Each category is assigned a quality factor corresponding to the energy a particle would deposit in the human tissue. By summing the dose of all particles an estimate of the dose rate can be calculated. For space dosimetry purposes a miniature device with the Timepix detector and a custom made integrated USB based readout interface has been constructed. The entire device has dimensions of a USB flash memory stick. The whole compact device is connected to a control PC and is operated continuously. The PC runs a software that controls data acquisition, adjusts the acquisition time adaptively according to the particle rate, analyzes the particle tracks, evaluates the deposited energy and the LET and visualizes in a simple display the estimated dose rate. The performance of the device will be tested during a mission on International Space Station planned towards the beginning of year 2012.

X-ray inspection of composite materials for aircraft structures using detectors of Medipix type

This work presents an overview of promising X-ray imaging techniques employed for non-destructive defectoscopy inspections of composite materials intended for the Aircraft industry. The major emphasis is placed on non-tomographic imaging techniques which do not require demanding spatial and time measurement conditions. Imaging methods for defects visualisation, delamination detection and porosity measurement of various composite materials such as carbon fibre reinforced polymers and honeycomb sendwiches are proposed. We make use of the new large area WidePix X-ray imaging camera assembled from up to 100 edgeless Medipix type detectors which is highly suitable for this type of measurements.

Utilization of dual-source X-ray tomography for reduction of scanning time of wooden samples

We present a novel dual-source/dual energy (DSCT/DECT) micro-tomography system including results of high-resolution DSCT reconstruction. The DSCT micro-tomography setup was designed as a multi-purpose X-ray imaging device equipped with two pairs of X-ray tubes and detectors in orthogonal arrangement with independent control of beam parameters. Both pairs (tube-detector) are mounted on a computer numerical control positioning system and can be independently set up to different geometries (e.g. with different magnification of each pair). In this work the simultaneous scanning of the object by two tube-detector pairs was used for approximately half reduction of tomography scanning time. The developed imaging procedure was applied for scanning of a wooden sample locally damaged during a semi-destructive test for assessment of wood quality. Prior to the tomography measurements the setup geometry was precisely adjusted in terms of magnification, horizontal and vertical tube-specimen-detector alignment of both pairs. DSCT measurements were carried out in sequence (2 × 90° for each tube) with identical 100μm image resolution. It was proven that the presented experimental setup combined with appropriate control technique significantly reduces tomography scanning time of materials with complex micro-structure.

MPX Detectors as LHC Luminosity Monitor

A network of 16 Medipix-2 (MPX) silicon pixel devices was installed in the ATLAS detector cavern at CERN. It was designed to measure the composition and spectral characteristics of the radiation field in the ATLAS experiment and its surroundings. This study demonstrates that the MPX network can also be used as a self-sufficient luminosity monitoring system. The MPX detectors collect data independently of the ATLAS data-recording chain, and thus they provide independent measurements of the bunch-integrated ATLAS/LHC luminosity. In particular, the MPX detectors located close enough to the primary interaction point are used to perform van der Meer calibration scans with high precision. Results from the luminosity monitoring are presented for 2012 data taken at √s = 8 TeV proton-proton collisions. The characteristics of the LHC luminosity reduction rate are studied and the effects of beam-beam (burn-off) and beam-gas (single bunch) interactions are evaluated. The systematic variations observed in the MPX luminosity measurements are below 0.3% for one minute intervals.

Modular pixelated detector system with the spectroscopic capability and fast parallel read-out

A modular pixelated detector system was developed for imaging applications, where spectroscopic analysis of detected particles is advantageous e.g. for energy sensitive X-ray radiography, fluorescent and high resolution neutron imaging etc. The presented system consists of an arbitrary number of independent versatile modules. Each module is equipped with pixelated edgeless detector with spectroscopic ability and has its own fast read-out electronics. Design of the modules allows assembly of various planar and stacked detector configurations, to enlarge active area or/and to improve detection efficiency, while each detector is read-out separately. Consequently read-out speed is almost the same as that for a single module (up to 850 fps). The system performance and application examples are presented.

Initial results on charge and velocity discrimination for heavy ions using silicon-Timepix detectors

The Timepix ASIC is a version of the hybrid pixel detector technology developed by the Medipix2 Collaboration [1]. Within the 256 by 256 pixel matrix, the electronics for each of the 55μm individual pixels are contained in the footprint of that pixel. The Timepix has a charge-sensitive pre-amp and an associated discriminator attached to a logic unit capable of being employed in one of several different modes. For the present work, the Time-Over-Threshold mode was used to allow measurement of deposited energy in the silicon sensor layer. The general properties of a Timepix-based device with a silicon sensor have been described in [2,3], and [4].Ionization along heavy ion particle tracks in the silicon sensor results in the production of free charge carriers in the detector. The charge carrier motion under the influence of an applied bias voltage leads to charge collection at the Timepix-sensor interface in one or more pixels. Signatures within the pixel cluster patterns are currently being examined, and initial results indicate that such signatures, when coupled with stopping power information, provide enough discrimination capability to begin to resolve heavy ion charge and velocity. Here we present the salient characteristics that have been identified for heavy ion charge and velocity discrimination using Timepix Silicon detectors and discuss the application of this method for particle track characterization.

Preparing for the first Medipix detectors in space

Current plans call for two separate missions to deploy Medipix2-Technology-based detectors in space for the first time. NASA is planning to deploy 5 or more Radiation Environment Monitor (REM) units, each of which will contain a Medipix2 TimePix-based detector assembly, on the International Space Station (ISS) during the spring of 2012 as part of a Station Detailed Test Objective (SDTO). These units will be mounted on a single 8-layer printed circuit board containing a USB-based interface. The entire unit will have the form of a typical USB flash-memory device, and the USB interface will provide interactive control and data readout as well as the operating power. Each of the units will be separately plugged into one of the 21 Lenovo® T-61B laptops that are currently onboard the ISS. The purpose of this test is to acquire initial on-orbit data to allow feedback into the design of the next generation of Medipix device, which is intended to support the development of a portable, standalone, wireless and battery-powered personal space radiation dosimeter. The second mission, LUCID (Langton Ultimate Cosmic ray Intensity Detector) is part of a UK outreach project being conducted by the Simon Langton School for Boys in Canterbury, UK. A small instrument containing 5 detector assemblies, also containing the TimePix versions of the Medipix2 technology will be deployed on the upcoming UK TechDemoSat 1 mission, also planned for launch in 2012. These deployments have many similar embedded control software and ground-based analysis software requirements.