K. Świentek

Integrated readout of silicon strip detectors for position sensitive measurement of X-rays

Abstract The paper presents an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) dedicated for readout of silicon strip detectors used for position sensitive measurements of X-rays. Requirements concerning the silicon strip detectors and the readout electronics with respect to X-ray detection are discussed briefly. Design of the ASIC and performance of the developed silicon strip detector module are presented. Application of silicon strip detectors to X-ray powder diffractometry is discussed and examples of diffractometric measurements performed using the developed detector module are presented.

Application of GEM-based detectors in full-field XRF imaging

X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF) is a commonly used technique for non-destructive elemental analysis of cultural heritage objects. It can be applied to investigations of provenance of historical objects as well as to studies of art techniques. While the XRF analysis can be easily performed locally using standard available equipment there is a growing interest in imaging of spatial distribution of specific elements. Spatial imaging of elemental distrbutions is usually realised by scanning an object with a narrow focused X-ray excitation beam and measuring characteristic fluorescence radiation using a high energy resolution detector, usually a silicon drift detector. Such a technique, called macro-XRF imaging, is suitable for investigation of flat surfaces but it is time consuming because the spatial resolution is basically determined by the spot size of the beam. Another approach is the full-field XRF, which is based on simultaneous irradiation and imaging of large area of an object. The image of the investigated area is projected by a pinhole camera on a position-sensitive and energy dispersive detector. The infinite depth of field of the pinhole camera allows one, in principle, investigation of non-flat surfaces. One of possible detectors to be employed in full-field XRF imaging is a GEM based detector with 2-dimensional readout. In the paper we report on development of an imaging system equipped with a standard 3-stage GEM detector of 10 × 10 cm2 equipped with readout electronics based on dedicated full-custom ASICs and DAQ system. With a demonstrator system we have obtained 2-D spatial resolution of the order of 100 μm and energy resolution at a level of 20% FWHM for 5.9 keV . Limitations of such a detector due to copper fluorescence radiation excited in the copper-clad drift electrode and GEM foils is discussed and performance of the detector using chromium-clad electrodes is reported.

Position sensitive and energy dispersive x-ray detector based on silicon strip detector technology

A new position sensitive detector with a global energy resolution for the entire detector of about 380 eV FWHM for 8.04 keV line at ambient temperature is presented. The measured global energy resolution is defined by the energy spectra summed over all strips of the detector, and thus it includes electronic noise of the front-end electronics, charge sharing effects, matching of parameters across the channels and other system noise sources. The target energy resolution has been achieved by segmentation of the strips to reduce their capacitance and by careful optimization of the front-end electronics. The key design aspects and parameters of the detector are discussed briefly in the paper. Excellent noise and matching performance of the readout ASIC and negligible system noise allow us to operate the detector with a discrimination threshold as low as 1 keV and to measure fluorescence radiation lines of light elements, down to Al Kα of 1.49 keV, simultaneously with measurements of the diffraction patterns. The measurement results that demonstrate the spectrometric and count rate performance of the developed detector are presented and discussed in the paper.

128-Channel Silicon Strip Detector Installed at a Powder Diffractometer

Silicon strip detectors represent a new class of one-dimensional position-sensitive single photon counting devices. They allow a reduction of measurement time at the powder diffractometers by a factor up to 100 compared to instruments with a single counter, while maintaining comparable count statistics. Present work describes a 128-channel detector working with a standard diffractometer. The detector is 12.8 mm long and covers the angular range of 3.2 deg. We discuss the diffraction geometry in real and reciprocal space, the FWHM of diffraction peaks, and the background level. Measurements were made on standard samples and on complex samples of industrial importance (e. g., portland clinker). Applications of the detector to diffraction measurements of single crystals and thin films are discussed briefly.

Development of front-end electronics for LumiCal detector in CMOS 130 nm technology

The design and the preliminary measurements results of a multichannel, variable gain front-end electronics for luminosity detector at future Linear Collider are presented. The 8-channel prototype was designed and fabricated in a 130 nm CMOS technology. Each channel comprises a charge sensitive preamplifier with pole-zero cancellation circuit and a CR-RC shaper with 50 ns peaking time. The measurements results confirm full functionality of the prototype and compliance with the requirements imposed by the detector specification. The power consumption of the front-end is in the range 0.6–1.5 mW per channel and the noise ENC around 900 e - at 10 pF input capacitance.

A wide range ultra-low power Phase-Locked Loop with automatic frequency setting in 130 nm CMOS technology for data serialisation

The design and measurements results of a wide frequency range ultra-low power Phase-Locked Loop (PLL) for applications in readout systems of particle physics detectors are presented. The PLL was fabricated in a 130 nm CMOS technology. To allow the implementation of different data serialisation schemes multiple division factors (6, 8, 10, 16) were implemented in the PLL feedback loop. The main PLL block—VCO works in 16 frequency ranges/modes, switched either manually or automatically. A dedicated automatic frequency mode switching circuit was developed to allow simple frequency tuning. Although the PLL was designed and simulated for a frequency range of 30 MHz–3 GHz, due to the SLVS interface limits, the measurements were done only up to 1.3 GHz. The full PLL functionality was experimentally verified, confirming a very low and frequency scalable power consumption (0.7 mW at 1 GHz).

Development of scalable frequency and power Phase-Locked Loop in 130 nm CMOS technology

The design and measurements results of a prototype very low power Phase-Locked Loop (PLL) ASIC for applications in readout systems of particle physics detectors are presented. The PLL was fabricated in 130 nm CMOS technology. It was designed and simulated for frequency range 10 MHz–3.5 GHz. Four division factors i.e. 6, 8, 10 and 16 were implemented in the PLL feedback loop. The main PLL block-voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) should work in 16 frequency ranges/modes, switched either manually or automatically. Preliminary measurements done in frequency range 20 MHz–1.6 GHz showed that the ASIC is functional and generates proper clock signal. The automatic VCO mode switching, one of the main design goals, was positively verified. Power consumption of around 0.6 mW was measured at 1 GHz for a division factor equal to 10.

ARTROC—a readout ASIC for GEM-based full-field XRF imaging system

In the paper we report on development of an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), called ARTROC, being part of a full-field X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF) imaging system equipped with a standard three stage Gas Electron Multiplier (GEM) detector of 10×10 cm2 area. The ARTROC consists of 64 independent channels, allowing for simultaneous recording of the amplitudes (energy sub-channel) and time stamps (timing sub-channel) of incoming signals. Thanks to the implemented token-based read out of derandomizing buffers, the ASIC also provides data sparsification and full zero suppression. Reconstruction of the hit positions is performed in an external data acquisition system by matching the time stamps of signals recorded in X- and Y-strips. The amplitude information is used for centre of gravity finding in clusters of signals on neighbouring strips belonging to the same detection events. The ASIC could work in one of six gain modes and one of two speed modes. In a slower mode the maximum count rate per channel is 105/s while in a faster mode it is three times higher. The ARTROC comprises also input protection circuits against possible random discharges inside active detector volume, so it can be used without any additional input components. The ASIC has been designed in 350 nm CMOS process. The basic functionality and parameters have been evaluated using the testability functions implemented in the ASIC design. The ASIC has been also tested in a fully equipped GEM detector set-up with X-rays source.