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At least 595 records · Page 33
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2016

Design, construction and commissioning of the Digital Hadron Calorimeter—DHCAL

A novel hadron calorimeter is being developed for future lepton colliding beam detectors. The calorimeter is optimized for the application of Particle Flow Algorithms (PFAs) to the measurement of hadronic jets and features a very finely segmented readout with 1 × 1 cm(2) cells. The active media of the calorimeter are Resistive Plate Chambers (RPCs) with a digital, i.e. one-bit, readout. To first order the energy of incident particles in this calorimeter is reconstructed as being proportional to the number of pads with a signal over a given threshold. A large-scale prototype calorimeter with approximately 500,000 readout channels has been built and underwent extensive testing in the Fermilab and CERN test beams. This paper reports on the design, construction, and commissioning of this prototype calorimeter.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2023

Correction of the baseline fluctuations in the GEM-based ALICE TPC

To operate the ALICE Time Projection Chamber in continuous mode during the Run 3 and Run 4 data-taking periods of the Large Hadron Collider, the multi-wire proportional chamber-based readout was replaced with gas-electron multipliers. As expected, the detector performance is affected by the so-called common-mode effect, which leads to significant baseline fluctuations. A detailed study of the pulse shape with the new readout has revealed that it is also affected by ion tails. Since reconstruction and data compression are performed fully online, these effects must be corrected at the hardware level in the FPGA-based common readout units. The characteristics of the common-mode effect and of the ion tail, as well as the algorithms developed for their online correction, are described in this paper. The common-mode dependencies are studied using machine-learning techniques. Toy Monte Carlo simulations are performed to illustrate the importance of online corrections and to investigate the performance of the developed algorithms.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
DOE OSTI2025

Variational autoencoders for at-source data reduction and anomaly detection in high energy particle detectors

Detectors in next-generation high-energy physics experiments face several daunting requirements, such as high data rates, damaging radiation exposure, and stringent constraints on power, space, and latency. To address these challenges, machine learning in readout electronics can be leveraged for smart detector designs, enabling intelligent inference and data reduction at-source. Variational autoencoders (VAEs) offer a variety of benefits for front-end readout; an on-sensor encoder can perform efficient lossy data compression while simultaneously providing a latent space representation that can be used for anomaly detection. Results are presented from low-latency and resource-efficient VAEs for front-end data processing in a futuristic silicon pixel detector. Encoder-based data compression is found to preserve good performance of off-detector analysis while significantly reducing the off-detector data rate as compared to a similarly sized data filtering approach. Furthermore, the latent space information is found to be a useful discriminator in the context of real-time sensor defect monitoring. Together, these results highlight the multifaceted utility of autoencoder-based front-end readout schemes and motivate their consideration in future detector designs.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
DOE OSTI2015

Quantum plasmonic sensing

Surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sensors can reach the quantum noise limit of the optical readout field in various configurations. We demonstrate that two-mode intensity squeezed states produce a further enhancement in sensitivity compared with a classical optical readout when the quantum noise is used to transduce an SPR sensor signal in the Kretschmann configuration. The quantum noise reduction between the twin beams when incident at an angle away from the plasmonic resonance, combined with quantum noise resulting from quantum anticorrelations when on resonance, results in an effective SPR-mediated modulation that yields a measured sensitivity 5 dB better than that with a classical optical readout in this configuration. Furthermore, the theoretical potential of this technique points to resolving particle concentrations with more accuracy than is possible via classical approaches to optical transduction.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2024

Rydberg-atom-based single-photon detection for haloscope axion searches

We propose a Rydberg-atom-based single-photon detector for signal readout in dark matter haloscope experiments between 40 μ eV and 200 μ eV (10 GHz and 50 GHz). At these frequencies, standard haloscope readout using linear amplifiers is limited by quantum measurement noise, which can be avoided by using a single-photon detector. Our single-photon detection scheme can offer scan rate enhancements up to a factor of 10 4 over traditional linear amplifier readout, and is compatible with many different haloscope cavities. We identify multiple haloscope designs that could use our Rydberg-atom-based single-photon detector to search for QCD axions with masses above 40 μ eV (10 GHz), currently a minimally explored parameter space. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2022

Dissipative Superradiant Spin Amplifier for Enhanced Quantum Sensing

Quantum metrology protocols exploiting ensembles of N two-level systems and Ramsey-style measurements are ubiquitous. However, in many cases excess readout noise severely degrades the measurement sensitivity; in particular in sensors based on ensembles of solid-state defect spins. We present a dissipative “spin-amplification” protocol that allows us to dramatically improve the sensitivity of such schemes, even in the presence of realistic intrinsic dissipation and noise. Our method is based on exploiting collective (i.e., superradiant) spin decay, an effect that is usually seen as a nuisance because it limits spin-squeezing protocols. We show that our approach can allow a system with a highly imperfect spin readout to approach standard-quantum-limit-like scaling in N within a factor of 2, without needing to change the actual readout mechanism. Our ideas are compatible with several state-of-the-art experimental platforms where an ensemble of solid-state spins (NV centers, SiV centers) is coupled to a common microwave or mechanical mode.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

Towards a microchannel-based X-ray detector with two-dimensional spatial and time resolution and high dynamic range

X-ray detectors that combine two-dimensional spatial resolution with a high time resolution are needed in numerous applications of synchrotron radiation. Most detectors with this combination of capabilities are based on semiconductor technology and are therefore limited in size. Furthermore, the time resolution is often realised through rapid time-gating of the acquisition, followed by a slower readout. Here, a detector technology is realised based on relatively inexpensive microchannel plates that uses GHz waveform sampling for a millimeter-scale spatial resolution and better than 100 ps time resolution. The technology is capable of continuous streaming of time- and location-tagged events at rates greater than 10(7) events per cm(2). Time-gating can be used for improved dynamic range.

Adams, Bernhard W.↗
DOE OSTI2019

Continuous Data Acquisition for Liquid Argon Time Projection Chamber Neutrino Detectors Using FPGA-Based Real-Time Compression Algorithms

Liquid argon time projection chambers (LArTPCs) have been proposed as neutrino detectors that combine both large sizes to maximize the number of neutrino interactions and detailed recording of the interaction. The readout of thousands of channels at MHz sampling rates produce images of the neutrino-nucleus interaction with millimeter-scale resolution, enabling the identification of the resulting particles and offering multiple handles to measure their energies at the expense of large data rates. Continuous acquisition of the LArTPC data is required to enable the use of high-latency triggers for capturing non-accelerator-beam events. We describe the case of the continuous readout of the MicroBooNE LArTPC, that grants the possibility of acquiring the neutrino burst from a supernova using the SNEWS (Supernova Early Warning System) alert as delayed trigger. The continuous data acquisition is accomplished by using real-time compression algorithms (zero suppression and Huffman compression) implemented in an FPGA in the readout electronics.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2018

Transparent Ceramic Garnet Gamma-Ray Spectrometer With Directionality

We have developed a handheld γ -ray spectrometer based on 1024 pixels, 2.8mm×2.8mm×6 mm in size, of gadolinium–yttrium–gallium–aluminum garnet (GYGAG) ((Gd,Y,Ce) 3 (Ga,Al) 5 O 12 ) ceramic scintillator (total of 48-cm 3 detector volume) coupled to silicon photodiode (SiPD) arrays. The SiPD arrays and readout ASIC, originally developed for medical imaging applications, have been adapted for portability in a lightweight box with heatsink and thermoelectric cooling. Custom readout firmware for γ-ray spectroscopy has been implemented, and a system user interface was developed that runs on an Android tablet. Here, we have optimized the processing of the GYGAG(Ce), the pixel optical coupling, and electronics readout parameters to obtain single pixel energy resolution as good as R(662keV)=3.1 % full-width at half-maximum and full device resolution with singles events from all pixels summed of 4.5%. When Compton-summed events are included, full-energy peak efficiency increases by ~2× , and R(662keV)=4.7 % is obtained for the full device. The pixelated architecture is leveraged to locate point sources of radiological materials using Compton imaging and active masking techniques. Directional detection of a 1 mCi Cs-137 source at 10 m can be made to ±10° in ~2 s.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2018

Design and characterization of the SPT-3G receiver (Conference Presentation)

(On behalf of the SPT-3G collaboration)The SPT-3G receiver was commissioned in early 2017 on the 10-meter South Pole Telescope (SPT) to map the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) with arcminute resolution. The new instrument significantly improves on previous SPT camera designs, offering unprecedented sensitivity to the CMB’s temperature and polarization anisotropies while maintaining a tight control on systematic effects.A restructured optics chain features new secondary and tertiary mirrors to increase the receiver’s field of view by a factor of four in area, coupling light through a set of four cryogenic 720 mm alumina elements, which re-image the Gregorian focus inside the receiver. The broad-band (70-270 GHz) anti-reflective coated lenses are paired with a Lyot stop and cooled to 4 K using a dedicated two-stage pulse-tube cooler (PTC) to minimize in-band attenuation, internal radiative loading, and stray light on the considerably larger focal plane, which is populated with ~2,700 diffraction-limited pixels.Each independent pixel incorporates a lenslet-coupled broadband sinuous antenna, which routes signals through superconducting transmission lines and in-line band-defining filters to six transition-edge sensors, each measuring one of three bands (90, 150, and 220 GHz) and two polarizations, yielding a total of ~16,000 bolometers distributed across ten 150 mm monolithic wafers on a 430 mm image plane. A robust mechanical and thermal architecture supports and cools all detectors across this sizable focal plane to ~250 mK using a closed-cycle Helium adsorption refrigerator backed by a PTC, allowing a duty cycle greater than 90%.This order of magnitude increase in detector count relies on an improved digital frequency-domain SQUID readout system which integrates superconducting inductor-capacitor resonators wired in series with each bolometer to achieve a 68x multiplexing factor while mitigating noise and crosstalk effects.Cumulatively, SPT-3G’s new optics, detector, and readout strategies boast a potential factor of ~20 improvement in mapping speed over its predecessor, SPT-Pol, offering the potential to improve our understanding of inflationary physics, astroparticle physics, and growth of structure. We summarize the new receiver’s core design principles, outline technology characterization results, and report on plans for future upgrades.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2025

First demonstration of a TES based cryogenic Li 2 MoO 4 detector for neutrinoless double beta decay search

Cryogenic calorimetric experiments to search for neutrinoless double-beta decay (0vββ) are highly competitive, scalable and versatile in isotope. The largest planned detector array, CUPID, is comprised of about 1500 individual Li 2 100 MoO 4 detector modules with a further scale up envisioned for a follow up experiment (CUPID-1T). In this article, we present a novel detector concept targeting this second stage with a low impedance TES based readout for the Li 2 MoO 4 absorber that is easily mass-produced and lends itself to a multiplexed readout. We present the detector design and results from a first prototype detector operated at the NEXUS shallow underground facility at Fermilab. The detector is a 2-cm-side cube with 21 g mass that is strongly thermally coupled to its readout chip to allow rise-times of ~0.5 ms. This design is more than one order of magnitude faster than present NTD based detectors and is hence expected to effectively mitigate backgrounds generated through the pile-up of two independent two neutrino decay events coinciding close in time. Together with a baseline resolution of 1.95 keV (FWHM) these performance parameters extrapolate to a background index from pile-up as low as 5 • 10 –6 counts/keV/kg/yr in CUPID size crystals. The detector was calibrated up to the MeV region showing sufficient dynamic range for 0vββ searches. In combination with a SuperCDMS HVeV detector this setup also allowed us to perform a precision measurement of the scintillation time constants of Li 2 MoO 4 , which showed a primary component with a fast O(20 μs) time scale. Similar content being viewe

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2026

ML–Enabled FPGA Framework for Fast Quantum State Discrimination in Mid-Circuit Measurement Regimes

Accurate and low-latency quantum state discrimination is essential for protocols involving mid-circuit measurement (MCM) and conditional feed-forward. In superconducting quantum systems, conventional readout pipelines transfer measurement data to host processors for post-processing, introducing millisecond-scale delays that far exceed qubit coherence times. To overcome this bottleneck, we present an in-situ machine learning (ML) inference engine implemented on an FPGA for real-time quantum state discrimination. Our design performs inference directly on digitized readout signals with 40 ns latency, supports both qubit and qutrit readout, and enables conditional operations without host-side intervention. This capability is critical for MCM and for feedback-driven protocols such as quantum error correction. We validate the system on superconducting transmon hardware, demonstrating robust discrimination fidelity across multiple qubit and qutrit channels. We further demonstrate conditional qutrit logic driven by FPGA-resident classification, highlighting the potential of low-latency ML-on-FPGA control for NISQ applications and scalable fault-tolerant quantum computing.

Vora, Neel [Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory ↗
DOE OSTI2025

pnnl/SNAP

In this work, we detail two uncertainty quantification (UQ) methods that provide complementary information. Readout ensembling, by finetuning only the readout layers of an ensemble of foundation models, provides information about model uncertainty. Amending the final readout layer to predict upper and lower quantiles replaces point predictions with distributional predictions, which provide information about uncertainty within the underlying training data. We demonstrate our approach with the MACE-MP-0 model, applying UQ to both the foundation model and a series of finetuned models. The uncertainties produced by the ensemble and quantile methods are demonstrated to be distinct measures by which the quality of the NNP output can be judged.

Pope, Jenna (Bilbrey) [Pacific Northwest National ↗
DOE OSTI2017

The Super DREAM Project

Despite the fact that DOE provided only a fraction of the requested funds, the goals we defined in the proposal on which award ER41783 was based were essentially all met. This was partially due to the fact that other funding agencies, which supported our collaborators (especially from Italy and Korea) contributed as well, and partially due to the effective solutions that were developed to compensate for the fact that the detector we had proposed to build had to be scaled down. The performance of the SuperDREAM calorimeter is better than anything that has been built or proposed so far. This has of course not gone unnoticed in the scientific community. Scientists who are preparing experiments for the proposed new generation of particle accelerators (FCCee, CPEC,..) are all very seriously considering the technology developed in this project. Several new collaborations have formed which aim to adapt the dual-readout calorimeter principles to the demands of a 4 environment. Preliminary measurements using silicon photomultipliers as light sensors have already been carried out. This type of readout would make it possible to operate this detector in a magnetic field, and it would also allow for a longitudinal segmentation into electromagnetic and hadronic sections, if so desired. In addition, SiPM readout would eliminate the need for “forests” of fibers sticking out of the rear end of the calorimeter (Figure 1), and obtain an arbitrary fine lateral segmentation, which might be very important for recognizing electrons inside jets. The improvements in our understanding of the fundamental structure of matter and the forces that govern its behavior have always hinged on the availability of detectors that make it possible to explore the possibilities of new, more powerful particle accelerators to the fullest extent. We believe that the SuperDREAM project has created a quantum leap in detector technology, which may turn out to be crucially important for future discoveries in particle physics.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2018

Characterization of a Silicon photo-multiplier summing breakout board for photo-multiplier tube replacement

We present the relative timing and pulse-shape discrimination performance of a H1949-50 photomultiplier tube to SensL ArrayX-B0B6_64S coupled to a SensL ArrayC-60035-64P- PCB Silicon Photomultiplier array. The goal of this work is to enable the replacement of photomultiplier readout of scintillators with Silicon Photomultiplier devices, which are more robust and have higher particle detection efficiency. The report quantifies the degradation of these performance parameters using commercial off the shelf summing circuits, and motivates the development of an improved summing circuit: the pulse-shape descrimination figure-of-merit drops from 1.7 at 500 keVee to 1.4, and the timing resolution (σ) is 288 ps for the photomultiplier readout and approximately 1 ns for the Silicon Photomultiplier readout. A degradation of this size will have a large negative impact on any device that relies on timing coincidence or pulse-shape discrimination to detect neutron interactions, such as neutron kinematic imaging or multiplicity measurements.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2019

Negative Ion Drift TPC Development for High-Resolution Tracking (Final Technical Report)

Together with our Japanese (Kobe) and US collaborators (Hawaii and Wellesley), we proposed work on negative-ion time projection chambers (NITPC) with the recently discovered NI gas, SF 6 . The 1-year proposal requested $\$$37,699 at UNM to extend our work on studying the properties of SF 6 and to perform R&D on a novel TPC readout scheme that employs timing alone to reconstruct short tracks in 2-dimensions. The proposal was approved but the budget reduced to $\$$8K, thereby reducing the scope of the project. We chose to focus our efforts on R&D of the novel TPC readout (the “tilted GEM” readout) and used our funds for materials and supplies and machine shop time at UNM. Support for manpower, such as an engineer, graduate student and the PI were not included. Here we provide a fuller motivation for this R&D (which was not possible in the very short proposal) and describe the accomplishments over the ~1.5 year of the grant (including a NCE).

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
DOE OSTI2019

Building Towards Discovery: Preparing for New Physics at the LHC [Final papers]

Particle physics today is at a crossroads. The Standard Model (SM) has survived four decades of experimental scrutiny and spurred multiple landmark discoveries, culminating with the 2012 discovery of the Higgs boson at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). Yet we know that this model is incomplete. We live in a universe dominated by matter and energy unaccounted for by the SM– and the Higgs boson itself is improbably light. It falls to the current generation of high-energy physicists to go beyond the model and enter a new era of discovery. Andeen is leading a new research group at the University of Texas at Austin (UT-Austin) that is endeavoring to reveal novel physical phenomena through the discovery of new particles with the ATLAS detector at the LHC. A key element of our experience thus far has been collaborating closely with theorists to identify both interesting new physics models. In addition we work closely with electrical engineers in detector development. Our approach is therefore unique in its integration of theory, analysis and instrumentation, and is encapsulated in a three-pronged strategy. First is the essential task of analyzing our rapidly expanding dataset. I am directing my group in searches for vector-like quarks (VLQs). Should they exist, these hypothetical particles would indicate physics scenarios beyond the SM. Experimental constraints suggest VLQs decay preferentially to a third generation quark and a Higgs, W or Z boson. Today at 13 TeV, both multi-lepton (electron and muon) and jet substructure signatures are sensitive to identifying the VLQ decay products. The large Run 2 dataset (collected through 2018) of up to 150 fb -1 will allow us to simultaneously use multi-lepton signatures with jet-substructure in searches for new physics. UT-Austin is well positioned to be a leader in this area. Prof. P. Onyisi’s postdoctoral researchers and graduate students are searching for ttH signatures in three- and four-lepton channels and we benefit from their experience. We are also aided by the availability of the Texas Advanced Computing Center, which provides us with easy access to several high performance computing (HPC) systems. My previous experience in VLQ searches propels the work today. I have published both the first investigation into the single production of top partners (signatures of composite Higgs Models) of any LHC experiment 1 as well as one of the first analyses utilizing jet-substructure techniques to search for the single production of vector-like quarks. 2 Adding to this is my group’s work with the Liquid Argon (LAr) calorimeter, the primary instrument we use in detecting electrons. Second, my group is contributing to the operations of the LAr calorimeter while preparing to install and commission new electronic hardware (the Phase 1 upgrade) to this crucial component of the ATLAS detector. I have played a leading role in the development of a critical, radiation-hard, high-speed Analog-to-Digital Convertor (ADC) that is essential inselecting data collected by the LAr calorimeter. 3 This upgrade will improve the e!ciency with which we can select events in our detector. Postdoctoral researcher N. Nikiforou (based at CERN May 2016 onward) and graduate students (one based at CERN from the start of 2018 onward, with one additional graduate students from summer 2018) are growing our already deep experience in the operation of the LAr calorimeter to prepare for installation and commissioning of the new trigger readout in 2018-2019. My group will then be positioned to be the first to exploit the potential of the improved triggers in our multi-lepton searches for new physics. Third, a suite of preparations for a major detector upgrade, scheduled to be completed in 2024, are underway. My group is building hardware that will improve the electronic readout of the ATLAS detector. I am partnering with a group in the Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) Department at UT-Austin (Prof. N. Sun) to employ his work at the cutting edge of ADC research. We will support an ECE grad student for the layout of this design, and collaborate with engineering groups at Nevis Laboratory and the Electrical Engineering Department (Prof. P. Kinget) at Columbia University to integrate our ADC with gain selection circuits. We will provide this critical component of the ASIC at the challenging boundary of the analog and digital signals in the LAr calorimeter readout chain. Furthermore UT-Austin will lead the testing of this device during development and production (approximately 55,000 four-channel chips). This effort compliments my work as the deliverables manager for the LAr front-end ASICs for the US ATLAS HL-LHC project and strengthens the US commitment to that upgrade.In so doing, my group at the UT-Austin will be at the forefront of efforts to probe the structure of the universe to an unmatched degree both at the current LHC and with its future upgrades. Through both the ongoing analysis of data at the ATLAS detector and improvements to the detector itself, an answer to what lies beyond the SM may come within our grasp. My background in instrumentation and analysis allows my group to establish a singular research effort on the ATLAS experiment. In addition to answering fundamental questions about the subatomic world, the technologies developed could advance the broader scientific community and result in valuable spin-offs.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗