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Abstract: CdZnTe (CZT) is a wide band-gap II–VI semiconductor and can be used as detector for hard X-rays in astronomical instrumentation and for medical applications. Angular and energy resolutions, as well as detection efficiencies are crucial parameters to characterize the performance of CZT detectors. We studied the detector performance as a function of the geometrical layout of the anode pixel matrix for two CZT detectors with thicknesses of 2mm and 5mm, respectively. We varied the pixel sizes as well as their relative distances and quantified the energy resolutions and detection efficiencies. We also studied how a steering grid located between pixels affects the energy resolution and detection rate. The results of the study are presented and suggest that a steering grid substantially improves the high-energy performance of thin detectors—whereas thick detectors mainly benefit from larger pixel widths. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A new type of active pixel sensors (APSs) to track charged particles for particle physics experiments or to count number of electrons that cross any pixel at the focal plane of electron microscopes is described. The electric field of desirable shape is created inside the active volume of the pixel introducing the drift component in the movement of the signal electrons towards charge collecting electrodes. The electric field results from the flow of ∼100mA/cm2 hole currents within individual pixels of the sensor. The proposed sensor is produced using a standard industrially available complementary metal oxide silicon (CMOS) process. There are two main advantages of the proposed detectors when compared to the present (February 2005) state-of-the-art, i.e. field-free APS sensors. The first advantage of a field-assisted transport mechanism is the reduction of the charge collection time and of the sharing of the signal electrons between adjacent pixels by diffusion. The second advantage is the freedom to use both kinds of MOS transistors within each pixel of the sensor. Thus, the full functional power of CMOS circuits can be embedded in situ. As an example, 16-bit scalers will be implemented in each pixel of the sensor for electron microscopy. The reduced collection time combined with the state-of-the-art electronics within each pixel provides the most complete information about the position and the timing of incident charged particles for particle physics experiments. Position resolution of new sensors was computationally simulated to be a few microns, that is, the same as the resolution of standard APSs. Moreover, the active depth of the sensor and the associate electronics is less than about 20μm and a thinned down sensor together with its beryllium backing can have a total thickness of less than 0.1% of one radiation length. The reduction of the thickness of the detector reduces the amount of multiple scattering within the detector. The determination of the momentum and of the origin of a particle can be improved in particle physics experiments and images from electron microscopes can be sharper. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

An X-ray Active Matrix Pixel Sensor (XAMPS) for recording Data from the Scanning Transmission Electron Microscope (STEM) was designed, produced and tested. The reason for measuring scattering angle of all STEM electrons is given together with the requirement on the performance of the XAMPS. Principles of the measurement of the number of STEM electrons scattered in a particular direction are summarized. Results of tests performed on a produced detector are described and the problem with the formation of an insulation layer between silicon and aluminum is identified. A change in the design of the pixel is proposed which results in a fully functioning XAMPS even with the insulation layer present. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Deals with a study which developed a detector for EXAFS experiments. Multi-element SI sensor; Mixed signal front-end application specific integrated circuit; Front-end interconnects; Experimental results; Conclusion.

A versatile 32-channel ASIC has been developed for accurate processing of high-rate pulse signals from highly segmented detectors. In contrast to conventional approaches, this circuit affords a dramatic reduction in data volume through the use of analog techniques (precision peak detectors and time-to-amplitude converters) together with fast arbitration and sequencing logic to concentrate the data before digitization. In operation the circuit functions like a data-driven analog first-in, first-out (FIFO) memory between the preamplifiers and the ADC. Peak amplitudes of pulses arriving at any one of the 32 inputs are sampled, stored, and queued for readout and digitization through a single output port. Hit timing, pulse risetime, and channel address are also available at the output.Prototype chips have been fabricated in 0.35 μm CMOS and tested. Amplitude accuracy of the peak detect and hold circuit is 0.2% (absolute) and 0.04% (nonlinearity) for signals within 0.3 V of either supply rail. Time walk is below 5 ns, droop rate is 250 mV/s, and power consumption is less than 2 mW/channel at pulse rates up to 500 kHz per channel. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Focuses on a study that introduced the concept of X-ray active matrix pixel sensor (XAMPS). Description of XAMPS; Devices used in pursuing structural studies in X-ray protein crystallography; Requirement of long controlled-drift detectors readout time.

Presents the result of a collaboration between Brookhaven National Laboratory and eV Products which developed a high performance readout application specific integrated circuit (ASIC). Structure of ASIC; Preamplifier and continuous reset system; Prototypes of ASIC; Experimental results; Conclusions.

Presents a study which proposed and tested a complementary metal oxide semiconductors fully compensated continuous reset system. Description of the system and related experimental results; Conclusions.

Provides information on a study which presented a circuit solution called baseline holder (BLH) implemented in readout ASIC suitably developed for CZT detectors. Description of BLH.

Presents a low-noise wide-band transimpedance amplifier designed to measure the spectral noise densities of currents in submicroamplere range. Design of the feedback transimpedance amplifier; Description of the design criteria and experimental tests.

Compares the performance of silicone (Si) and gallium arsenide (GaAs) field transistors, while highlighting the conditions required for dissipation. Criteria for the optimum choice of input transistor dimensions; Effects of electronic noise of read-out circuit on detection systems; How resolution of a detection system can be characterized.

Abstract: Large Liquid Argon (LAr) Time Projection Chambers (TPCs) are becoming very attractive for long baseline neutrino and proton decay experiments because of their imaging capabilities and their excellent energy resolution. To optimize the detector performance and boost its signal-to-noise ratio we are developing within the MicroBooNE collaboration front-end readout electronics operating at LAr temperatures. Some preliminary results are presented here. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The traditional method for electron lifetime measurements of CdZnTe (CZT) detectors relies on using the Hecht equation. The procedure involves measuring the dependence of the detector response on the applied bias to evaluate the μτ product, which in turn can be converted into the carrier lifetime. Despite general acceptance of this technique, which is very convenient for comparative testing of different CZT materials, the assumption of a constant electric field inside a detector is unjustified. In the Hecht equation, this assumption means that the drift time would be a linear function of the distance. This condition is not fulfilled in practice at low applied biases, where the Hecht equation is most sensitive to the μs product. As a result, researchers usually take measurements at relatively high biases, which work well in the case of the low μτ-product material, <10-3 cm²/V, but give significantly underestimated values for the case of high μτ-product crystals. In this work, we applied the drift-time method to measure the electron lifetimes in long-drift-length (4 cm) standard-grade CZT detectors produced by the Redlen Technologies. We found that the electron μτ product of tested crystals is in the range 0.1-0.2 cm²/V, which is an order of the magnitude higher than any value previously reported for a CZT material. In comparison, using the Hecht equation fitting, we obtained μτ=2.3 × 10-2 cm²/V for a 2-mm thin planar detector fabricated from the same CZT material. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The CMOS 0.18-μm technology was investigated for two analog front-end projects: the low-power budget rat-head mounted miniature rat conscious animal PET (RatCAP) scanner, and the high-performance, low-noise, high-rate PET/CT application. The first VLSI prototypes consist d of 1- and 5-mW charge sensitive preamplifiers (CSP) based on a modified e telescopic architecture. Characterization of the rise time, linearity dynamic range, equivalent noise charge (ENC), timing resolution and energy resolution are reported and discussed. When connected to an APD-LSO detector, time resolutions of 2.49 and 1.56 us full-width half-maximum (FWHM) were achieved by the 1- and S-mW CSPS, respectively. Both CSPs make it possible to achieve performance characteristics that are adequate for PET imaging. Experimental results indicate that the CMOS 0.18-μm technology is suitable for both the low-power and the high-performance PET front-end applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The characteristics of a recently developed front-end application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) designed for high-purity germanium (HPGe) strip detectors are detailed. The ASIC contains 32 channels, and can instrument either cathode or anode signals from the HPGe detector. The channels provide low-noise charge amplification, four shaping times, four gain ranges, trimmable discrimination for each channel, time to analog output, and peak detectors with analog memory. The channels process events in parallel, and the ASIC emits a logical-OR of the internal discriminators for external control. Each channel contains a time-to-analog circuit to allow the depth of interaction in a detector to be determined. The ASIC has a small noise slope, allowing it to maintain germanium energy resolution at the large, 30 pF, input capacitance of a germanium strip detector connected through the cryostat by a kapton flex cable. The ASIC sparsifies the triggered channels for low deadtime readout. Each channel dissipates 6.2 mW and covers an energy range up to 4 MeV in HPGe. Measurements demonstrate an equivalent noise charge (ENC) of 260 electrons at an input capacitance of 32.5 pF with a slope of 6.4 electrons/pF for a peaking time of 2 μ s. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Large-area arrays of position-sensitive virtual Frisch-grid CdZnTe (CZT) detectors with enhanced energy resolution and high efficiency have been proposed for spectroscopy and imaging of gamma-ray sources. Here, we present the design and test results of a linear array of such detectors optimized for use in handheld instruments. There are several application areas for such detectors including uranium enrichment measurements, storage monitoring, dosimetry and other nuclear safeguards related tasks. The array configuration provides a large area with minimum number of readout channels, which potentially allows the developers to avoid using ASIC-based readout electronics by substituting it with hybrid preamplifiers followed by digitizers. The array prototype consists of 6 5 × 7 × 25 mm3 CZT detectors side-oriented with respect to the source to achieve the maximum area. Each detector is furnished with 5 mm-wide charge-sensing pads placed near the anode. As an option, the pads can be grouped together to reduce the number of readout channels. The same can be done with the cathodes. The pads signals are converted into X – Y coordinates and combined with the cathode signals (for the Z coordinates) to give 3D positional information of each interaction point. This information is used to correct the response non-uniformity caused by material inhomogeneity, which allows the developers to use standard grade (unselected) CZT crystals, while retaining high spectroscopic performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We evaluated the sub-pixel position resolution achievable in large-volume CdZnTe pixelated detectors with conventional pixel patterns and for several different pixel sizes: 2.8 mm, 1.72 mm, 1.4 mm and 0.8 mm. Achieving position resolution below the physical dimensions of pixels (sub-pixel resolution) is a practical path for making high-granularity position-sensitive detectors, <100 μ m, using a limited number of pixels dictated by the mechanical constraints and multi-channel readout electronics. High position sensitivity is important for improving the imaging capability of CZT gamma cameras. It also allows for making more accurate corrections of response non-uniformities caused by crystal defects, thus enabling use of standard-grade (unselected) and less expensive CZT crystals for producing large-volume position-sensitive CZT detectors feasible for many practical applications. We analyzed the digitized charge signals from a representative 9 pixels and the cathode, generated using a pulsed-laser light beam focused down to 10 μ m (650 nm) to scan over a selected 3 × 3 pixel area. We applied our digital pulse processing technique to the time-correlated signals captured from adjacent pixels to achieve and evaluate the capability for sub-pixel position resolution. As an example, we also demonstrated an application of 3D corrections to improve the energy resolution and positional information of the events for the tested detectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Position-sensitive virtual Frisch-grid (VFG) CdZnTe (CZT) detectors offer a unique capability for correcting the response nonuniformities caused by crystal defects. This allowed us to achieve high energy resolution, while using typical-grade commercial CZT crystals with relaxed requirements to their quality, thus reducing the overall cost of detectors. Another advantage of the VFG detectors is that they can be integrated into arrays and used in small compact hand-held instruments or large-area gamma cameras that will enhance detection capability for many practical applications, including nonproliferation, medical imaging, and gamma-ray astronomy. Here, we present the results from testing small array prototypes coupled with front-end application-specified integrated circuit. Each detector in the array is furnished with 5-mm-wide charge-sensing pads placed near the anode. The pads signals are converted into XY coordinates, which combined with the cathode signals (for Z coordinates) provide 3-D position information of all interaction points. The basic array consists of a number of detectors grouped into $2\times 2$ subarrays, each having a common cathode made by connecting together the cathodes of the individual detectors. These features can significantly improve the performance of detectors while using typical-grade low-cost CZT crystals to reduce the overall cost of the proposed instrument. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

We evaluated the X-Y position resolution achievable in 3D pixelated detectors by processing the signal waveforms readout from neighboring pixels. In these measurements we used a focused light beam, down to 10 μ m, generated by a ∼1 mW pulsed laser (650 nm) to carry out raster scans over selected 3 × 3 pixel areas, while recording the charge signals from the 9 pixels and the cathode using two synchronized digital oscilloscopes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The XL-Calibur balloon-borne hard X-ray polarimetry mission comprises a Compton-scattering polarimeter placed at the focal point of an X-ray mirror. The polarimeter is housed within a BGO anticoincidence shield, which is needed to mitigate the considerable background radiation present at the observation altitude of ∼ 40 km. This paper details the design, construction and testing of the anticoincidence shield, as well as the performance measured during the week-long maiden flight from Esrange Space Centre to the Canadian Northwest Territories in July 2022. The in-flight performance of the shield followed design expectations, with a veto threshold < 100 keV and a measured background rate of ∼ 0.5 Hz (20–40 keV). This is compatible with the scientific goals of the mission, where %-level minimum detectable polarisation is sought for a Hz-level source rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

X-Calibur is a balloon-borne telescope that measures the polarization of high-energy X-rays in the 15–50 keV energy range. The instrument makes use of the fact that X-rays scatter preferentially perpendicular to the polarization direction. A beryllium scattering element surrounded by pixellated CZT detectors is located at the focal point of the InFOCµS hard X-ray mirror. The instrument was launched for a long-duration balloon (LDB) flight from McMurdo (Antarctica) on December 29, 2018, and obtained the first constraints of the hard X-ray polarization of an accretion-powered pulsar. Here, we describe the characterization and calibration of the instrument on the ground and its performance during the flight, as well as simulations of particle backgrounds and a comparison to measured rates. The pointing system and polarimeter achieved the excellent projected performance. The energy detection threshold for the anticoincidence system was found to be higher than expected and it exhibited unanticipated dead time. Both issues will be remedied for future flights. Overall, the mission performance was nominal, and results will inform the design of the follow-up mission XL-Calibur , which is scheduled to be launched in summer 2022. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated the feasibility of long-drift-time CdZnTe (CZT) gamma-ray detectors, fabricated from CZT material produced by Redlen Technologies. CZT crystals with cross-section areas of 5 × 5mm² and 6 × 6mm² and thicknesses of 20-, 30-, 40-, and 50-mm were configured as 3D position-sensitive drift detectors and were read out using a front-end ASIC. By correcting the electron charge losses caused by defects in the crystals, we demonstrated high performance for relatively thick detectors fabricated from unselected CZT material. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following our successful demonstration of the position-sensitive virtual Frisch-grid detectors, we investigated the feasibility of using high-granularity position sensing to correct response non-uniformities caused by the crystal defects in CdZnTe (CZT) pixelated detectors. The development of high-granularity detectors able to correct response non-uniformities on a scale comparable to the size of electron clouds opens the opportunity of using unselected off-the-shelf CZT material, whilst still assuring high spectral resolution for the majority of the detectors fabricated from an ingot. Here, we present the results from testing 3D position-sensitive 15×15×10 mm 3 pixelated detectors, fabricated with conventional pixel patterns with progressively smaller pixel sizes: 1.4, 0.8, and 0.5 mm. We employed the readout system based on the H3D front-end multi-channel ASIC developed by BNL's Instrumentation Division in collaboration with the University of Michigan. We use the sharing of electron clouds among several adjacent pixels to measure locations of interaction points with sub-pixel resolution. By using the detectors with small-pixel sizes and a high probability of the charge-sharing events, we were able to improve their spectral resolutions in comparison to the baseline levels, measured for the 1.4-mm pixel size detectors with small fractions of charge-sharing events. These results demonstrate that further enhancement of the performance of CZT pixelated detectors and reduction of costs are possible by using high spatial-resolution position information of interaction points to correct the small-scale response non-uniformities caused by crystal defects present in most devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The longer electron lifetime of today’s CdZnTe (CZT) crystals allows for free carriers to travel longer distances in the crystals, which means that, in principle, thicker devices could be fabricated. These thicker CZT devices would offer greater detection efficiency for high-energy gamma-ray detectors. However, up to now, the thicknesses and sizes of actual detectors have still been limited by the nonuniform detector response, and the biggest devices reported in the literature are (20\times 20\times 15)\-mm^3 pixelated detectors with a drift distance of 15 mm. Although thicker and bigger single crystals are becoming available today, the high requirements on their crystal quality drastically reduce their acceptance yield and increase their cost. Fortunately, in many cases, the inhomogeneity in response can be corrected by segmenting the active volumes of the detectors and correcting the responses generated from each of the voxels. Such high-granularity position-sensitive detectors open up the opportunity for using thicker and less-expensive CZT crystals. The goal of this work is to demonstrate that today’s commercial high electron mobility-lifetime CZT material is suitable for a new class of detectors with 20-25-mm drift distances and even larger in the near future, provided that the detectors’ response nonuniformities can be corrected on a scale comparable to or larger than the sizes of the electron clouds, which is \sim 100~\mu\m. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intraocular cancer is a serious threat to the lives of those that suffer from it. Dosimetry for eye brachytherapy presents a significant challenge due to the inherently steep dose gradients that are needed to treat such small tumours in close proximity to sensitive normal structures. This issue is addressed by providing much needed quality assurance to eye brachytherapy, a novel volumetric dosimetry system, called Panoptes was developed. This study focuses on the preliminary characterisation and calibration of the system. Using ion beam facilities, the custom, pixelated silicon detector of Panoptes was shown to have good charge collection uniformity and a well defined sensitive volume. Flat-field calibration was conducted on the device using a 250 kVp orthovoltage beam. Finally, the detector and phantom were simulated with Monte Carlo in Geant4, to create water equivalent dose correction factors for each pixel across a range of angles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We have constructed a pixelated germanium detector using a technique which has been shown to provide good isolation between adjacent pixels. In this work we present initial tests of the application of a low-noise CMOS ASIC to read out this detector. The detector has 64 pixels, each 0.5~\mm\times 5~\mm, arranged as a series of strips. It is connected by wire-bonds to two 32-channel application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) which provide a complete photon-counting chain for every channel. Since the size of the pixel array is no longer restricted by the difficulties of instrumenting large channel-count conventional electronics, this development will open up the possibility of even larger arrays, similar to those offered by silicon detectors. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

CdZnTe (CZT) is a promising medium for room-temperature gamma-ray detectors. However, the low production yield of acceptable quality crystals hampers the use of CZT detectors for gammaray spectroscopy. Significant efforts have been directed towards improving quality of CZT crystals to make them generally available for radiation detectors. Another way to address this problem is to implement detector designs that would allow for more accurate and predictable correction of the charge loss associated with crystal defects. In this work, we demonstrate that high-granularity position-sensitive detectors can significantly improve the performance of CZT detectors fabricated from CZT crystals with wider acceptance boundaries, leading to an increase of their availability and expected decrease in cost. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present our results from testing 15\times 15\times 10~\mm^3 CdZnTe pixelated detectors using a readout system based on the H3D ASIC. Data obtained with an uncollimated ^137Cs source helped reveal details of the operational principle of such devices, and how the pulse-processing electronics may influence their performance. The responses of individual pixels were compared by using two different pulse processing approaches based on the analog shaping (H3D ASIC) and fitting of the waveforms as read out from hybrid preamplifiers. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Homogeneity of properties related to material crystallinity is a critical parameter for achieving high-performance CdZnTe (CZT) radiation detectors. Unfortunately, this requirement is not always satisfied in today's commercial CZT material due to high concentrations of extended defects, in particular subgrain boundaries, which are believed to be part of the causes hampering the energy resolution and efficiency of CZT detectors. In the past, the effects of subgrain boundaries have been studied in Si, Ge and other semiconductors. It was demonstrated that subgrain boundaries tend to accumulate secondary phases and impurities causing inhomogeneous distributions of trapping centers. It was also demonstrated that subgrain boundaries result in local perturbations of the electric field, which affect the carrier transport and other properties of semiconductor devices. The subgrain boundaries in CZT material likely behave in a similar way, which makes them responsible for variations in the electron drift time and carrier trapping in CZT detectors. In this work, we employed the transient current technique to measure variations in the electron drift time and related the variations to the device performances and subgrain boundaries, whose presence in the crystals were confirmed with white beam X-ray diffraction topography and infrared transmission microscopy. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

New results from testing an array of 6\,\times\,6\,\times\,15 mm^3 virtual Frisch-grid CdZnTe (CZT) detectors with common-cathode readout for charge signals correction and rejection of incomplete charge collection events (ICC) are presented. The array employs parallelepiped-shaped crystals of a large geometrical aspect ratio with two planar contacts on the top and bottom surfaces (anode and cathode) and an additional shielding electrode placed on the sides to create the virtual Frisch-grid effect. The detectors are arranged in 2\,\times\,2 or 3\,\times\,3 detector modules with the common cathode readout by a single electronic channel. Because of the common cathode, the length of the shielding electrode can be further reduced with no adverse effects on the device performance. By implementing a novel technique for rejecting ICC events caused by the extended defects, we can achieve good spectral responses from ordinary CZT crystals, which can be produced with higher yield and at lower cost. For such crystals, the resolution of individual detectors is expected to be in the range of 0.8–1.5% FWHM at 662 keV with an average value of 1.3%. Arrays of virtual Frisch-grid detectors offer a robust and low-cost approach for making large-area detection modules that can potentially substitute for more advanced, but also more expensive and less available, pixel detectors in applications with slightly relaxed requirements on position- and energy-resolution (e.g., for coded aperture telescopes). In addition, such virtual Frisch-grid arrays will require a comparably smaller number of readout channels, which allows for lower power consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In an ideal single-carrier-type gamma ray detector, the amplitudes of the signals and the carrier drift times are correlated variables. However, if the charges produced by an incident photon are not fully collected, as is the case in CdZnTe detectors containing crystal defects, the above correlation does not hold. This permits the application of an event recognition algorithm to identify these incomplete charge collection (ICC) events, caused by the “bad” regions inside a detector, so that they can be removed from pulse height spectra. The ICC events primarily contribute to the Compton continuum and the low-energy tail of the photopeak. Thus, rejecting such events should not affect significantly the photopeak efficiency, but should improve the spectral response, e.g., the peak-to-Compton ratio, for a detector fabricated from material with relaxed crystal quality requirements. Such crystals are those currently available from vendors. The use of stronger ICC correlation-function rejection criteria can improve the energy resolution of these lower-quality crystals, but at the price of a loss in photoefficiency. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: CdZnTe (CZT) is a wide bandgap II–VI semiconductor developed for the spectroscopic detection of X-rays and γ-rays at room temperature. The Swift Burst Alert Telescope is using an 5240cm2 array of 2mm thick CZT detectors for the detection of 15–150keV X-rays from Gamma-ray Bursts. We report on the systematic tests of thicker (⩾0.5cm) CZT detectors with volumes between 2cm3 and 4 cm3 which are potential detector choices for a number of future X-ray telescopes that operate in the 10keV to a few MeV energy range. The detectors contacted in our laboratory achieve Full Width Half Maximum energy resolutions of 2.7keV (4.5%) at 59keV, 3keV (2.5%) at 122keV and 4keV (0.6%) at 662keV. The 59keV and 122keV energy resolutions are among the world-best results for ⩾0.5cm thick CZT detectors. We use the data set to study trends of how the energy resolution depends on the detector thickness and on the pixel pitch. Unfortunately, we do not find clear trends, indicating that even for the extremely good energy resolutions reported here, the achievable energy resolutions are largely determined by the properties of individual crystals. Somewhat surprisingly, we achieve the reported results without applying a correction of the anode signals for the depth of the interaction. Measuring the interaction depths thus does not seem to be a pre-requisite for achieving sub-1% energy resolutions at 662keV. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The fundamental parameter method for quantitative SXRF and PIXE analysis and imaging using the dynamic analysis method is extended to model the changing X-ray yields and detector sensitivity with angle across large detector arrays. The method is implemented in the GeoPIXE software and applied to cope with the large solid-angle of the new Maia 384 detector array and its 96 detector prototype developed by CSIRO and BNL for SXRF imaging applications at the Australian and NSLS synchrotrons. Peak-to-background is controlled by mitigating charge-sharing between detectors through careful optimization of a patterned molybdenum absorber mask. A geological application demonstrates the capability of the method to produce high definition elemental images up to ∼100M pixels in size. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Application of nuclear microprobe event-by-event data acquisition approaches to synchrotron elemental imaging is at the heart of the design of a large energy-dispersive detector array called Maia, under development by CSIRO and BNL for SXRF elemental imaging on the X-ray microprobe. A new project is aimed at harnessing this development to provide high throughput PIXE imaging on the CSIRO Nuclear Microprobe. Maia combines a 1.2sr solid-angle 384 detector array, integrated scanning and real-time processing including spectral deconvolution of full-spectral data. Results using a Maia prototype demonstrate the potential using SXRF application data with elemental images of up 100M pixels. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

We report on the design and estimated performance of a balloon-borne hard X-ray polarimeter called HX-POL. The experiment uses a combination of Si and Cadmium Zinc Telluride detectors to measure the polarization of 50 keV-400 keV X-rays from cosmic sources through the dependence of the angular distribution of Compton scattered photons on the polarization direction. On a one-day balloon flight, HX-POL would allow us to measure the polarization of bright Crab-like sources for polarization degrees well below 10%. On a longer (15-30 day) flight from Australia or Antarctica, HX-POL would be be able to measure the polarization of bright galactic X-ray sources down to polarization degrees of a few percent. Hard X-ray polarization measurements provide unique venues for the study of particle acceleration processes by compact objects and relativistic outflows. In this paper, we discuss the overall instrument design and performance. Furthermore, we present results from laboratory tests of the Si and CZT detectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A detector concept is described that integrates a large solid-angle detector array developed at Brookhaven National Laboratory and a high speed pipelined parallel processing engine developed at CSIRO for machine vision, with an embedded implementation of the Dynamic Analysis method for fluorescence spectra deconvolution and image projection, to yield a detection system capable of energy-dispersive detection, spectral deconvolution and real-time elemental imaging at ∼108 events per second for PIXE elemental imaging using the nuclear microprobe and SXRF elemental imaging using the synchrotron X-ray microprobe. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Commercial 15 × 15 × 7.5 mm² coplanar grid CdZnTe detectors were studied on the micron-scale using a collimated high-energy X-ray beam provided by Brookhaven's National Synchrotron Light Source. This powerful tool enables simultaneous studies of detector response uniformity, electronic properties of the material, and effects related to the device's contact pattern and electric field distribution. The availability of a front-end Application Specific Integrated Circuit, developed at Brookhaven's Instrumentation Division, providing low noise amplification of grids and cathode signals, corresponding timing signal and adjustable relative gain, allowed to correlate performance mapping and fluctuations in collected charge. We observed the effect of the strip contacts comprising the coplanar grids on the energy resolution of the coplanar-grid device. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

XL-Calibur is a hard X-ray (15-80 keV) polarimetry mission operating from a stabilised balloon-borne platform in the stratosphere. It builds on heritage from the X-Calibur mission, which observed the accreting neutron star GX 301 - 2 from Antarctica, between December 29th 2018 and January 1st 2019. The XL-Calibur design incorporates an X-ray mirror, which focusses X-rays onto a polarimeter comprising a beryllium rod surrounded by Cadmium Zinc Telluride (CZT) detectors. The polarimeter is housed in an anticoincidence shield to mitigate background from particles present in the stratosphere. The mirror and polarimeter-shield assembly are mounted at opposite ends of a 12 m long lightweight truss, which is pointed with arcsecond precision by WASP – the Wallops Arc Second Pointer. The XL-Calibur mission will achieve a substantially improved sensitivity over X-Calibur by using a larger effective area X-ray mirror, reducing background through thinner CZT detectors, and improved anticoincidence shielding. When observing a 1 Crab source for t day days, the Minimum Detectable Polarisation (at 99% confidence level) is ∼ 2 % · t day − 1 / 2 . The energy resolution at 40 keV is ∼ 5.9 keV. The aim of this paper is to describe the design and performance of the XL-Calibur mission, as well as the foreseen science programme. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract. A comprehensive analysis of the mechanisms inducing intensity noise in a single-frequency, diode-pumped erbium--ytterbium glass laser is presented. Owing to the energy transfer between the codopant and the active material, the Er:Yb laser shows a markedly reduced sensitivity to pump power fluctuations, and hence its intensity noise spectrum is mainly determined by the fluctuations in the cavity losses. The experimental measurements confirm the results of the theoretical analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

CdZnTe (CZT) crystals with thicknesses up to 20 mm and diameters up to 75 mm have become available from Redlen Technologies, Inc. for making large-volume gamma-ray detectors. The modified growth and optimized annealing conditions allowed Redlen to minimize the dark current and improve the uniformity of CZT crystals. Two detector designs, pixelated (H3D) and position-sensitive virtual Frisch-grid (VFG), have greatly benefitted from the availability of such big crystals. Encouraging results from testing of 40 × 40 × 15 mm 3 pixelated detectors were recently reported by the University of Michigan. Here, we evaluated the spectroscopic properties of 8 × 8 × 32 and 10 × 10 × 32 mm 3 crystals configured as position-sensitive VFG detectors. Both digitized waveforms and an analog ASIC were used to read and process the signals from the detectors and test their spectral- and spatial-resolution. The VFG design provides the flexibility to scale-up the dimensions of the detectors for the desired efficiency, while the position information allows for correcting the detectors' response non-uniformity caused by crystal defects and devices geometry, thereby reducing the instrument cost and making them more feasible for emerging applications in gamma-ray astronomy, nonproliferation, portal screening and nuclear safeguards, where large detector arrays are often required. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The New Small Wheel Upgrade of the ATLAS experiment at CERN, planned to take place at 2020, requires a new generation of front-end electronics that will support its data acquisition requirements. The VMM Application-Specific Integrated Circuit has been in development for the last seven years to serve as the foundation of the New Small Wheel's readout scheme. It has gone through three major revisions and a minor one, the latter being the production version. To facilitate the testing and readout of the VMM, as well as to study its detector performance, a complete readout system has been developed. It consists of flexible Field-Programmable Gate Array logic with extensive functionality, and an efficient software framework providing the user interface. This system, referred to as the "The VMM Readout System", has been used in test-beam campaigns at CERN, as well as in bench calibration and testing measurement scenarios for the past several years, supporting all readout modes and features of the VMM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Synchrotron X-ray fluorescence (SXRF) and X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) have become standard tools to measure element concentration, distribution at micrometer- to nanometer-scale, and speciation (e.g., nature of host phase; oxidation state) in inhomogeneous geomaterials. The new Maia X-ray detector system provides a quantum leap for the method in terms of data acquisition rate. It is now possible to rapidly collect fully quantitative maps of the distribution of major and trace elements at micrometer spatial resolution over areas as large as 1 x 5 cm². Fast data acquisition rates also open the way to X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) imaging, in which spectroscopic information is available at each pixel in the map. These capabilities are critical for studying inhomogeneous Earth materials. Using a 96-element prototype Maia detector, we imaged thin sections of an oxidized pisolitic regolith (2 x 4.5 mm² at 2.5 x 2.5 µm² pixel size) and a metamorphosed, sedimentary exhalative Mn-Fe ore (3.3 x 4 mm² at 1.25 x 5 µm²). In both cases, As K-edge XANES imaging reveals localized occurrence of reduced As in parts of these oxidized samples, which would have been difficult to recognize using traditional approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]