6
1 Introduction
the pulse from the pad into a differential semi-Gaussian voltage signal on the output.
The Analogue to Digital Converter and digital circuits are contained in the ALTRO
(ALICE TPC ReadOut) [6] chip. Each chip handles 16 input channels for a total of
128 channels per front-end card, where each channel corresponds to a single pad on
the TPC sub-detector.
Each of the front-end cards is connected to a Readout Control Unit (RCU). The
RCUs each control between 18 and 25 front-end cards depending on the radial
position of the RCU in the TPC barrel. The connectivity between the RCU and the
front-end cards is implemented using two branches of a 40-bit wide parallel, multidrop bus with a bandwidth of 1.6 Gbps per branch. The acquired data is sent to the
Data Acquisition (DAQ) system over a 1.28 Gbps optical link (Detector Data Link).
The current system acquires data on a double-trigger scheme, where a trigger is
sent to the front-end cards at each interaction, and a second trigger is sent within
∼100 µs after the first, indicating whether the data from the current interaction should
be kept or discarded.
1.1.3.2 Muon Tracking Chambers
The front-end electronics for the Muon Tracking Chamber is mounted directly on the
backside of the readout pads to ensure the lowest level of noise. A single front-end
card, referred to as MAnas NUmérique (MANU), handles 64 channels and consists
of four MANAS (Multiplexed ANAlogic Signal processor) chips, which themselves
contain a Charge Sensitive Amplifier, a deconvolution filter, a semi-Gaussian pulse
shaper and a track and hold stage for each of the 16 channels. The 64 analogue
outputs are multiplexed together in the MANAS chip and the multiplexed output of
two MANAS chips are connected to a single ADC. The ADC is a commercial 12-bit
1 MSPS Successive Approximation Register (SAR) ADC (AD7476) with a serial
interface.
A MARC (Muon Arm Readout Chip) chip controls the four MANAS chips and
the two ADCs. It also performs zero suppression, pedestal subtraction and encoding
of the data, and it additionally handles the communication with the Data Acquisition
(DAQ) system through a 4-bit bus. A cluster of Digital Signal Processors (DSPs)
1
called CROCUS (Cluster ReadOut Unit Concentrator System) [7] does the Data
Acquisition.
The readout of the current system is triggered by the Muon Trigger chambers
located behind the MCH.
1 ADSP-21160M.
1 Introduction
the pulse from the pad into a differential semi-Gaussian voltage signal on the output.
The Analogue to Digital Converter and digital circuits are contained in the ALTRO
(ALICE TPC ReadOut) [6] chip. Each chip handles 16 input channels for a total of
128 channels per front-end card, where each channel corresponds to a single pad on
the TPC sub-detector.
Each of the front-end cards is connected to a Readout Control Unit (RCU). The
RCUs each control between 18 and 25 front-end cards depending on the radial
position of the RCU in the TPC barrel. The connectivity between the RCU and the
front-end cards is implemented using two branches of a 40-bit wide parallel, multidrop bus with a bandwidth of 1.6 Gbps per branch. The acquired data is sent to the
Data Acquisition (DAQ) system over a 1.28 Gbps optical link (Detector Data Link).
The current system acquires data on a double-trigger scheme, where a trigger is
sent to the front-end cards at each interaction, and a second trigger is sent within
∼100 µs after the first, indicating whether the data from the current interaction should
be kept or discarded.
1.1.3.2 Muon Tracking Chambers
The front-end electronics for the Muon Tracking Chamber is mounted directly on the
backside of the readout pads to ensure the lowest level of noise. A single front-end
card, referred to as MAnas NUmérique (MANU), handles 64 channels and consists
of four MANAS (Multiplexed ANAlogic Signal processor) chips, which themselves
contain a Charge Sensitive Amplifier, a deconvolution filter, a semi-Gaussian pulse
shaper and a track and hold stage for each of the 16 channels. The 64 analogue
outputs are multiplexed together in the MANAS chip and the multiplexed output of
two MANAS chips are connected to a single ADC. The ADC is a commercial 12-bit
1 MSPS Successive Approximation Register (SAR) ADC (AD7476) with a serial
interface.
A MARC (Muon Arm Readout Chip) chip controls the four MANAS chips and
the two ADCs. It also performs zero suppression, pedestal subtraction and encoding
of the data, and it additionally handles the communication with the Data Acquisition
(DAQ) system through a 4-bit bus. A cluster of Digital Signal Processors (DSPs)
1
called CROCUS (Cluster ReadOut Unit Concentrator System) [7] does the Data
Acquisition.
The readout of the current system is triggered by the Muon Trigger chambers
located behind the MCH.
1 ADSP-21160M.