A 41 ps ASIC time-to-digital converter for physics experiments

作者：Russo Stefano^*; Petra Nicola; De Caro Davide; Barbarino Giancarlo; Strollo Antonio G M

来源：Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment , 2011, 659(1): 422-427.

DOI：10.1016/j.nima.2011.08.031

• TDC
• ToF
• Delay line
• ASIC

We present a novel Time-to-Digital (TDC) converter for physics experiments. Proposed TDC is based on a synchronous counter and an asynchronous fine interpolator. The fine part of the measurement is obtained using NORA inverters that provide improved resolution. A prototype IC was fabricated in 180 nm CMOS technology. Experimental measurements show that proposed TDC features 41 Ps resolution associated with 0.35LSB differential non-linearity, 0.77LSB integral non-linearity and a negligible single shot precision. The whole dynamic range is equal to 18 mu s. The proposed TDC is designed using a flash architecture that reduces dead time. Data reported in the paper show that our design is well suited for present and future particle physics experiments.

• 出版日期2011-12-11