This article presents the description of a prototype readout electronics for capacitive detectors based on an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) designed specifically for the readout and pre-processing of signals from the flat resistive chambers of the SPD (spectrometer with pixel detectors) experiment at the NICA collider under construction at JINR (Joint Institute for Nuclear Research) in Dubna. The eight-channel ASIC is optimized to work with detectors featuring a characteristic impedance of the readout electrodes in the range of 35–110 Ω, with an equivalent input noise charge of no more than 2500 electrons. The ASIC includes adjustments for the threshold by the input charge in the range of 10–450 fC, hysteresis of the threshold characteristic in the range of 0–12

A technique for developing a fast summing preamplifier for resistive plate counters of the HARP experiment (PS214, CERN) is presented. The classic analog adder has been redesigned to obtain a minimum intrinsic jitter of 26 ps. This jitter has been attained via a trade-off with a charge summation accuracy of 5

The time over threshold (TOT) method that uses a pulse sine shaper, which is based on the mathematical function of the raised cosine (FRC), is described. The FRC has an important property for the TOT method—the formation of a smooth pulse with the variability of both the smoothing coefficient and the response time. In this case, the shape of the FRC pulse is independent of the input pulse action within a given time range. Thus, on the basis of the FRC, it was possible to create a pulse sine shaper with a preset time response, which provided an unambiguous dependence of the TOT-pulse duration on the input charge, and to improve the accuracy characteristics due to optimal spectral filtering in the FRC. A pulse sine shaper based on the FRC was successfully used in the reading systems of the HADES (GSI, Darmstadt, Germany) and BM N (JINR, Dubna) experiments. The total number of reading channels was more than 5000; the method has an error of 0.3

Application-specific integrated circuits of DIE8 (ATLAS, CERN), NINO (ALICE, CERN), and PADI (CBM, GSI) amplifiers−discriminators have been designed specifically for applications with resistive plate chambers, a new type of multichannel detectors. The main development trends formed during the creation of new, large-scale experiments at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) are shown. The main characteristics of the integrated circuits, the motivation for setting the design task, problems, and application features are compared.

The Spin Physics Detector, a universal facility for studying the nucleon spin structure and other spin-related phenomena with polarized proton and deuteron beams, is proposed to be placed in one of the two interaction points of the NICA collider that is under construction at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (Dubna, Russia). At the heart of the project there is huge experience with polarized beams at JINR. The main objective of the proposed experiment is the comprehensive study of the unpolarized and polarized gluon content of the nucleon. Spin measurements at the Spin Physics Detector at the NICA collider have bright perspectives to make a unique contribution and challenge our understanding of the spin structure of the nucleon. In this document the Conceptual Design of the Spin Physics Detector is presented.

A Multi-gap Resistive Plate Chamber (MRPC) equipped with heaters to improve the counting rate capability was designed for the BM@N experiment in Dubna. The measurements were performed using a muon beam at IHEP U-70 accelerator in Protvino. The MRPC at 40 degrees C tolerates counting rate up to 6 kHz/cm(2) with time resolution similar to 65 ps and efficiency similar to 95% which complies with the conditions of the experiment.

Aerogel has been successfully used as a radiator in Cherenkov detectors. In 2004, a multilayer aerogel providing Cherenkov ring focusing was proposed and produced. FARICH (Focusing Aerogel Rich Imaging CHerenkov) detectors such as ARICH for Belle-II (KEK, Japan), Forward RICH for PANDA detector (FAIR, Germany), and FARICH for the Super Charm-Tau factory project (BINP, Novosibirsk) have been developed based on this aerogel. Prototypes of FARICH detector based on MRS APD and Philips DPC photosensors were developed and tested in the framework of this project. An angular resolution for Cherenkov rings of 3.6 mrad was achieved.

Дано описание и приведены основные характеристики переднего сцинтилляционного годоскопа и электронной схемы съема сигналов с детекторов годоскопа установки ХАДЕС (HADES – High Acceptance DiElectron Spectrometer, GSI, Darmstadt). Описаны процедуры настройки, амплитудной и временной калибровки детекторов годоскопа на космических лучах и по экспериментальным данным, полученным в реакции Au + Au при энергии пучка 1.24 ГэВ/нуклон. Обсуждается методика применения годоскопа для “мечения” реакции n + p при использовании пучка дейтронов, налетающих на жидководородную мишень. Описывается процедура определения угла плоскости реакции при пособытийном анализе данных реакции Au + Au (1.24 ГэВ/нуклон).

In June 2012 a FARICH prototype from Philips Digital Photon Counting (PDPC) based on a photon camera with dimensions of 200×200 mm has been tested at CERN. Remarkable particle separation has been achieved with a 4-layer aerogel sample: the π/K separation at a 6 GeV/c momentum is 3.5σ, the μ/π separation is 5.3σ at 1 GeV/c. The analysis of the data has shown that the main contribution to the accuracy of the ring radius measurement comes from aerogel. The development of focusing aerogels is proceeding in two main directions: tuning of production technology of multilayer blocks and development of a new production method with continuous density (refractive index) gradient along the block depth. The beam test was carried out in December 2012–January 2013 at the electron beam test facility at the VEPP-4 M e+e− collider. The goal of this test was to measure different single layer and focusing aerogel samples, both multilayer and gradient. Aerogel samples were tested with a PDPC FARICH prototype. A part of DPC SPADs in each pixel was disabled to form an active area of 1×1 mm2. The collected data proved that gradient aerogel samples focus Cherenkov light.

The main characteristics of the forward scintillation hodoscope and readout electronics of the high acceptance dielectron spectrometer (HADES) at GSI (Darmstadt, Germany) are presented. Methods for adjustment and amplitude-time calibration of hodoscope detectors using cosmic rays and results of measurements of the Au + Au reaction at a beam energy of 1.24 GeV/nucleon are described. The use of the forward hodoscope for tagging the n + p reaction by means of the deuteron beam incident on a liquid hydrogen target is discussed. A procedure for determining the reaction plane angle in event-by-event analysis of the Au + Au reaction data (at 1.24 GeV/nucleon) is presented.

Дано описание и приведены основные характеристики переднего сцинтилляционного годоскопа и электронной схемы съема сигналов с детекторов годоскопа установки ХАДЕС (HADES – High Acceptance DiElectron Spectrometer, GSI, Darmstadt). Описаны процедуры настройки, амплитудной и временной калибровки детекторов годоскопа на космических лучах и по экспериментальным данным, полученным в реакции Au + Au при энергии пучка 1.24 ГэВ/нуклон. Обсуждается методика применения годоскопа для “мечения” реакции n + p при использовании пучка дейтронов, налетающих на жидководородную мишень. Описывается процедура определения угла плоскости реакции при пособытийном анализе данных реакции Au + Au (1.24 ГэВ/нуклон).

It is shown that a multigap resistive plate chamber made of commercial float glass is capable of sustaining high counting rates at an increased operating temperature. Two glass chambers were investigated on the test beamline of the U-70 accelerator at the Institute for High Energy Physics. The required radiation flux density at the detector was produced by means of radioactive sources. The time resolution of 80 ps or better was attained at a rate of ∼20 kHz/cm2 and an operating temperature of 45°C.

In June 2012 we tested a Focusing Aerogel RICH detector prototype based on Digital Photon Counters (DPC) by Philips at the CERN PS T10 beam line with a particle momentum up to 6GeV/c. The prototype comprises a 20×20cm2 photon detector with 48×48 DPC pixels. In order to reduce the dark count rate, the photon detector was cooled to −40°C in addition to disabling individual DPC's microcells. A four layer focusing aerogel radiator with 200mm focal distance was studied. We obtained a Cherenkov angle resolution of 3.61±0.04mrad. The mean number of photoelectrons in a ring is 12. Directly measured π/K separation at 6GeV/c momentum is 3.5σ, μ/π separation is 5.3σ at 1GeV/c. A comparison with a Monte Carlo simulation is presented as well.

A 6-gap glass resistive plate chamber with a strip readout was tested on the beam of the U-70 accelerator at the Institute for High Energy Physics. A time resolution of ∼45 ps was attained at an efficiency of >98%. The position resolution along a strip was estimated to be ∼1 cm.

Electronic equipment developed for reading, shaping, and recording signals from microstrip sensors of the vertex detector of the SVD-2 setup is described. The configuration of the vertex detector sensors, construction of signal-reading cards, and structure and functions of the recording modules are considered. The obtained characteristics are analyzed.

A low-threshold amplifier–discriminator (AD) is intended for reading information from resistive-plate chambers (RPCs) and consists of a preamplifier and discriminator. The minimum operation threshold of the device is 60 μV at an input impedance of 25 Ω, which corresponds to a charge of 0.12 pC induced on a strip. The AD time jitter is below 0.6 ns over an input signals range of (2–20) U thr . The preamplifier noise referred to the input is <25 μV (rms). The AD was developed for testing RPCs for the ATLAS (CERN) experiment.