AGATA collaboration(Collado, J. et al), Civera, J. V., & Gadea, A. (2023). AGATA phase 2 advancements in front-end electronics. Eur. Phys. J. A, 59(6), 133–20pp.
Abstract: The AGATA collaboration has a long-standing leadership in the development of front-end electronics for high resolution ?-ray spectroscopy using large volume high purity germanium detectors. For two decades, the AGATA collaboration has been developing state-of-the-art digital electronics processing with high resolution sampling ADC, high-speed signal transfer and fast readout to a high throughput computing (HTC) farm for on-line pulse shape analysis. The collaboration is presently addressing the next challenge of equipping a 4p array with more than 6000 channels in high resolution mode, generating approximately 10 MHz of total trigger requests, coupled to a large variety of complementary instruments. A next generation of front-end electronics, presently under design, is based on industrial products (System on Module FPGA's), has higher integration and lower power consumption. In this contribution, the conceptual design of the new electronics is presented. The results of the very first tests of the pre-production electronics are presented as well as future perspectives.
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Clement, E., Bracco, A., Gadea, A., & Simpson, J. (2023). Organisation of the AGATA collaboration and physics campaigns. Eur. Phys. J. A, 59(7), 152–5pp.
Abstract: The AGATA spectrometer has a well-established organisational and management structure for its construction and operation. The roles and responsibilities of each of the management committees and their interaction, as well as the scientific organisation is described in this contribution. The organisation of the present campaign, which aims to realise the 4p spectrometer, is presented. General comments on the previous physics campaigns at LNL (2010-2011), GSI (2012-2014) and GANIL (2015-2021) are made.
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Pasqualato, G. et al, Domingo-Pardo, C., & Gadea, A. (2023). Shape evolution in even-mass 98-104Zr isotopes via lifetime measurements using the γ γ-coincidence technique. Eur. Phys. J. A, 59(11), 276–13pp.
Abstract: The Zirconium (Z = 40) isotopic chain has attracted interest for more than four decades. The abrupt lowering of the energy of the first 2(+) state and the increase in the transition strength B(E2; 2(1)(+) -> 0(1)(+) ) going from Zr-98 to Zr-100 has been the first example of “quantum phase transition” in nuclear shapes, which has few equivalents in the nuclear chart. Although a multitude of experiments have been performed to measure nuclear properties related to nuclear shapes and collectivity in the region, none of the measured lifetimes were obtained using the Recoil Distance Doppler Shift method in the gamma gamma-coincidence mode where a gate on the direct feeding transition of the state of interest allows a strict control of systematical errors. This work reports the results of lifetime measurements for the first yrast excited states in Zr98-104 carried out to extract reduced transition probabilities. The new lifetime values in gamma gamma-coincidence and gamma-single mode are compared with the results of former experiments. Recent predictions of the Interacting Boson Model with Configuration Mixing, the Symmetry Conserving Configuration Mixing model based on the Hartree-Fock- Bogoliubov approach and the Monte Carlo Shell Model are presented and compared with the experimental data.
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Barrientos, D., Gonzalez, V., Bellato, M., Gadea, A., Bazzacco, D., Blasco, J. M., et al. (2013). Multiple Register Synchronization With a High-Speed Serial Link Using the Aurora Protocol. IEEE Trans. Nucl. Sci., 60(5), 3521–3525.
Abstract: In this work, the development and characterization of a multiple synchronous registers interface communicating with a high-speed serial link and using the Aurora protocol is presented. A detailed description of the developing process and the characterization methods and hardware test benches are also included. This interface will implement the slow control buses of the digitizer cards for the second generation of electronics for the Advanced GAmma Tracking Array (AGATA).
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Egea, F. J. et al, Gadea, A., Barrientos, D., & Huyuk, T. (2013). Design and Test of a High-Speed Flash ADC Mezzanine Card for High-Resolution and Timing Performance in Nuclear Structure Experiments. IEEE Trans. Nucl. Sci., 60(5), 3526–3531.
Abstract: This work describes new electronics for the EX-OGAM2 (HP-Ge detector array) and NEDA (BC501A-based neutron detector array). A new digitizing card with high resolution has been designed for gamma-ray and neutron spectroscopy experiments. The higher bandwidth requirement of the NEDA signals, together with the necessity for accuracy, require a high sampling rate in order to preserve the shape for real-time Pulse Shape Analysis (PSA). The PSA is of paramount importance for the NEDA to discriminate between neutrons and gamma-ray signals. Both high resolution and high speed parameters are often difficult to achieve in a single electronic unit. These constraints, together with the need to build new digitizing electronics to improve performance and flexibility of signal analysis in nuclear physics experiments, led to the development a new FADC mezzanine card. In this work, the design and development are described, including the characterization procedure and the preliminary measurement results.
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Egea Canet, F. J. et al, Gadea, A., & Huyuk, T. (2015). A New Front-End High-Resolution Sampling Board for the New-Generation Electronics of EXOGAM2 and NEDA Detectors. IEEE Trans. Nucl. Sci., 62(3), 1056–1062.
Abstract: This paper presents the final design and results of the FADC Mezzanine for the EXOGAM (EXOtic GAMma array spectrometer) and NEDA (Neutron Detector Array) detectors. The measurements performed include those of studying the effective number of bits, the energy resolution using HP-Ge detectors, as well as timing histograms and discrimination performance. Finally, the conclusion shows how a common digitizing device has been integrated in the experimental environment of two very different detectors which combine both low-noise acquisition and fast sampling rates. Not only the integration fulfilled the expected specifications on both systems, but it also showed how a study of synergy between detectors could lead to the reduction of resources and time by applying a common strategy.
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Egea Canet, F. J. et al, Gadea, A., & Huyuk, T. (2015). Digital Front-End Electronics for the Neutron Detector NEDA. IEEE Trans. Nucl. Sci., 62(3), 1063–1069.
Abstract: This paper presents the design of the NEDA (Neutron Detector Array) electronics, a first attempt to involve the use of digital electronics in large neutron detector arrays. Starting from the front-end modules attached to the PMTs (PhotoMultiplier Tubes) and ending up with the data processing workstations, a comprehensive electronic system capable of dealing with the acquisition and pre-processing of the neutron array is detailed. Among the electronic modules required, we emphasize the front-end analog processing, the digitalization, digital pre-processing and communications firmware, as well as the integration of the GTS (Global Trigger and Synchronization) system, already used successfully in AGATA (Advanced Gamma Tracking Array). The NEDA array will be available for measurements in 2016.
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Barrientos, D., Bellato, M., Bazzacco, D., Bortolato, D., Cocconi, P., Gadea, A., et al. (2015). Performance of the Fully Digital FPGA-Based Front-End Electronics for the GALILEO Array. IEEE Trans. Nucl. Sci., 62(6), 3134–3139.
Abstract: In this work we present the architecture and results of a fully digital Front End Electronics (FEE) read out system developed for the GALILEO array. The FEE system, developed in collaboration with the Advanced Gamma Tracking Array (AGATA) collaboration, is composed of three main blocks: preamplifiers, digitizers and preprocessing electronics. The slow control system contains a custom Linux driver, a dynamic library and a server implementing network services. This work presents the first results of the digital FEE system coupled with a GALILEO germanium detector, which has demonstrated the capability to achieve an energy resolution of 1.53% at an energy of 1.33 MeV, similar to the one obtained with a conventional analog system. While keeping a good performance in terms of energy resolution, digital electronics will allow to instrument the full GALILEO array with a versatile system with high integration and low power consumption and costs.
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Doncel, M., Cederwall, B., Martin, S., Quintana, B., Gadea, A., Farnea, E., et al. (2015). Conceptual design of a high resolution Ge array with tracking and imaging capabilities for the DESPEC (FAIR) experiment. J. Instrum., 10, P06010–15pp.
Abstract: We present results of Monte Carlo simulations for the conceptual design of the high-resolution DESPEC Germanium Array Spectrometer (DEGAS) proposed for the Facility for Ion and Antiproton Research (FAIR) under construction at Darmstadt, Germany. The project is carried out in three phases, although only results for the two first phases will be addressed in this work. The first phase will consist of a re-arrangement of the EUROBALL cluster detectors previously used in the RISING campaign at GSI. The second phase is based on coupling AGATA-type triple-cluster detectors with EUROBALL cluster detectors in a compact geometry around the active ion implantation target of DESPEC.
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AGATA Collaboration(Lalovic, N. et al), Gadea, A., & Domingo-Pardo, C. (2018). Study of isomeric states in Pb-198, Pb-200, Pb-202, Pb-206 and Hg-206 populated in fragmentation reactions. J. Phys. G, 45(3), 035105–27pp.
Abstract: Isomeric states in isotopes in the vicinity of doubly-magic Pb-208 were populated following reactions of a relativistic Pb-208 primary beam impinging on a Be-9 fragmentation target. Secondary beams of Pb-198,Pb-200,Pb-202,Pb-206 and Hg-206 were isotopically separated and implanted in a passive stopper positioned in the focal plane of the GSI Fragment Separator. Delayed gamma rays were detected with the Advanced Gamma Tracking Array (AGATA). Decay schemes were reevaluated and interpreted with shell-model calculations. The momentum-dependent population of isomeric states in the two-nucleon hole nuclei Pb-206/Hg-206 was found to differ from the population of multi neutron-hole isomeric states in Pb-198,Pb-200,Pb-202.
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