Design, construction, characterization, and testing of one-channel electronic module for the Hamamatsu Multi-Pixel Photon Counter S12572-100P

Abstract

The Multi-Pixel Photon Counter (MPPC) or Silicon Photomultiplier (SiPM) can detect from a single photon to several thousand ones; it has high gain -$10^{5}$ to $10^{6}$-, low operation voltage -65 to 75 Vdc-, and small size -typically 3.85 mm $\times$ 4.35 mm $\times$ 1.45 mm-; it is suitable for very low light level detection applications, like in cosmic ray detectors, in high-energy particle detectors, and in ionizing radiation detection in general. To study, test, and apply the Hamamatsu Multi-Pixel Photon Counter S12572-100P, we proposed a three-electronic-board MPPC module to connect, to feed and read-out, and to digitize its signal. The MPPC module waveband operation is from 100 Hz to 1 MHz; the ratio of outgoing signal to incoming signal (transmission coefficient) is about 82 % between 100 Hz--10 kHz and 72 % between 10 kHz--1 MHz; the phase shifts between the incoming and outgoing signals were close to zero degrees for all frequencies and occasionally, different from zero degrees; signal transit time is about (741.72$\pm$82.80) ps; the digitizing efficiency error is 0.88$\times10^{-3}$ %; the digitizing efficiency is 99.99 %; digitizing time is about (2.96$\pm$0.13) ns. We report on technical details and physical characteristics of this electronic module to drive the Hamamatsu Multi-Pixel Photon Counter S12572-100P, and on preliminary physical results obtained applying this electronic module.