arXiv subjects

J. Kroll

Publications and source records attributed to J. Kroll.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Gamma irradiation of ATLAS18 ITk strip sensors affected by static charge

Construction of the new all-silicon ITk, developed by the ATLAS collaboration to be able to track charged particles produced at the HL- LHC, started in 2021 and is expected to continue until 2028. The ITk detector will include ~18,000 highly segmented and radiation hard n+-in-p silicon strip sensors, which are being manufactured by HPK. Upon their delivery, the ATLAS ITk strip sensor collaboration performs detailed measurements of sensors to monitor quality of all fabricated pieces. QC electrical tests include IV and CV tests, full strip tests, and a measurement of the long-term stability of the sensor leakage current. While most sensors demonstrate excellent performance during QC testing, we have nevertheless observed that a number of sensors from several production batches failed the electrical tests. Accumulated data indicates a strong correlation between observed electrical test failures and high electrostatic charge measured on the sensor surface during initial reception tests. This electrostatic charge enhances the risk of "Local trapped charge" events during manufacturing, shipping, and handling procedures, resulting in failed electrical QC tests. In the presented study, we have investigated whether the TID expected in the real experiment can effectively resolve early breakdown or low interstrip isolation caused by the electrostatic charge. Selected charge-affected sensors were irradiated with gamma rays from a 60Co source for a number of TID values. The results of this study indicate that the negative effects of the electrostatic charge on the critical sensors characteristics disappear after a very small amount of an accumulated TID, which actually corresponds to one or two days in the experiment. This finding gives us confidence in mitigating the issue of electrostatic charge during the operation of the ITk strip sensors in the real experiment.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2026

The study of gamma-radiation induced displacement damage in $n^+$-in-$p$ silicon diodes

The bulk damage of $p$-type silicon sensors caused by gamma irradiation with high total ionizing doses has been investigated. The study was carried out on different types of $n^+$-in-$p$ silicon diodes with different oxygen concentrations and silicon bulk resistivities. The Secondary-Ion Mass Spectrometry technique was used to determine the relative concentration of oxygen in the individual samples. The measured diodes were irradiated by a $^{60}$Co gamma source to total ionizing doses ranging from 0.50 up to 8.28 MGy, and annealed for 80 minutes at 60{\deg}C. The main goal of the study was to characterize the gamma-radiation induced displacement damage by measuring IV and CV characteristics, and the evolution of the full depletion voltage with the total ionizing dose. The Transient Current Technique was used to verify the full depletion voltage and to extract the electric field distribution and the sign of the space charge in the silicon diodes irradiated to the lowest and the highest delivered total ionizing doses. The results show a linear increase of the bulk leakage current with the total ionizing dose, with the damage coefficient being dependent on initial resistivity and oxygen concentration of the silicon diode. The effective doping concentration and full depletion voltage decrease significantly with an increasing total ionizing dose, before starting to increase again at a specific dose. We assume that the initial decrease in the effective doping concentration is caused by the effect of acceptor removal. An additional notable finding of this study is that the bulk leakage current and CV characteristics of the gamma-irradiated diodes do not show any evidence of an annealing effect.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2026

Summary of quality control (QC) of ATLAS18 production ITk strip sensors

To address the demanding operational requirements of the High-Luminosity upgrade of the Large Hadron Collider (HL-LHC), the ATLAS experiment is replacing its current Inner Detector with a new all-silicon Inner Tracker (ITk). The ITk will feature an active area of 165 m2, with its outer tracking layers populated by approximately 18,000 ATLAS18 n+-in-p silicon strip sensors. The silicon sensors, available in eight geometries tailored to two barrel and six endcap types, respectively, are designed to tolerate fluences of up to 1.6 x 10^15 neq/cm2 and ionizing doses of 66 Mrad. A comprehensive, multi-year Quality Control (QC) program is underway across multiple international institutes to evaluate these ITk strip sensors for mechanical and electrical conformity. The QC process includes IV/CV characterization, full strip tests, long-term current stability monitoring, visual inspection, and metrology tests. To manage the high throughput of about 500 sensors per month, the collaboration has implemented standardized test procedures, software packages for data monitoring and integrity checks, unified data formats, and automated analysis tools. The standardization ensures consistent pass/fail evaluation and centralized data handling that enables effective identification of trends and anomalies at all sites during the production. This contribution presents an overview of the ITk strip sensor production and QC framework, along with key findings throughout the whole production, such as charge-up of sensors, stability of the leakage currents, nonrecoverable IV breakdown, and low inter-strip isolation within wafers. It provides insights into sensor yield, quality trends, and reviews specific case studies, such as p-stop doping non-uniformity. Over 91% of the production, totaling over 590 batches, were tested and accepted. Six batches were rejected. These account for 2.8% of the total tested sensors.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2026

Identification and mitigation of memory block timing issue in ITk ABCStar during ASIC production

The ABCStar is a mixed-signal front-end readout ASIC for the strips sensor portion of the ATLAS ITk detector being developed as part of the High-Luminosity LHC upgrade. In pre-production testing, a subtle design flaw was uncovered in the ABCStar that was reducing wafer yields in some manufactured lots from the expected 90% to as low as 2%. The root cause was determined to be a timing issue in the logic synthesized to control previously silicon proven memory blocks re-used for this ASIC. The solutions proposed included manufacturing process changes by the wafer foundry, changes to the operating parameters for the ABCStar in the detector, and the possibility that a redesign might be required. The two mitigation efforts were undertaken in parallel, with the process modification route a less desirable solution since already manufactured wafers would need to be scrapped in favour of the new ones. Based on a knowledge of the existing process, and testing done on the worst performing wafers, it was proposed that raising the core operating voltage of the ABCStar from 1.20V to 1.25V could address the timing issue by sufficiently speeding up its transistors. An extensive testing program that included the effects of temperature and radiation expected over the lifetime of the ITk detector was conducted to validate that approach. Those tests and studies proved that even the worst performing wafers would have yields over 80% with the 1.25V core voltage, and neither the modified process nor redesign would be required for ensuring reliable operation of the ITk. Based on testing, a further timing mitigation was implemented to provide an additional margin of reliability by increasing the duty cycle of the clock to the ABCStar. Testing of all ABCStar wafers has been completed and the production of the detector modules using these ASICs is now well underway as a result of the efforts detailed herein.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2025

Low dose gamma irradiation study of ATLAS ITk MD8 diodes

Silicon strip detectors developed for the Inner Tracker (ITk) of the ATLAS experiment will operate in a harsh radiation environment of the HL-LHC accelerator. The ITk is thus designed to endure a total fluence of 1.6E15 1MeV n_eq/cm2 and a total ionizing dose (TID) of 66 Mrad in the strip detector region. A radiation-hard n^+-in-p technology is implemented in the ITk strip sensors. To achieve the required radiation hardness, extensive irradiation studies were conducted during sensor development, primarily performed up to the maximal expected total fluence and TID to ensure a full functionality of the detector at its end-of-life. These studies included irradiations of sensors with various particle types and energies, including the Co60 gamma-rays. Our previous results obtained for gamma-irradiated diodes and strip sensors indicate a linear increase of bulk current with TID, while the surface current saturates at the lowest TID levels checked (66 Mrad), preventing a determination of the exact TID for which the observed saturation occurs. This work presents the results coming from irradiations by Co60 gamma-rays to multiple low TIDs, ranging from 0.5 to 100 krad. The detailed study of total, bulk, and surface currents of diodes explores an unknown dependence of surface current on the TID, annealing, and temperature. Additionally, the effect of the p-stop implant between the bias and the guard ring of measured samples is shown. The observations are relevant for the initial operations of the new ATLAS tracker.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2024

Evolution of the electrical characteristics of the ATLAS18 ITk strip sensors with HL-LHC radiation exposure range

The objective of the study is to evaluate the evolution of the performance of the new ATLAS Inner-Tracker (ITk) strip sensors as a function of radiation exposure, to ensure the proper operation of the upgraded detector during the lifetime of the High-Luminosity Large Hadron Collider (HL-LHC). Full-size ATLAS ITk Barrel Short-Strip (SS) sensors with final layout design, ATLAS18SS, have been irradiated with neutrons and gammas, to confirm the results obtained with prototypes and miniature sensors during the development phase. The irradiations cover a wide range of fluences and doses that ITk will experience, going from 1e13 neq/cm2 and 0.49 Mrad, to 1.6e15 neq/cm2 and 80 Mrad. The split irradiation enables a proper combination of fluence and dose values of the HL-LHC, including a 1.5 safety factor. A complete electrical characterization of the key sensor parameters before and after irradiation is presented, studying the leakage current, bulk capacitance, single-strip and inter-strip characteristics. The results confirm the fulfilment of the ATLAS specifications throughout the whole experiment. The study of a wide range of fluences and doses also allows to obtain detailed results, such as the frequency dependence of the bulk capacitance measurements for highly irradiated sensors, or the evolution of the punch-through protection and inter-strip resistance with radiation.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2023

Study of Bulk Damage of High Dose Gamma Irradiated p-type Silicon Diodes with Various Resistivities

The bulk damage of p-type silicon detectors caused by high doses of gamma irradiation has been studied. The study was carried out on three types of n$^{+}$-in-p silicon diodes with comparable geometries but different initial resistivities. This allowed to determine how different initial parameters of studied samples influence radiation-induced changes in the measured characteristics. The diodes were irradiated by a Cobalt-60 gamma source to total ionizing doses ranging from 0.50 up to 8.28 MGy, and annealed for 80 minutes at 60 {\deg}C. The Geant4 toolkit for simulation of the passage of particles through matter was used to simulate the deposited energy homogeneity, to verify the equal distribution of total deposited energies through all the layers of irradiated samples, and to calculate the secondary electron spectra in the irradiation box. The main goal of the study was to characterize the gamma-radiation induced displacement damage by measuring current-voltage characteristics (IV), and the evolution of the full depletion voltage with the total ionizing dose, by measuring capacitance-voltage characteristics (CV). It has been observed that the bulk leakage current increases linearly with total ionizing dose, and the damage coefficient depends on the initial resistivity of the silicon diode. The effective doping concentration and therefore full depletion voltage significantly decreases with increasing total ionizing dose, before starting to increase again at a specific dose. We assume that this decrease is caused by the effect of acceptor removal. Another noteworthy observation of this study is that the IV and CV measurements of the gamma irradiated diodes do not reveal any annealing effect.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2023

Setups for eliminating static charge of the ATLAS18 strip sensors

Construction of the new all-silicon Inner Tracker (ITk), developed by the ATLAS collaboration for the High Luminosity LHC, started in 2020 and is expected to continue till 2028. The ITk detector will include 18,000 highly segmented and radiation hard n+-in-p silicon strip sensors (ATLAS18), which are being manufactured by Hamamatsu Photonics. Mechanical and electrical characteristics of produced sensors are measured upon their delivery at several institutes participating in a complex Quality Control (QC) program. The QC tests performed on each individual sensor check the overall integrity and quality of the sensor. During the QC testing of production ATLAS18 strip sensors, an increased number of sensors that failed the electrical tests was observed. In particular, IV measurements indicated an early breakdown, while large areas containing several tens or hundreds of neighbouring strips with low interstrip isolation were identified by the Full strip tests, and leakage current instabilities were measured in a long-term leakage current stability setup. Moreover, a high surface electrostatic charge reaching a level of several hundreds of volts per inch was measured on a large number of sensors and on the plastic sheets, which mechanically protect these sensors in their paper envelopes. Accumulated data indicates a clear correlation between observed electrical failures and the sensor charge-up. To mitigate the above-described issues, the QC testing sites significantly modified the sensor handling procedures and introduced sensor recovery techniques based on irradiation of the sensor surface with UV light or application of intensive flows of ionized gas. In this presentation, we will describe the setups implemented by the QC testing sites to treat silicon strip sensors affected by static charge and evaluate the effectiveness of these setups in terms of improvement of the sensor performance.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2023

Test beam measurement of ATLAS ITk Short Strip module at warm and cold operational temperature

This study is focused on an investigation of the performance of the Short Strip module developed by the ATLAS Inner Tracker (ITk) strip collaboration using electron beams of energy 5.4 GeV and 5.8 GeV at the DESY-II Testbeam Facility. The noise at +30 C and -30 C was measured. The ratio of the two measurements is compared with a circuit-model calculation. The measured noise at -30 C is compared with the maximum noise that would correspond to an acceptable signal-to-noise ratio after the expected radiation damage from operation at HL-LHC. The measured charge distributions at +30 C and -30 C are compared with GEANT4 simulations. The detection efficiency and noise-occupancy were measured as a function of threshold at both +30 C and -30 C. The average cluster width was measured as a function of threshold. Scans of detection efficiency versus threshold at different delay settings were used to reconstruct the pulse shape in time. The resulting pulse shape was compared with a circuit model calculation.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2020

Resolving Tensions Surrounding Massive Pulleys

The distribution of string tension on the contact line between an ideal string and a massive pulley is a frequently-discussed but incompletely-posed problem that confronts students in introductory mechanics. We highlight ambiguities in the usual presentation of this problem by the massive Atwood's machine and discuss two compact resolutions that treat situations where the pulley or the string elastically deform. We propose experiments that can be developed in an intermediate laboratory to determine the tension profile.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2019

EUDAQ $-$ A Data Acquisition Software Framework for Common Beam Telescopes

EUDAQ is a generic data acquisition software developed for use in conjunction with common beam telescopes at charged particle beam lines. Providing high-precision reference tracks for performance studies of new sensors, beam telescopes are essential for the research and development towards future detectors for high-energy physics. As beam time is a highly limited resource, EUDAQ has been designed with reliability and ease-of-use in mind. It enables flexible integration of different independent devices under test via their specific data acquisition systems into a top-level framework. EUDAQ controls all components globally, handles the data flow centrally and synchronises and records the data streams. Over the past decade, EUDAQ has been deployed as part of a wide range of successful test beam campaigns and detector development applications.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2018

Summary and Conclusions of the 'JRA Beam Telescope 2025'-Forum at the 6th Beam Telescopes and Test Beams Workshop

On January 17th 2018, a forum on a possible Joint Research Activity on a future common Beam Telescope was held during the 6th Beam Telescopes and Test Beams Workshop (BTTB) in Zurich, Switzerland. The BTTB workshop aims at bringing together the community involved in beam tests. It therefore offers a suitable platform to induce community-wide discussions. The forum and its discussions were well received and the participants concluded that appropriate actions should be undertaken promptly. Specific hardware and software proposals were discussed, with an emphasis on improving current common EUDET-type telescopes based on Mimosa26 sensors towards higher trigger rate capabilities in convolution with considerably improved time resolution. EUDAQ as a common top level DAQ and its modular structure is ready for future hardware. EUTelescope fulfils many requirements of a common reconstruction framework, but has also various drawbacks. Thus, requirements for a new common reconstruction framework were collected. A new common beam telescope evolves with the sensor decision and the whole package including a reconstruction framework depends on that decision.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2016

Neutron capture cross section measurement of 238U at the n TOF CERN facility with C6D6 scintillation detectors in the energy region from 1 eV to 700 keV

The aim of this work is to provide a precise and accurate measurement of the 238U(n,g) reaction cross section in the energy region from 1 eV to 700 keV. This reaction is of fundamental importance for the design calculations of nuclear reactors, governing the behaviour of the reactor core. In particular, fast reactors, which are experiencing a growing interest for their ability to burn radioactive waste, operate in the high energy region of the neutron spectrum. In this energy region most recent evaluations disagree due to inconsistencies in the existing measurements of up to 15%. In addition, the assessment of nuclear data uncertainty performed for innovative reactor systems shows that the uncertainty in the radiative capture cross-section of 238U should be further reduced to 1-3% in the energy region from 20 eV to 25 keV. To this purpose, addressed by the Nuclear Energy Agency as a priority nuclear data need, complementary experiments, one at the GELINA and two at the n_TOF facility, were proposed and carried out within the 7th Framework Project ANDES of the European Commission. The results of one of these 238U(n,g) measurements performed at the n_TOF CERN facility are presented in this work. The gamma-ray cascade following the radiative neutron capture has been detected exploiting a setup of two C6D6 liquid scintillators. Resonance parameters obtained from this work are on average in excellent agreement with the ones reported in evaluated libraries. In the unresolved resonance region, this work yields a cross section in agreement with evaluated libraries up to 80 keV, while for higher energies our results are significantly higher.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2016

Integral measurement of the $^{12}$C(n,p)$^{12}$B reaction up to 10 GeV

The integral measurement of the $^{12}$C(n,p)$^{12}$B reaction was performed at the neutron time of flight facility n_TOF at CERN. The total number of $^{12}$B nuclei produced per neutron pulse of the n_TOF beam was determined using the activation technique in combination with a time of flight technique. The cross section is integrated over the n_TOF neutron energy spectrum from reaction threshold at 13.6 MeV to 10 GeV. Having been measured up to 1 GeV on basis of the $^{235}$U(n,f) reaction, the neutron energy spectrum above 200 MeV has been reevaluated due to the recent extension of the cross section reference for this particular reaction, which is otherwise considered a standard up to 200 MeV. The results from the dedicated GEANT4 simulations have been used to evaluate the neutron flux from 1 GeV up to 10 GeV. The experimental results related to the $^{12}$C(n,p)$^{12}$B reaction are compared with the evaluated cross sections from major libraries and with the predictions of different GEANT4 models, which mostly underestimate the $^{12}$B production. On the contrary, a good reproduction of the integral cross section derived from measurements is obtained with TALYS-1.6 calculations, with optimized parameters.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2014

High accuracy determination of the $^{238}$U/$^{235}$U fission cross section ratio up to $\sim$1 GeV at n_TOF (CERN)

The $^{238}$U to $^{235}$U fission cross section ratio has been determined at n_TOF up to $\sim$1 GeV, with two different detection systems, in different geometrical configurations. A total of four datasets have been collected and compared. They are all consistent to each other within the relative systematic uncertainty of 3-4%. The data collected at n_TOF have been suitably combined to yield a unique fission cross section ratio as a function of the neutron energy. The result confirms current evaluations up to 200 MeV. A good agreement is also observed with theoretical calculations based on the INCL++/Gemini++ combination up to the highest measured energy. The n_TOF results may help solving a long-standing discrepancy between the two most important experimental dataset available so far above 20 MeV, while extending the neutron energy range for the first time up to $\sim$1 GeV.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2014

Measurement of the $^{12}$C($n,p$)$^{12}$B cross section at n_TOF (CERN) by in-beam activation analysis

The integral cross section of the $^{12}$C($n,p$)$^{12}$B reaction has been determined for the first time in the neutron energy range from threshold to several GeV at the n_TOF facility at CERN. The measurement relies on the activation technique, with the $\beta$-decay of $^{12}$B measured over a period of four half-lives within the same neutron bunch in which the reaction occurs. The results indicate that model predictions, used in a variety of applications, are mostly inadequate. The value of the integral cross section reported here can be used as a benchmark for verifying or tuning model calculations.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2014

GEANT4 simulation of the neutron background of the C$_6$D$_6$ set-up for capture studies at n_TOF

The neutron sensitivity of the C$_6$D$_6$ detector setup used at n_TOF for capture measurements has been studied by means of detailed GEANT4 simulations. A realistic software replica of the entire n_TOF experimental hall, including the neutron beam line, sample, detector supports and the walls of the experimental area has been implemented in the simulations. The simulations have been analyzed in the same manner as experimental data, in particular by applying the Pulse Height Weighting Technique. The simulations have been validated against a measurement of the neutron background performed with a $^\mathrm{nat}$C sample, showing an excellent agreement above 1 keV. At lower energies, an additional component in the measured $^\mathrm{nat}$C yield has been discovered, which prevents the use of $^\mathrm{nat}$C data for neutron background estimates at neutron energies below a few hundred eV. The origin and time structure of the neutron background have been derived from the simulations. Examples of the neutron background for two different samples are demonstrating the important role of accurate simulations of the neutron background in capture cross section measurements.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2014

$^{62}$Ni($n,γ$) and $^{63}$Ni($n,γ$) cross sections measured at n_TOF/CERN

The cross section of the $^{62}$Ni($n,γ$) reaction was measured with the time-of-flight technique at the neutron time-of-flight facility n_TOF at CERN. Capture kernels of 42 resonances were analyzed up to 200~keV neutron energy and Maxwellian averaged cross sections (MACS) from $kT=5-100$ keV were calculated. With a total uncertainty of 4.5%, the stellar cross section is in excellent agreement with the the KADoNiS compilation at $kT=30$ keV, while being systematically lower up to a factor of 1.6 at higher stellar temperatures. The cross section of the $^{63}$Ni($n,γ$) reaction was measured for the first time at n_TOF. We determined unresolved cross sections from 10 to 270 keV with a systematic uncertainty of 17%. These results provide fundamental constraints on $s$-process production of heavier species, especially the production of Cu in massive stars, which serve as the dominant source of Cu in the solar system.

nucl-ex↗