arXiv subjects

Yasuo Arai

Publications and source records attributed to Yasuo Arai.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Development of a Neutron Imager using CMOS Pixelated Sensor

We acquired an image of the Siemens Star Chart using the 10B-INTPIX4 CMOS pixelated imager at J-PARC MLF BL21 (NOVA). The image blurriness, characterized by a root mean square (rms) value of 17 um in the line spread function, corresponds to an rms beam divergence of 2.7 mrad. for the neutron beam. This is equivalent to the effective geometrical ratio (L/D ratio) of 370. The contrast of the image was analyzed as a function of structural scale of the chart, and based on this contrast, the modulation transfer function (MTF) of the imaging system was evaluated. The results indicate that the structure corresponding to the 50% cutoff is 12 line-space pairs per mm.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2026

Recent application studies of an INTPIX4NA SOIPIX detector-based X-ray camera using an SiTCP-XG 10GbE-based high-speed readout system at KEK facilities

The Silicon-On-Insulator PIXel (SOIPIX) detector is a unique monolithic structure imaging device currently being developed by the SOIPIX group, led by the High Energy Accelerator Research Organization (KEK). Our detector team at the KEK Photon Factory (PF) has developed an X-ray camera based on the INTPIX4NA SOIPIX detector. This detector provides a sensitive area of 14.1 $\times$ 8.7 $\mathrm{mm^2}$, with 425,984 pixels arranged in an 832-column $\times$ 512-row matrix and a pixel size of 17 $\times$ 17 $\mathrm{μm^{2}}$, and offers high spatial resolution and excellent sensitivity under low-intensity X-ray conditions. The readout system used in the X-ray camera is developed at the PF. It is equipped with SiTCP-XG, a 10 Gb Ethernet network controller implemented on a field-programmable gate array, enabling high-frame-rate imaging at several hundred hertz. We are currently investigating the applicability of this X-ray camera in several experiments at KEK. Herein, we report three recent application studies: (1) X-ray zooming microscope optics using two Fresnel zone plates at PF AR-NE1A; (2) phase-contrast X-ray imaging system using a two-crystal X-ray interferometer at PF BL-14C; and (3) nondestructive lithium detection in Li-ion battery electrode materials using muonic X-rays at J-PARC MLF Muon D2.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2025

A detailed study on spectroscopic performance of SOI pixel detector with a pinned depleted diode structure for X-ray astronomy

We have been developing silicon-on-insulator (SOI) pixel detectors with a pinned depleted diode (PDD) structure, named "XRPIX", for X-ray astronomy. In our previous study, we successfully optimized the design of the PDD structure, achieving both the suppression of large leakage current and satisfactory X-ray spectroscopic performance. Here, we report a detailed study on the X-ray spectroscopic performance of the XRPIX with the optimized PDD structure. The data were obtained at $-60^\circ\mathrm{C}$ with the "event-driven readout mode", in which only a triggering pixel and its surroundings are read out. The energy resolutions in full width at half maximum at 6.4 keV are $178\pm1$ eV and $291\pm1$ eV for single-pixel and all-pixel event spectra, respectively. The all-pixel events include charge-sharing pixel events as well as the single-pixel events. These values are the best achieved in the history of our development. We argue that the gain non-linearity in the low energy side due to excessive charge injection to the charge-sensitive amplifier is a major factor to limit the current spectroscopic performance. Optimization of the amount of the charge injection is expected to lead to further improvement in the spectroscopic performance of XRPIX, especially for the all-pixel event spectrum.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2024

Fine residual stress distribution measurement of steel materials by SOI pixel detector with synchrotron X-rays

Residual stress is an important factor governing evaluating and controlling the quality of metal materials in industrial products. X-ray measurements provide one of the most effective means of evaluating residual stress without destruction. In such measurements, the effects of residual stress on the crystal structure can be observed through the Debye ring deformation. In previous studies, we developed a residual stress measurement system based on the $cos α$ method, using a two-dimensional (2D) silicon-on-insulator pixel (SOIPIX) detector known as INTPIX4. In a typical laboratory setup, this system requires only 1 second to measure a specified point. This is drastically faster than the conventional system based on the $sin^{2} ψ$ method, which requires more than 10 min, and the $cos α$-based system using an imaging plate, which requires 1 min. Compared to other systems, it can evaluate the 2D distribution of residual stress faster and provide more detailed information for evaluating materials. We first attempted to measure the 2D distribution in a laboratory setup with a Cr X-ray tube (Cr K$α$ 5.4 keV) and obtained satisfactory results. We subsequently took measurements using synchrotron monochromatic X-rays to determine the fine accuracy and fine sampling pitch distribution. In this paper, we report the results of the initial synchrotron experiment, including the residual stress distribution of the standard specimen obtained by the first prototype setup. Furthermore, we compare the synchrotron measurements with those from the laboratory.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2024

X-ray imaging camera using INTPIX4NA SOIPIX detector with SiTCP-XG 10GbE based high-speed readout system

The silicon-on-insulator pixel (SOIPIX) detector is a unique monolithic-structure imaging device currently being developed by the SOIPIX group led by the High Energy Accelerator Research Organization (KEK). The detector team at KEK Photon Factory (PF) is also developing an X-ray camera using INTPIX4NA with a 14.1 $\times$ 8.7 $\mathsf{mm^2}$ sensitive area and 425,984 (832 column $\times$ 512 row matrix) pixels, with a pixel size of 17 $\times$ 17 $\mathsf{μm^2}$. The detector has high resolution and sensitivity for low-intensity X-rays, making it suitable for imaging in optical systems with lower X-ray intensities, such as an X-ray zooming microscope using two Fresnel zone plates (FZPs), which is also under development at PF. To enable imaging under such conditions, we developed a detector cooling system using a Peltier element to support longer exposure time (~0.5 seconds per frame). Additionally, we developed a new readout system using DAQ boards developed by PF, equipped with SiTCP-XG (network controller implemented on field-programmable gate array) that supports 10 Gbps Ethernet for high-frame-rate imaging at several hundred hertz. The new X-ray camera was tested at the PF BL-14A, BL-14B, and AR-NE1A experimental stations, and the resolution and sensitivity characteristics were confirmed. Given these confirmed characteristics, this X-ray camera is suitable for X-ray imaging using 5--20 keV X-rays under low-intensity, low-contrast conditions. These conditions are ideal for capturing soft tissues with poor contrast, objects with fine structures, and specimens vulnerable to radiation damage.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2024

Evaluation of the X-ray SOI pixel detector with the on-chip ADC

XRPIX is the monolithic X-ray SOI (silicon-on-insulator) pixel detector, which has a time resolution better than 10 $\rmμ$s as well as a high detection efficiency for X-rays above 10 keV. XRPIX is planned to be installed on future X-ray satellites. To mount on satellites, it is essential that the ADC (analog-to-digital converter) be implemented on the detector because such peripheral circuits must be as compact as possible to achieve a large imaging area in the limited space in satellites. Thus, we developed a new XRPIX device with the on-chip ADC, and evaluated its performances. As the results, the integral non-linearity was evaluated to be 6 LSB (least significant bit), equivalent to 36 eV. The differential non-linearity was less than 0.7 LSB, and input noise from the on-chip ADC was 5~$\rm{e^{-}}$. Also, we evaluated end-to-end performance including the sensor part as well as the on-chip ADC. As the results, energy resolution at 5.9 keV was 294 $\rm{\pm}$ 4 eV in full-width at half maximum for the best pixel.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2024

Design study and spectroscopic performance of SOI pixel detector with a pinned depleted diode structure for X-ray astronomy

We have been developing silicon-on-insulator (SOI) pixel detectors with a pinned depleted diode (PDD) structure, named "XRPIX", for X-ray astronomy. The PDD structure is formed in a thick p-type substrate, to which high negative voltage is applied to make it fully depleted. A pinned p-well is introduced at the backside of the insulator layer to reduce a dark current generation at the Si-SiO$_{2}$ interface and to fix the back-gate voltage of the SOI transistors. An n-well is further introduced between the p-well and the substrate to make a potential barrier between them and suppress a leakage current. An optimization study on the n-well dopant concentration is necessary because a higher dopant concentration could result in a higher potential barrier but also in a larger sense-node capacitance leading to a lower spectroscopic performance, and vice versa. Based on a device simulation, we fabricated five candidate chips having different n-well dopant concentrations. We successfully found out the best n-well design, which suppressed a large leakage current and showed satisfactory X-ray spectroscopic performance. Too low and too high n-well dopant concentration chips showed a large leakage current and degraded X-ray spectroscopic performance, respectively. We also found that the dependency of X-ray spectroscopic performance on the n-well dopant concentration can be largely explained by the difference in sense-node capacitance.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2023

The International Linear Collider: Report to Snowmass 2021

The International Linear Collider (ILC) is on the table now as a new global energy-frontier accelerator laboratory taking data in the 2030s. The ILC addresses key questions for our current understanding of particle physics. It is based on a proven accelerator technology. Its experiments will challenge the Standard Model of particle physics and will provide a new window to look beyond it. This document brings the story of the ILC up to date, emphasizing its strong physics motivation, its readiness for construction, and the opportunity it presents to the US and the global particle physics community.

physics.acc-ph↗

arXiv2022

Single Event Tolerance of X-ray SOI Pixel Sensors

We evaluate the single event tolerance of the X-ray silicon-on-insulator (SOI) pixel sensor named XRPIX, developed for the future X-ray astronomical satellite FORCE. In this work, we measure the cross-section of single event upset (SEU) of the shift register on XRPIX by irradiating heavy ion beams with linear energy transfer (LET) ranging from 0.022 MeV/(mg/cm2) to 68 MeV/(mg/cm2). From the SEU cross-section curve, the saturation cross-section and threshold LET are successfully obtained to be $3.4^{+2.9}_{-0.9}\times 10^{-10}~{\rm cm^2/bit}$ and $7.3^{+1.9}_{-3.5}~{\rm MeV/(mg/cm^2)}$, respectively. Using these values, the SEU rate in orbit is estimated to be $\lesssim$ 0.1 event/year primarily due to the secondary particles induced by cosmic-ray protons. This SEU rate of the shift register on XRPIX is negligible in the FORCE orbit.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2022

Proton radiation damage tolerance of wide dynamic range SOI pixel detectors

We have been developing the SOI pixel detector ``INTPIX'' for space use and general purpose applications such as the residual stress measurement of a rail and high energy physics experiments. INTPIX is a monolithic pixel detector composed of a high-resistivity Si sensor, a SiO2 insulator, and CMOS pixel circuits utilizing Silicon-On-Insulator (SOI) technology. We have considered the possibility of using INTPIX to observe X-ray polarization in space. When the semiconductor detector is used in space, it is subject to radiation damage resulting from high-energy protons. Therefore, it is necessary to investigate whether INTPIX has high radiation tolerance for use in space. The INTPIX8 was irradiated with 6 MeV protons up to a total dose of 2 krad at HIMAC, National Institute of Quantum Science in Japan, and evaluated the degradation of the performance, such as energy resolution and non-uniformity of gain and readout noise between pixels. After 500 rad irradiation, which is the typical lifetime of an X-ray astronomy satellite, the degradation of energy resolution at 14.4 keV is less than 10%, and the non-uniformity of readout noise and gain between pixels is constant within 0.1%.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2022

Development of a new high-speed data acquisition system prototype for SOI pixel detector using SiTCP-XG, a 10-gigabit Ethernet network processor

We are developing a new readout board with a newer generation field-programmable gate array (FPGA) and the 10-gigabit ethernet to improve the performance and usability of the current readout board based on the 1-gigabit Ethernet. In this new readout board, the SiTCP-XG network processor supporting 10-gigabit Ethernet was implemented. SiTCP is a network processor circuit running on FPGA, and SiTCP-XG is the newly developed version of the SiTCP that supports 10-gigabit Ethernet. Before developing the new board, we constructed a prototype system using the Xilinx FPGA evaluation board KC705 to evaluate the SiTCP-XG. This prototype system was tested with the SOI pixel detector, which has 425,984 (column 832 x row 512 matrix) pixels and a pixel size of 17 x 17 um at the synchrotron beamlines of the PhotonFactory (KEK). This was the first test of the X-ray imaging for this system. The results showed that this system worked stably with a transfer rate of 682 Mbps (equivalent to a frame rate of 100 fps, limited by detector operation parameters), and also worked stably with a transfer rate of 2.4 Gbps (equivalent to 350 fps, the maximum rate limited by the detector performance). These results suggest that the SiTCP-XG system has sufficient transfer performance to cover the SOIPIX detector performance.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2022

X-ray Radiation Damage Effects on Double-SOI Pixel Detectors for the Future Astronomical Satellite "FORCE"

We have been developing the monolithic active pixel detector "XRPIX" onboard the future X-ray astronomical satellite "FORCE". XRPIX is composed of CMOS pixel circuits, SiO2 insulator, and Si sensor by utilizing the silicon-on-insulator (SOI) technology. When the semiconductor detector is operated in orbit, it suffers from radiation damage due to X-rays emitted from the celestial objects as well as cosmic rays. From previous studies, positive charges trapped in the SiO2 insulator are known to cause the degradation of the detector performance. To improve the radiation hardness, we developed XRPIX equipped with Double-SOI (D-SOI) structure, introducing an additional silicon layer in the SiO2 insulator. This structure is aimed at compensating for the effect of the trapped positive charges. Although the radiation hardness to cosmic rays of the D-SOI detectors has been evaluated, the radiation effect due to the X-ray irradiation has not been evaluated. Then, we conduct an X-ray irradiation experiment using an X-ray generator with a total dose of 10 krad at the SiO2 insulator, equivalent to 7 years in orbit. As a result of this experiment, the energy resolution in full-width half maximum for the 5.9 keV X-ray degrades by 17.8 $\pm$ 2.8% and the dark current increases by 89 $\pm$ 13%. We also investigate the physical mechanism of the increase in the dark current due to X-ray irradiation using TCAD simulation. It is found that the increase in the dark current can be explained by the increase in the interface state density at the Si/SiO2 interface.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2021

Proton radiation hardness of X-ray SOI pixel sensors with pinned depleted diode structure

X-ray SOI pixel sensors, "XRPIX", are being developed for the next-generation X-ray astronomical satellite, "FORCE". The XRPIX are fabricated with the SOI technology, which makes it possible to integrate a high-resistivity Si sensor and a low-resistivity Si CMOS circuit. The CMOS circuit in each pixel is equipped with a trigger function, allowing us to read out outputs only from the pixels with X-ray signals at the timing of X-ray detection. This function thus realizes high throughput and high time resolution, which enables to employ anti-coincidence technique for background rejection. A new series of XRPIX named XRPIX6E developed with a pinned depleted diode (PDD) structure improves spectral performance by suppressing the interference between the sensor and circuit layers. When semiconductor X-ray sensors are used in space, their spectral performance is generally degraded owing to the radiation damage caused by high-energy protons. Therefore, before using an XRPIX in space, it is necessary to evaluate the extent of degradation of its spectral performance by radiation damage. Thus, we performed a proton irradiation experiment for XRPIX6E for the first time at HIMAC in the NIRS. We irradiated XRPIX6E with high-energy protons with a total dose of up to 40 krad, equivalent to 400 years of irradiation in orbit. The 40-krad irradiation degraded the energy resolution of XRPIX6E by 25 $\pm$ 3%, yielding an energy resolution of 260.1 $\pm$ 5.6 eV at the full width half maximum for 5.9 keV X-rays. However, the value satisfies the requirement for FORCE, 300 eV at 6 keV, even after the irradiation. It was also found that the PDD XRPIX has enhanced radiation hardness compared to previous XRPIX devices. In addition, we investigated the degradation of the energy resolution; it was shown that the degradation would be due to increasing energy-independent components, e.g., readout noise.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2020

Low-Energy X-ray Performance of SOI Pixel Sensors for Astronomy, "XRPIX"

We have been developing a new type of X-ray pixel sensors, "XRPIX", allowing us to perform imaging spectroscopy in the wide energy band of 1-20 keV for the future Japanese X-ray satellite "FORCE". The XRPIX devices are fabricated with complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor silicon-on-insulator technology, and have the "Event-Driven readout mode", in which only a hit event is read out by using hit information from a trigger output function equipped with each pixel. This paper reports on the low-energy X-ray performance of the "XRPIX6E" device with a Pinned Depleted Diode (PDD) structure. The PDD structure especially reduces the readout noise, and hence is expected to largely improve the quantum efficiencies for low-energy X-rays. While F-K X-rays at 0.68 keV and Al-K X-rays at 1.5 keV are successfully detected in the "Frame readout mode", in which all pixels are read out serially without using the trigger output function, the device is able to detect Al-K X-rays, but not F-K X-rays in the Event-Driven readout mode. Non-uniformity is observed in the counts maps of Al-K X-rays in the Event-Driven readout mode, which is due to region-to-region variation of the pedestal voltages at the input to the comparator circuit. The lowest available threshold energy is 1.1 keV for a small region in the device where the non-uniformity is minimized. The noise of the charge sensitive amplifier at the sense node and the noise related to the trigger output function are ~$18~e^-$ (rms) and ~$13~e^-$ (rms), respectively.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2020

Radiation Damage Effects on Double-SOI Pixel Sensors for X-ray Astronomy

The X-ray SOI pixel sensor onboard the FORCE satellite will be placed in the low earth orbit and will consequently suffer from the radiation effects mainly caused by geomagnetically trapped cosmic-ray protons. Based on previous studies on the effects of radiation on SOI pixel sensors, the positive charges trapped in the oxide layer significantly affect the performance of the sensor. To improve the radiation hardness of the SOI pixel sensors, we introduced a double-SOI (D-SOI) structure containing an additional middle Si layer in the oxide layer. The negative potential applied on the middle Si layer compensates for the radiation effects, due to the trapped positive charges. Although the radiation hardness of the D-SOI pixel sensors for applications in high-energy accelerators has been evaluated, radiation effects for astronomical application in the D-SOI sensors has not been evaluated thus far. To evaluate the radiation effects of the D-SOI sensor, we perform an irradiation experiment using a 6-MeV proton beam with a total dose of ~ 5 krad, corresponding to a few tens of years of in-orbit operation. This experiment indicates an improvement in the radiation hardness of the X- ray D-SOI devices. On using an irradiation of 5 krad on the D-SOI device, the energy resolution in the full-width half maximum for the 5.9-keV X-ray increases by 7 $\pm$ 2%, and the chip output gain decreases by 0.35 $\pm$ 0.09%. The physical mechanism of the gain degradation is also investigated; it is found that the gain degradation is caused by an increase in the parasitic capacitance due to the enlarged buried n-well.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2019

Measurement of Charge Cloud Size in X-ray SOI Pixel Sensors

We report on a measurement of the size of charge clouds produced by X-ray photons in X-ray SOI (Silicon-On-Insulator) pixel sensor named XRPIX. We carry out a beam scanning experiment of XRPIX using a monochromatic X-ray beam at 5.0 keV collimated to $\sim 10$ $μ$m with a 4-$μ$m$ϕ$ pinhole, and obtain the spatial distribution of single-pixel events at a sub-pixel scale. The standard deviation of charge clouds of 5.0 keV X-ray is estimated to be $σ_{\rm cloud} = 4.30 \pm 0.07$ $μ$m. Compared to the detector response simulation, the estimated charge cloud size is well explained by a combination of photoelectron range, thermal diffusion, and Coulomb repulsion. Moreover, by analyzing the fraction of multi-pixel events in various energies, we find that the energy dependence of the charge cloud size is also consistent with the simulation.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2019

Subpixel Response of SOI Pixel Sensor for X-ray Astronomy with Pinned Depleted Diode: First Result from Mesh Experiment

We have been developing a monolithic active pixel sensor, ``XRPIX``, for the Japan led future X-ray astronomy mission ``FORCE`` observing the X-ray sky in the energy band of 1-80 keV with angular resolution of better than 15``. XRPIX is an upper part of a stack of two sensors of an imager system onboard FORCE, and covers the X-ray energy band lower than 20 keV. The XRPIX device consists of a fully depleted high-resistivity silicon sensor layer for X-ray detection, a low resistivity silicon layer for CMOS readout circuit, and a buried oxide layer in between, which is fabricated with 0.2 $μ$ m CMOS silicon-on-insulator (SOI) technology. Each pixel has a trigger circuit with which we can achieve a 10 $μ$ s time resolution, a few orders of magnitude higher than that with X-ray astronomy CCDs. We recently introduced a new type of a device structure, a pinned depleted diode (PDD), in the XRPIX device, and succeeded in improving the spectral performance, especially in a readout mode using the trigger function. In this paper, we apply a mesh experiment to the XRPIX devices for the first time in order to study the spectral response of the PDD device at the subpixel resolution. We confirmed that the PDD structure solves the significant degradation of the charge collection efficiency at the pixel boundaries and in the region under the pixel circuits, which is found in the single SOI structure, the conventional type of the device structure. On the other hand, the spectral line profiles are skewed with low energy tails and the line peaks slightly shift near the pixel boundaries, which contribute to a degradation of the energy resolution.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2019

Evaluation of Kyoto's Event-Driven X-ray Astronomical SOI Pixel Sensor with a Large Imaging Area

We have been developing monolithic active pixel sensors, named ``XRPIX'', based on the silicon-on-insulator (SOI) pixel technology for future X-ray astronomy satellites. XRPIX has the function of event trigger and hit address outputs. This function allows us to read out analog signals only of hit pixels on trigger timing, which is referred to as the event-driven readout mode. Recently, we processed ``XRPIX5b'' with the largest imaging area of 21.9~mm $\times$ 13.8~mm in the XRPIX series. X-ray spectra are successfully obtained from all the pixels, and the readout noise is 46~e$^-$~(rms) in the frame readout mode. The gain variation was measured to be 1.2\%~(FWHM) among the pixels. We successfully obtain the X-ray image in the event-driven readout mode.

astro-ph.IM↗