🦆 QUACKEMS 3-Input Test Board

Quantitative Charge Kinetic Energy Mass Sensor — Front-End Test System
Designed and assembled by Emma Stensland

Overview

The 3-Input Test Board analyzes charge pulses from the W1 Silicon Strip Detector for the QUACKEMS instrument.
It converts detector charge pulses into shaped Gaussian voltage pulses for further signal analysis and detector characterization.

Theory of Operation

• The W1 Silicon Strip Detector acts as a reverse-biased diode.
  Charged particles crossing the depletion zone produce ionized charge carriers that drift to the electrodes, forming a charge pulse.
• The test board conditions this signal through:
  • A charge-sensitive preamplifier that integrates the charge and produces a decaying voltage pulse.
  • A Gaussian shaper that converts the preamp’s exponential tail into a smooth, bell-shaped waveform.
• The system is enclosed in a custom grounded metal enclosure functioning as a Faraday cage to minimize noise.

Design Overview

The PCB is a four-layer design:

Layer	Function
1	Ground plane, bias, and surface-mount signal routing
2	Shielded preamp I/O lines
3	Dedicated ground plane
4	Power routing for preamp and shaper stages

References

• Cremat Inc. — Preamplifier & Shaper Modules
• CERN: Introduction to Silicon Strip Detectors (PDF)
• CR-110-R2.2 Datasheet
• CR-200-R2.1 Datasheet
• W1 300 µm Detector Documentation