Digital electronics for the eXTP large area detector

Abstract

The Enhanced X-ray Timing and Polarimetry Mission (eXTP) is a flagship collaborative Sino-European X-ray mission currently in its Phase B study, led by the Institute of High Energy Physics (IHEP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). One of the primary instruments contributed by the European consortium to eXTP is the Large area detector (LAD), which consists of 40 modules of Silicon Drift Detector (SDD) operating in the 2–30 keV energy range. The Back-End Electronics (BEE) for the LAD are organized at two hierarchical levels: Module Back-End Electronics (MBEE) and Panel Back-End Electronics (PBEE), to manage the large number of detectors in the instrument. The Module Back-End Electronics (MBEE) acquires data from 8 Front-End Electronics (FEE) boards, which constitute half of a module and additionally preprocesses the acquired digital data. The PBEE, positioned one level higher in the hierarchy, is responsible for aggregating the data streams (science telemetry and Housekeeping (HK) data) from 20 MBEE to the Instrument Control Unit (ICU) using a single SpaceWire connection. Additionally, it distributes power, telecommands, and synchronized timing information from the ICU to the MBEE. The BEEs are designed using radiation-tolerant embedded and programmable logic systems to support data acquisition, processing, telecommand handling, and HK collection. This paper discusses the architecture of the LAD and its electronics system, with a focus on the BEE, and presents the test results and performance derived from a single-line LAD data acquisition chain setup.