The Trigger System for the External Target Experiment in CSR of HIRFL

TL;DR

This paper presents a trigger system designed for the external target experiment at HIRFL's CSR, utilizing a hierarchical structure, fiber-optic data transmission, and FPGA reconfiguration to handle scattered detectors over a large area.

Contribution

The paper introduces a novel trigger system architecture with fiber-based data transmission and FPGA reconfiguration for large-area detector setups in heavy ion experiments.

Findings

Trigger system functions correctly in tests

Hierarchical trigger logic enables flexible reconfiguration

System effectively manages scattered detectors over large areas

Abstract

A trigger system was designed for the external target experiment in the Cooling Storage Ring (CSR) of the Heavy Ion Research Facility in Lanzhou (HIRFL). Considering that different detectors are scattered in a large area, the trigger system is designed based on a master-slave structure and fiber-based serial data transmission technique. The trigger logic is organized in hierarchies, and flexible reconfiguration of the trigger function is achieved based on command register access or overall field-programmable gate array (FPGA) logic on-line reconfiguration controlled by remote computers. We also conducted tests to confirm the function of the trigger electronics, and the results indicate that this trigger system works well.