# Radiation-induced Effects on Data Integrity and Link Stability of the RD53A Pixel Readout Chip

## TL;DR

This paper investigates the radiation effects on the RD53A pixel readout chip, focusing on data integrity and link stability, to ensure reliable operation in high-radiation environments like the LHC upgrade.

## Contribution

It provides an experimental analysis of radiation-induced performance degradation and operating margins of the RD53A chip designed for high-radiation conditions.

## Key findings

- Radiation causes performance degradation in data links and reset circuits.
- Operating margins in voltage and frequency are affected by radiation exposure.
- RD53A maintains acceptable performance up to 500 Mrad irradiation.

## Abstract

The phase-2 upgrade of the LHC will require novel pixel readout chips, which deliver hit information at drastically increased data rates and tolerate unprecedented radiation levels. The large-scale prototype chip RD53A has been designed by the RD53 collaboration and manufactured in a 65 nm CMOS process, suitable for the innermost layers of both the ATLAS and the CMS experiment. In order to verify the radiation hardness design goal of 500 Mrad total ionizing dose, RD53A has been irradiated using X-rays. The radiation effects on the performance of the data link, reset circuit and the clock generation have been investigated. Furthermore, the operating margins in terms of supply voltage and frequency have been analyzed.