Particle telescope with Timepix3 pixel detectors

Abstract

In the presented work, we demonstrate how Timepix3 detectors, featuring the Katherine (Gigabit Ethernet interface) readout, can be used in a particle telescope. For the highly precise timestamp synchronization, a special timing unit (with time resolution ∼ 13 ps) based on a Time-to-Digital-Converter (TDC) is used and interconnected with the readouts. The designed concept of the measurement chain was tested at the SPS facilities at CERN in a 40 GeV/c pion beam using a telescope of 3 synchronized Timepix3 detectors. Evaluating spatially and temporally coincident events, an overall time resolution below 2 ns was determined, whereby a systematic error of <1 ns was present.