A Multichannel 100 MHz Flash-ADC-System with Fastscan Zero Suppression

A modular multichannel data acquisition system has been developed based on ultrafast (100 MHz) integrated analog-to-digital converters (Flash ADCs). Its basic elements are simple data acquisition modules and controller modules for a flexible and fully programmable configuration. Zero suppression is done in a fast search mode (FASTSCAN) after read in. This system is designed for fast sampling of drift chamber signals in order to measure the drift time, the coordinate along the wire (by charge division), the charge (dE/dx) of the signal and to provide a good double track resolution.