xTDC4 User Guide

The xTDC4 is a common-start high resolution time-to-digital converter. Timestamps of leading or trailing edges of digital pulses are recorded. The xTDC4 produces a stream of output packets, each containing data from a single start event. The relative timestamps of all stop pulses that occur within a configurable range are grouped into one packet.

Features

  • 4-channel common-start TDC with 8 ps resolution

  • Standard Range: 218 µs (24-bit timestamp)

  • Extended Range: 13.975 ms

  • Bin size: 13 ps

  • Double-pulse resolution for best results: 5 ns

  • Double-pulse resolution without lost hits: 1.7 ns

  • Dead time between groups: none

  • Minimum interval between starts: 250 ns

  • L0 FIFO: 15 words/channel

  • L1 FIFO: 512 words/channel

  • L2 FIFO: 8000 words

  • PCIe 1.1 x1 with 200 MB/s throughput

Applications

The xTDC4 can be used in all time measurement applications where a common start setup with four channels is sufficient. For alternatives with more channels or more flexible grouping check our TDC website at www.cronologic.de.

The xTDC4 is well suited for the following applications:

  • Time-Of-Flight Mass Spectrometers (TOF-MS)

  • LIDAR down to 2 mm resolution

  • Reciprocal counters

  • Coincidence measurements

  • Quantum communication

  • Time-Correlated Single Photon Counting (TCSPC)

  • Synchronization of atomic clocks

  • Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging Microscopy (FLIM)

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