a CERN@school how-to guide
Contents
1. LO A X ITOSV WOJ 09 01 QT JUNOI9 LA s QQ ou WeI S WLIJ enprArpul S8UI Jas UOTISINbIe ay 198 HIN OT 20 POLO XdL e e uorestienb3 ppoysa1q tulojog e OP MJLA DAL THL e e 1012939 dy aImSDU0O e y Una e o xt Le UOrjejuario pue UOT LIO 9as00y e A Q6 938 0A serg e e dwep y ur juno e powu 19J3WOIDIAS LOL e 1032919Pp ay dn jas 58UI1J9S 10133 9P ay 198 b 3 dod juawudmba Dua 100q qe J0J39J1p SUNIOM odp jus 1004 qe len PP sup Le ae Ramba IAVIS Aa E a eaID Mau E a ealD ay dn jas ay Jop CERN school 000131 v1 0 3 PRELIMINARY STEPS 3 Preliminary steps 3 1 Setting up the laptop The laptop used to operate the Timepix detector should be set up as described in the appropriate CERN school user manual 3 4 For convenience the main steps are repeated here 1 Plug in the laptop to a power socket using the AC adapter 2 Switch on the laptop 3 Log on the student account 4 Ensure that all other programs are closed The CERN school desktop should be visible and no other programs should be running One should also check the laptop power options to ensure that the High performance power plan is selected and that any automatic shutdown or sleep modes have been deactivated for at least the duration of the experiment see section 5 3 2 Bookkeeping As with any scientific experiment good bookkeeping2. 1 3 Overview of the experiment An overview of the experiment is shown in figure 1 Further details for each step may be found in the corresponding sections of this how to guide A brief discussion of further activities relating to background radiation measurements may be found in section 7 2 Equipment needed In order to perform the experiment described here the following equipment is required e From the Mk1 Detector Kit 3 The Timepix detector The high voltage cable The mini USB cable The Dell Latitude E5500 laptop or equivalent and AC adapter or e From the MX 10 Detector Kit 4 The Jablotron MX 10 Digital Particle Camera The mini USB cable The Dell Latitude 3330 laptop or equivalent and AC adapter e A clamp boss and retort stand for holding the detector in place at the desired position and orientation e Anote book for recording the experimental method observations and results CERN school 0001 31 v1 0 4 2 EQUIPMENT NEEDED pa1mb31 st 110d31 uo Aquo SJUIVIIINSEIUUL JO Jas 19818 JO BUO SI JUIWIINSEIV Y JI ATUO 1019939P TAWN ay 0 sayddy poy13u eyusuiLiadxa JUsWIaINseaw puno 1319eq IY JO MAJAJSAO UY T at HSINIA ez AIVINOVA y 0 Uodai e Ons pue a e919 AVINOVA au 07 gep oy peojdn 299 1109 pares u99q sey eJep ay ainsuy 3JAdWOI 0 uorystnboe eyep oY 10 HEM HIS ssald
3. Required setting Mk1 MX 10 Mode Time over Threshold ToT Spectrometer Bias voltage V 95 0 95 Krum 1 n a Lower threshold THL 40 below TEQ obtained value n a TPX clock Te MHz 10 n a 5 Data acquisition settings Work to date has shown that recording a frame per minute for between 30 and 60 minutes produces a useful indication of the background radiation levels in an indoor environment The acquisition settings required to obtain such a measurement are shown in table 2 Additionally when using the Mk1 detector ensure that File output is ticked in the Device Control panel Single file is unticked and that a suitable destination directory for the data has been specified see section 6 1 Table 2 Acquisition settings for background radiation measurements Also ensure that Finite count of steps is ticked Required setting Mk1 MX 10 Individual frames Acq type Frames Untick Integral mode Frame time s Acq time 60 0 Exp time 60 0 Frame count Acq count 10to60 Exp count 10 to 60 Format ASCII X Y X n a CERN school 000131 v1 0 11 6 MANAGING THE DATA 6 Managing the data 6 1 Saving the data With the relatively long running times of typical background radiation measurements it is important that every step is taken to ensure that the data collected is saved correctly e When using the Mk1 detector the location of the data is specified in the Pixelman software s Device Control panel before data taking commenc
4. is essential for working with CERN school This is particularly the case for Radiation Around You RAY as the datasets will be shared remotely with other members of the CERN school Collaboration The guiding principle when writing laboratory notes is as ever that somebody following them should have all of the information required to reproduce the results obtained Of course the actual data obtained will be different if the location and time at which the data is taken is different that is after all the point of the experiment It should however be clear to the reader what has been done to obtain the data in question 3 2 1 The working directory On the laptop s hard disk or wherever the electronic data is to be stored locally create a new directory file folder to store everything related to the measurement being taken Choose a name for this directory carefully to reflect the nature of the experiment the date the location and any special conditions Some hints e List the year month and day in reverse order to automatically ensure folders are arranged chronologically when ordered by name e If more than measurement is to be made in a given location create a folder for this location and store the working directories for individual measurements within this directory e Do not use spaces in directory or file names use either hypens or underscores to separate words if required For example langton_ray meas_20140108 001 3
5. place d the detector s sensor element exposed by removing the lens cap e the Mk1 detector f the mini USB cable that connects the detector to the laptop g the high voltage cable The axes indicate the relative orientation of the detector coordinate system though the origin should be taken as the bottom left corner of the sensor element CERN school 000131 v1 0 9 3 3 Setting up the detector 3 PRELIMINARY STEPS Figure 3 The Jablotron MX 10 digital particle camera mounted face up in a clamp with its cover open showing a the Jablotron MX 10 digital particle camera b the detector s sensor element exposed by opening the cover c the mini USB cable that connects the detector to the laptop d the boss e the clamp used to hold the detector in place f the retort stand The axes indicate the relative orientation of the detector coordinate system though the origin should be taken as the bottom left corner of the sensor element CERN school 000131 v1 0 10 5 DATA ACQUISITION SETTINGS 4 Detector settings The detector settings should be set as described in the relevant user manual 3 4 The required values are repeated in table 1 for convenience The values for a given measurement will be recorded automatically in the detector settings dsc files produced by the Pixelman software but they should also be noted in the lab book entries for reference Table 1 Detector settings for background radiation measurements
6. 1 X Llopart R Ballabriga M Campbell L Tlustos and W Wong Timepix a 65k programmable pixel readout chip for arrival time energy and or photon counting measurements Nucl Instr and Meth A 581 485 2007 2 T Whyntie CERN school the DAQMAP Technical Report 000023 CERN school January 2014 3 T Whyntie CERN school Mk1 Detector User Manual Technical Report 000126 CERN school January 2014 4 T Whyntie CERN school MX 10 Detector User Manual Technical Report 000127 CERN school January 2014 5 T Whyntie CERN school DAQMAP User Manual Technical Report 000128 CERN school January 2014 Version History Table 3 Version history Version Description Author 1 0 Initial version TW CERN school 0001 31 v1 0 14
7. 2 2 The lab book entry Laboratory notes should ideally be recorded by hand in a laboratory notebook either a personal notebook or a group notebook that should be left with the detector kit and electronically in a text CERN school 0001 31 v1 0 6 3 3 Setting up the detector 3 PRELIMINARY STEPS file A text editor such as Notepad or Notepad can be used to create this text file and save it in the working directory The lab book entry should start with the following information The title of the experiment A brief description of the experiment including what it is hoped will be achieved by making the measurement or measurements The name of the research group performing the experiment The group members taking part DAQMAP usernames in the electronic version personal details should not be stored electronically The time date and location of the experiment including latitude longitiude and altitude An example of the start of a lab book entry may be found in listing 1 Note that this has been written in the Markdown format so that headings bold text hyperlinks etc appear formatted when uploaded to the DAQMAP without the need for a word processor 3 3 Setting up the detector The detector should be set up in the standard fashion as described in the relevant user manual 3 4 Some points of note The detector should if possible be placed in a clamp and mounted on a retort stand see figures 2
8. CERN A Kos CERN school CERN amp Society Background radiation measurements with the Timepix hybrid silicon pixel detector a CERN school how to guide J Beesley C Cundy T Whyntie The Langton Star Centre Langton Lane Canterbury CT4 7AS United Kingdom 2University of Cambridge Cambridge CB2 1TN United Kingdom Particle Physics Research Centre School of Physics and Astronomy Queen Mary University of London Mile End Road London E1 ANS United Kingdom E mail twhyntie thelangton kent sch uk Abstract A how to guide for making simple background radiation measurements with the Timepix hybrid silicon pixel detector is presented After introducing the aims and context of the experiment the equipment preparatory steps and detector settings required are listed as well as guidelines for acquiring and managing the experimental data Instructions for both the CERN schoo Mk1 detector and the Jablotron MX 10 digital particle camera are provided A number of areas for further investigation are then briefly discussed members of the CERN school Collaboration are encouraged to contact the authors with suggestions or queries CERN school 000131 v1 0 1 CONTENTS CONTENTS Contents 1 Introduction 3 1 1 Aims ofthe experiment e e 3 1 2 Theexperimentin context se e sa ca aet 3 1 3 Overview of the experiment 2 2 00 eee eee ee es 4 2 Equipment needed 4 3 Preliminary s
9. and 3 The location of the detector should be chosen carefully and recorded in the corresponding lab book entries Make a note of potentially interesting useful information such as the distance to the nearest window or on which floor the laboratory is located c f cosmic ray shielding The standard orientation of the detector for this experiment is face up as in figures 2 and 3 but other orientations may be used if desired For example the detector may be rotated about its y axis at 90 270 sideways or 180 face down Be sure to record the orientation in the lab book entry and when uploading the dataset to the DAOMAP by entering the appropriate roll angle value e g oro 90 For indoor measurements the detector s sensor element should be exposed by removing the lens cap Mk1 or opening the cover MX 10 Please ensure that nothing falls onto or touches the sensor element If possible take a digital photograph of the experimental set up and save this into the working directory A sketch of the apparatus should also be made in the laboratory note book Start the Pixelman software configure the detector and if it has not been done already perform Threshold Equalisation TEO as described in the relevant user manual 3 4 Save a copy of the detector configuration files into the working directory or make a note of the location of the current detector configuration files in the lab book entries so that it is possible
10. es Be sure to create a sub directory folder within a folder in the experiment s working directory for your data and make sure this is shown in the output file text box in the Device Control panel e When using the MX 10 detector data is saved after the data has been collected To save the data once the background measurement has been made open the File menu and select Save measurement Then create a new sub directory within the working directory enter a descriptive base file name and click on the Save button 6 2 Uploading the data to the DAQMAP To upload the data to the DAQMAP follow the instructions in the DAQMAP user manual 5 When compressing the frame and detector settings files be sure to choose a unique descriptive file name without spaces for the zip file and move it from the data destination directory to the working directory If the instructions presented here have been followed all of the required information for the DAOMAP upload should be to hand in the lab book entry The electronic lab book entry should be pasted into the Notes text box 6 3 Writing the report As with all CERN school activities upon completion of the experiment a report should be submitted to the DAOMAP describing the activities undertaken If the measurement is part of a series of measurements for example a series of measurements made over the course of a day a single report may be submitted Such a report should reference all of the relevan
11. t data files and reflect the total duration of the measurements made For further details refer to the DAQMAP user manual 5 Frame numbers will be added to the base file name when the data is actually saved by Pixelman CERN school 000131 v1 0 12 7 FURTHER ACTIVITIES 7 Further activities The background radiation measurement described here is relatively straightforward to perform There are of course a number of experimental variables that may be investigated even for measurements made within the same laboratory These include but are not limited to e the distance to the nearest window noting the direction the window faces e the orientation of the detector see section 3 3 e the time of day that the measurement is made e the presence of any shielding materials including the detector lens cap cover As long as everything is recorded and changes are made carefully and systematically the data obtained and results extracted will be useful to the whole CERN school Collaboration On that note it may also be worth coordinating efforts with other research groups in possession of a detector in order to mitigate the effect of making measurements at different times Similarly members of the CERN school Collaboration are encouraged to contact the CERN school team with ideas for further areas of investigation or large scale research projects for support CERN school 000131 v1 0 13 7 FURTHER ACTIVITIES References
12. teps 6 SE Setting upthe laptop er cee a Nr A oe eed Nr ai 6 3 2 Bookkeeping n s 2 66 ee eee ee ude EN de er 6 53 Setting up the detector et a as Sw a eae AS e AS 7 4 Detector settings 11 5 Data acquisition settings 11 6 Managing the data 12 GL Saving the data o a s A acs oa m o a Be we om a Ge ee te 12 6 2 Uploading the data to the DAQMAP 2 0002 eee 12 6 3 WHting thereport sa ias u dope EENHEETEN 12 7 Further activities 13 CERN school 000131 v1 0 2 1 INTRODUCTION 1 Introduction 1 1 Aims of the experiment This CERN school how to guide aims to show the reader how to perform a simple measurement of the background radiation at a given location in a given time interval using the Timepix hybrid silicon pixel detector 1 Background radiation is by definition everywhere it is produced by many natural and artficial sources such as the rocks beneath the ground cosmic rays from above and even fallout from nuclear weapons testing Although the overall level of background radiation is small it is nonetheless interesting to systematically measure properties such as e the rate of detection e the type of radiation detected e the energy of radiation detected The capabilities of the Timepix detector 1 allow for the detailed measurement of these properties to be made in the laboratory or indeed anywhere that the detector can be operated 1 2 The experiment in context In isolation a single measurement of the backgro
13. to determine exactly how the detector was configured when the measurement was made A text file is preferred to a word processor document as text files can be read by almost any computer Of course formal experimental reports may be written with a word processor or typeset with BIER CERN school 000131 v1 0 7 3 3 Setting up the detector 3 PRELIMINARY STEPS Listing 1 An example of the start of an electronic lab book entry in the Markdown format An example background radiation measurement This experiment aims to make a short measurement of the background radiation in the Feynman room B8 of the Langton Star Centre Research Group This work was carried out by members of the Langton Star Centre Group members involved ktw _01 _lsc Tom Whyntie Schools Research Champion CERN school Spatio temporal information kDate Wednesday 8th January 2014 kTime Approx 1500 GMT Location The Langton Star Centre Simon Langton Grammar School for Boys Langton Lane Canterbury CT4 7AS kLatitude 51 261015 x Longitude 1 084127 kAltitude 48 0m according to http veloroutes org elevation http veloroutes org elevation CERN school 000131 v1 0 8 3 3 Setting up the detector 3 PRELIMINARY STEPS Figure 2 The CERN school Mk1 detector mounted face up in a clamp with the lens cap removed showing a the retort stand b the boss c the clamp used to hold the detector in
14. und radiation in a given location is interesting but difficult to draw too many conclusions from The real power of this experiment lies in combining data from measurements made at different geographical locations and at different times and looking for trends in the properties of the background radiation with respect to factors such as e the time of day e the level of solar activity e the underlying geology e the distance from geographical features natural or artificial e anonymised medical data or indeed any other geographical or temporal factors that may have an effect on the level of background radiation This is the aim of the Radiation Around You RAY research programme By using the Timepix detectors to make the measurements and using the Data AcQuisition Management Analysis and Presentation DAQMAP system 2 to share the results of those measurements a large dataset can be assembled that may be used by CERN school Collaboration members to perform scientific analyses of spatial and temporal trends in background radiation levels Energy measurements require a calibration dataset to have been obtained with the detector used to make the measurement If such a dataset is unavailable a useful measurement may be still be made with said detector the energy information may be extracted later once the calibration dataset has been obtained CERN school 0001 31 v1 0 3 1 3 Overview of the experiment 2 EQUIPMENT NEEDED
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