A Compact Readout Electronics Based on Current Amplifier for Micromegas Detector in Muon Imaging

Muon imaging technology is an innovative imaging technique that can be applied in volcano imaging, heavy nuclear material detection, and archeological research. The micromegas detector is a promising choice for muon imaging due to its high spatial resolution and large area. However, the large number of readout channels poses a challenge for electronics. In this article, a compact front-end electronics (FEE) for reading micromegas detectors is presented. The electronics use the commercial current-to-digital readout chip, ADAS1128, which integrates 128 current amplifiers for multichannel charge measurement. After verifying the basic performance of the electronics, the energy resolution was obtained with a radioactive source. Furthermore, a muon imaging system prototype was set up, and its spatial resolution was evaluated in a test with cosmic ray muons. The system prototype can reconstruct the boundaries of sufficiently massive objects with a size of 2 cm in a scattering imaging test.