The Huanliu-3 (HL-3) tokamak has achieved multiple breakthroughs in high-performance fusion plasma physics since its first plasma in 2020. It is the largest and highest-parameter tokamak in China, as well as an important international fusion experimental platform. As high-parameter fusion experiments are conducted on HL-3, higher technical requirements have been placed on the hard X-ray (HXR) detection system in terms of counting rate (≥ 900 kcps) and neutron irradiation (≥ 1010 n/cm2) resistance. Therefore, focusing on the radiation resistance and counting rate performance of the HXR detector, this paper carries out the corresponding design work. The detector consists of a YSO scintillator, a light guide, and a silicon photomultiplier (SiPM). Based on the selected set of detector design options, several detector prototypes were fabricated, on which we conducted basic performance tests and a comparative experiment to evaluate neutron radiation resistance. Experimental results indicate that, for the two light guide lengths (5 mm and 7 mm) investigated in this study, the length only affects the signal output amplitude, which is consistent with the simulation results. The difference in energy resolution between the two prototypes is less than 1.2%. To increase the offset distance of the SiPM from the neutron incident direction and reduce irradiation-induced damage, the 7 mm light guide was ultimately adopted. The counting rate experimental results indicate that, for the two detector prototypes equipped with 7 mm light guides, the energy resolution of 241Am (59.5 keV) varies by less than 1.2% over a counting rate range of up to 900 kcps. Accelerator-based neutron irradiation experiments demonstrate that the detector retains its fundamental energy spectrum detection capability under a cumulative neutron fluence of 6.28 × 1010 n/cm2. The detector developed in this work can not only satisfy the technical requirements for HXR diagnostics on the future HL-3 device but also serve as a valuable reference for the design of scintillator detectors in neutron irradiation environments.

Neutron Resonance Transmission Imaging (NRTI) is an energy-dependent method based on event-mode acquisition of time-of-flight radiographs over a white neutron beam. NRTI enables the identification and mapping of elements and isotopes within the bulk of a sample with enhanced contrast, providing complementary capabilities of conventional imaging methods. Its growing adoption within the user community of the ISIS Neutron and Muon Source underscores the need for a standardised and reproducible data reduction framework to ensure consistent results. A dedicated effort towards its end-user optimisation is underway at the INES beamline of the ISIS facility. This work focuses on NRTI data treatment, detailing the normalisation pipeline and post-processing steps for qualitative isotopes and elements mapping. The methodology is demonstrated through a practical example, highlighting the steps required to achieve transmission data suitable for post-processing analysis.

X-ray imaging has improved significantly as a high-resolution and non-invasive probe to detect the internal structures of samples in different fields. While the conventional absorption contrast method is particularly beneficial for characterising medium-density samples (but not for low-Z materials), Phase Contrast X-ray imaging is an effective technique for detecting low contrast details in weakly absorbing samples. As such, it has great potential in many fields of application, delivering high-quality information on micro-structural features. X-ray Grating Interferometry is one of the techniques vastly adopted at both synchrotron facilities and laboratories for phase contrast analysis, where the diffraction patterns generated by gratings are used to extract phase information. In this paper, a Python-based package for signals extraction (absorption, differential phase and dark field) and computed tomography reconstruction is illustrated; the code is developed in the framework of the PRIN2022 PITCH Italian project, based on a Metaljet X-ray source in a laboratory setup installed at the University of Torino, and focused on the analysis of Cultural Heritage materials. This package can be used through preset Jupyter Notebooks for the different tasks; also, a user-friendly GUI is in preparation.

The ICARUS experiment is part of the Short-Baseline Neutrino program at Fermilab. Its primary objective is to explore the possible existence of sterile neutrinos in the O(1 eV) mass range and to clarify the anomalies observed in the Liquid Scintillator Neutrino Detector and MiniBooNE experiments. The ICARUS-T600 detector is a Liquid Argon Time Projection Chamber, capable of producing high-resolution 3D images and precise calorimetric measurements of ionizing particles. This technology allows for a detailed study of neutrino interactions across a broad energy range, from a few keV to several hundred GeV. The track reconstruction is achieved through a software framework that applies a series of pattern recognition algorithms, transforming raw detector signals into fully reconstructed event topologies. This process involves identifying interaction vertices, particle tracks, and electromagnetic showers within the TPC. However, in certain cases, these algorithms may mistakenly break a single particle track into several shorter segments, interpreting each as a distinct particle. Since track length is used to estimate the particle's energy, such fragmentation can result in an energy underestimation of several hundred MeV. Furthermore, when a track is split into multiple segments, the particle identification (which relies on analyzing the energy loss as a function of the residual range) may fail, potentially leading to the loss of the entire event. To mitigate this problem, we have developed a dedicated algorithm designed to identify and reconnect (“stitch”) the tracks that were erroneously divided into multiple segments.

This work presents the implementation and the preliminary tests of the Multi-channel Integrated Zone-sampling Analogue-memory based Readout (MIZAR) ASIC. Developed using commercial 65 nm CMOS technology, the MIZAR ASIC is designed as part of the Cherenkov camera for the POEMMA Balloon with Radio (PBR) mission. The goal of the Cherenkov camera is to detect direct Cherenkov signals produced by Extensive Air Showers (EASs) pointing towards the detector. The broader objective of the PBR mission is the detection of Ultra-High Energy Cosmic Rays (UHECRs) and tau-induced air showers resulting from the interaction of Cosmic Neutrinos with the Earth's crust. In the MIZAR ASIC, a single channel is segmented into 256 acquisition cells and each one includes a capacitor, a Wilkinson Analog-to-Digital Converter (ADC) and a digital memory. This full waveform sampling system operates with an integration time of 5 ns and the data are converted on chip at the same frequency. MIZAR is designed to send out a 64-bit hitmap to use as first-level trigger to recognize patterns of interest. Each channel can be programmed to reduce the sampling window to 32 or 64 cells and the resolution can be set within the interval 8–12 bits. MIZAR was delivered in March 2025 and it has undergone laboratory testing in recent months.

KOTO-II at J-PARC is proposed to extend the search for the ultra-rare decay KL → π 0 νν̄ by operating at substantially higher beam intensity than KOTO.In this regime, the Beam Hole Photon Veto (BHPV) must provide excellent timing performance and excellent γ/hadron discrimination to identify background photons and beam-induced activity. Given the time resolution of the lead-aerogel Cherenkov BHPV used in KOTO, a ∼19% nominal beam loss is expected under KOTO-II conditions.As an alternative, we propose a compact and highly granular Small Angle Calorimeter (SAC) based on ultra-fastlead-tungstate crystals read out with fast photomultiplier tubes, aiming to improve timing and reduce accidental veto losses.A SAC prototype consisting of two 3 × 3 PWO-UF crystal layers was tested at the CERN PS T9 beamline with Hamamatsu R9880 and R14755 metal-channel photomultipliers.In parallel, the crystals were characterized with high-resolution X-ray diffraction to quantifytheir orientation and enable measurements with aligned crystals.We present an overview of the detector R&D and the first beam test results on energy response and time resolution.

Reliable operation of electronics in the high-radiation environment of the ATLAS cavern is essential for long-term physics data collection through the HL-LHC period. In particular, FPGAs (AMD Kintex-7 FPGAs) on Thin Gap Chamber (TGC) readout boards (PS boards) is susceptible to Single Event Upsets (SEUs). To address this challenge, a robust recovery system was developed to detect and correct automatically soft errors. We present in-situ measurements of the SEU rate and recovery demonstration for the Kintex-7 FPGA, performed in the actual ATLAS cavern during Run 3. These results provide a direct validation of the radiation tolerance and recovery mechanisms required for the operation at HL-LHC and an insight for future high-energy physics experiments. In 2024, we placed the PS board at ∼ 13 m from the beam axis and ∼ 13 m from the interaction point with the board surface parallel to the beam axis, and conducted the measurement and demonstration during pp collisions at 13.6 TeV. For the data taking of an integrated luminosity of ∼ 90 fb-1, we observed 133 single-bit and 5 multi-bit errors in the configuration memory of the Kintex-7 FPGA. In 2025, we placed the PS board at ∼ 8 m from the beam axis and ∼ 13 m from the interaction point with the board surface perpendicular to the beam axis, as planned for HL-LHC. We observed 86 single-bit, 7 multi-bit, and 5 unrecoverable bit errors for an integrated luminosity of ∼ 13 fb-1. All single-bit and multi-bit errors were automatically corrected by the Soft Error Mitigation (SEM) controller implemented in the Kintex-7 FPGA. The errors unrecoverable by the SEM controller were recovered via FPGA reconfiguration in an automatic manner under control of a dedicated external board.

This study presents optimizations to the Massive Temperature Readout System (MTRS), a cost-effective alternative to traditional Programmable Logic Controller(PLC)-based systems for large-scale temperature monitoring. The improved MTRS design streamlines hardware by eliminating intermediate microcontrollers and communication modules, reducing complexity and potential failure points. A unified multi-threaded C++ application replaces the original multi-process software, enhancing performance and managing sensor data acquisition and Open Platform Communications Unified Architecture(OPC UA) server functions within a single process. Furthermore, a novel sensor reading strategy is implemented, overlapping conversion times to achieve higher system performance and increased channel capacity. The optimized system demonstrates the feasibility of a cost-effective, high-performance temperature monitoring solution for integration with OPC UA based industrial communication infrastructures.

This contribution presents progress made in the development of a dedicated test stand designed to evaluate the signal transmission integrity of approximately 9,000 electrical links used in the Inner System (IS) of the ATLAS Inner Tracker (ITk) upgrade Pixel detector. The quality control (QC) method of choice is a pre-existing multi-channel FPGA data acquisition architecture that has the capability of producing Bit Error Rate (BER) tests and virtual eye diagrams at a data rate of 1.28 Gb/s. This paper includes developments in the calibration of the QC infrastructure as well as results from the first IS prototype bundle.

Coded aperture imaging technology holds an indispensable role in radioactive source localization for nuclear facility decommissioning, nuclear waste management, and radiation protection. Recent research has increasingly focused on source depth estimation, dose rate assessment, and even further activity quantification for nuclear industry radiation monitoring, rather than merely concentration on traditional improvements such as portability and field of view. Current metrological approaches for estimating survey-location dose rate and source activities using coded-aperture cameras typically combine depth information with survey-location fluence estimated by manually energy-dependence calibrated image hotspot intensities of common radionuclides (e.g., 241Am, 137Cs, 60Co). However, these methods focused on imaging scenarios of constant-energy or central-point source, lacking quantitative analysis of image hotspot intensity dependence on source energy or location for multi-point, multi-energy sources scenario. Therefore, through a quantitative analysis of the coded-aperture imaging mechanism, we proposed an energy response model to compensate for energy- and location-induced variations in image hotspot intensity to estimate the radioactive fluence at the survey location. By performing Geant4 simulation modelling on a customized coded-aperture camera, images of different-energy sources with various locations were generated to instantiate the empirical energy response model of image hotspot intensity for fluence estimation, resulting in excellent goodness of fit with R 2 ≥ 0.999. Finally, fluences estimated using corrected hotspot intensities for multi-point, multi-energy scenarios achieved deviations below 1% from actual fluences, which demonstrates the proposed approach for image hotspot intensity correction effectively resolves energy-dependent inaccuracies for survey-location fluence quantification of coded-aperture imaging. Therefore, the proposed approach aids in radiation quantitative characterization using coded-aperture imaging for nuclear industry applications including survey-location dose rate evaluation and source activity quantification.