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Design and Evaluation of a PMT High-Voltage system for Deepsea Neutrino Telescope

Zhu Mao, Shasha Liu, Ruike Cao, Hengbin Shao, Yaowei Guo, Sirui Wang, Fuyudi Zhang, Haoyan Zhang, Tailin Zhu, Yixi Jiang, Hao Zhou, Xin Xiang, Lei Wang

TL;DR

This work presents a Cockcroft-Walton high-voltage system designed for deep-sea multi-PMT optical modules, providing independently adjustable bias to 31 PMTs within an hDOM. It implements a distributed architecture with one CW base per PMT, controlled by an FPGA-driven PWM and LC resonant stage, and coordinated via an I2C hub to ensure scalable, low-noise HV regulation. Laboratory tests under deep-sea-like conditions demonstrate low baseline noise, gain uniformity with per-PMT calibration, and timing precision with a transit-time spread of $<1.8$ ns, validating the approach for long-term deployment. The results indicate that the system achieves voltage stability, timing accuracy, and gain uniformity necessary for reliable event reconstruction in large-scale deep-sea neutrino telescopes, and are amenable to scaling to larger arrays.

Abstract

We present the design and characterization of a Cockcroft-Walton (CW) high-voltage system developed for deep-sea neutrino telescopes. The system provides independently adjustable bias voltages to 31 three-inch PMTs inside a hybrid Digital Optical Module (hDOM). This paper describes the system design, control logic, test procedures, and the combined PMT-base performance, including baseline stability, gain uniformity, and timing accuracy. Performance was evaluated under laboratory conditions that simulate the deep-sea environment. Baseline measurements indicate low and stable electronic noise, while gain calibration using single-photoelectron spectra shows that all PMTs can be tuned to a common nominal gain and remain stable over multi-day operation. Transit-time-spread measurements yield values below 1.8 ns (FWHM), consistent with manufacturer specifications. These results demonstrate that the CW-based system delivers the stability and timing precision required for deep-sea

Design and Evaluation of a PMT High-Voltage system for Deepsea Neutrino Telescope

TL;DR

This work presents a Cockcroft-Walton high-voltage system designed for deep-sea multi-PMT optical modules, providing independently adjustable bias to 31 PMTs within an hDOM. It implements a distributed architecture with one CW base per PMT, controlled by an FPGA-driven PWM and LC resonant stage, and coordinated via an I2C hub to ensure scalable, low-noise HV regulation. Laboratory tests under deep-sea-like conditions demonstrate low baseline noise, gain uniformity with per-PMT calibration, and timing precision with a transit-time spread of ns, validating the approach for long-term deployment. The results indicate that the system achieves voltage stability, timing accuracy, and gain uniformity necessary for reliable event reconstruction in large-scale deep-sea neutrino telescopes, and are amenable to scaling to larger arrays.

Abstract

We present the design and characterization of a Cockcroft-Walton (CW) high-voltage system developed for deep-sea neutrino telescopes. The system provides independently adjustable bias voltages to 31 three-inch PMTs inside a hybrid Digital Optical Module (hDOM). This paper describes the system design, control logic, test procedures, and the combined PMT-base performance, including baseline stability, gain uniformity, and timing accuracy. Performance was evaluated under laboratory conditions that simulate the deep-sea environment. Baseline measurements indicate low and stable electronic noise, while gain calibration using single-photoelectron spectra shows that all PMTs can be tuned to a common nominal gain and remain stable over multi-day operation. Transit-time-spread measurements yield values below 1.8 ns (FWHM), consistent with manufacturer specifications. These results demonstrate that the CW-based system delivers the stability and timing precision required for deep-sea

Paper Structure

This paper contains 11 sections, 3 equations, 9 figures, 3 tables.

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. The PMT HV System
  3. Overall Design
  4. Base and Control Board Implementation
  5. Base High Voltage Test
  6. Control Logic
  7. PMT Performance
  8. Experimental Setup
  9. PMT gain measurement and stability
  10. PMT Time Resolution
  11. Summary and Discussion

Figures (9)

  • Figure 1: Photo of the PMT high-voltage system, consisting of (left) the control board and (right) the PMT-integrated base board
  • Figure 2: Main circuit of the PMT high-voltage system
  • Figure 3: Simulated high-voltage time evolution at different stages of the CW multiplier. All stages converge to their steady-state values with uniform voltage spacing along the multiplication chain.
  • Figure 4: Cathode voltage as a function of the duty cycle at different driving frequencies
  • Figure 5: The PMT bench test setup designed for SPE gain,gain curve and time resolution measurements with main components marked.
  • ...and 4 more figures