Influence of sampling properties of fast-waveform digitizers on neutron−gamma-ray, pulse-shape discrimination for organic scintillation detectors

One of the most important questions to be answered with regard to digital pulse-shape discrimination (PSD) systems based on organic scintillators is: What sampling properties are required for a fast-waveform digitizer used for digitizing neutron/gamma-ray pulses, while an accurate PSD is desired? Answering this question is the main objective of this paper. Specifically, the paper describes the influence of the resolution and sampling frequency of a waveform digitizer on the PSD performance of organic scintillators. The results presented in this paper are meant to help the reader choosing a waveform digitizer with appropriate bit resolution and sampling frequency. The results presented here show that a 12-bit, 250-MHz digitizer is a good choice for applications that require good PSD performance. However, when more accurate PSD performance is the main requirement, this paper presents PSD figures of merit to qualify the impact of further increasing either sampling frequency or resolution of the digitizer.