Experimental Characterization of the Timing Properties of a Detector-Preamplifier System for Charged Particle Detectors Using a Laser Pulser

The timing resolution performance of a commercially available preamplifier for use with charged particle detectors has been measured. The excitation source was a laser diode pulser with a characteristic wavelength of 904 nm and a 1.8 ns pulse width FWHM. A wide variety of detectors ranging in capacitance from 27 pF to 750 pF were used in this study. The changes in timing resolution resulting from changes in the laser light intensity and changes in detector capacitance are described.