A Flexible Multichannel Digital Random Pulse Generator Based on FPGA

Mohammad Arkani, Hossein Khalafi, Naser Vosoughi

Department of Energy Engineering, Sharif University of Technology, Tehran, Iran.
Physics Department, Amir-Kabir University of Technology, Tehran, Iran Radiation Application Research School, Nuclear Science & Technology Research Institute (NSRTI), Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), Tehran, Iran.
Radiation Application Research School, Nuclear Science & Technology Research Institute (NSRTI), Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), Tehran, Iran.

DOI: 10.4236/wjnst.2013.34019                

Abstract

The present paper describes a multichannel digital random pulse generator implemented in a 65-nm FPGA device. The random time interval generation is based on inverse transformation method. The output pulse generation rate, pulse width and the probability distribution function (PDF) of each channel might be individually selected by the computer through a USB cable connection. Statistical properties of the output channels can be adjusted and recorded in a fully dynamic flexible manner. The Poisson and uniform PDFs were tested and implemented for up to eight different channels in experiment, however, the implementation of any arbitrary PDF is possible by programming capability of the device as well. Detailed experimental results are expressed in the manuscript. The proposed equipment makes it possible to verify the complicated multichannel detection systems without having the radioactive experimental tests. This is a low cost instrumentation due to the FPGA-based construction.

 

Keywords

Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA); Random Pulse Generator; Probability Distribution Function

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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