The first version buffered large analog bandwidth (BLAB1) ASIC for high luminosity collider and extensive radio neutrino detectors

Future detectors for high luminosity particle identification and ultra high energy neutrino observation would benefit from a digitizer capable of recording sensor signals with high analog bandwidth and large record depth, in a cost-effective, compact and low-power way. A first version of the buffered large analog bandwidth (BLAB1) ASIC has been designed based upon the lessons learned from the development of the large analog bandwidth recorder and digitizer with Ordered Readout (LABRADOR) ASIC. While this LABRADOR ASIC has been very successful and forms the basis of a generation of new, large-scale radio neutrino detectors, its limited sampling depth is a major drawback. A prototype has been designed and fabricated with 64k deep sampling at multi-GSa/s operation. We present test results and directions for future evolution of this sampling technique. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.