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arXiv · 2604.03059

The Darkside-20k Data Acquisition System

Fabio Acerbi·Pushparaj Adhikari·Paolo Agnes·Iftikhar Ahmad·Sebastiano Albergo·Ivone F. M. Albuquerque·Thomas Olling Alexander·Andrew Knight Alton·Pierre-Andre Amaudruz·Gioacchino Alex Anastasi·Michele Angiolilli·Elena Aprile·David J. Auty·Maximo Ave Pernas·Oscar Azzolini·Henning Olling Back·Zoe Balmforth·Ana Isabel Barrado Olmedo·Pierre Barrillon·Giovanni Batignani·Swadheen Bharat·Pritindra Bhowmick·Sofia Blua·Valerio Bocci·Walter Bonivento·Bianca Bottino·Mark G. Boulay·Titanilla Braun·Andrzej Buchowicz·Severino Bussino·Jose Busto·Matteo Cadeddu·Mariano Cadoni·Roberta Calabrese·Vincenzo Camillo·Alessio Caminata·Nicola Canci·Andrea Capra·Mauro Caravati·Miguel Cardenas-Montes·Nicola Cargioli·Marco Carlini·Paolo Castello·Paolo Cavalcante·Susana Cebrian·Alexander Chepurnov·Sarthak Choudhary·Luisa Cifarelli·Yann Coadou·Ivan Coarasa·Valentina Cocco·Estefania Conde Vilda·Lucia Consiglio·Harrison Coombes·Andre Filipe Ventura Cortez·Barbara S. Costa·Milena Czubak·Saverio D'Auria·Manuel Dionisio Da Rocha Rolo·Alexander Dainty·Giovanni Darbo·Stefano Davini·Riccardo de Asmundis·Sandro De Cecco·Marzio De Napoli·Giulio Dellacasa·Alexander Derbin·Lea Di Noto·Philippe Di Stefano·Daniel Diaz Mairena·Carlo Dionisi·Grigory Dolganov·Francesca Dordei·Aaron Elersich·Emma Ellingwood·Tyler Erjavec·Niamh Fearon·Marta Fernandez Diaz·Luca Ferro·Andrea Ficorella·Giuliana Fiorillo·Dylon Fleming·Paolo Franchini·Davide Franco·Heriques Frandini Gatti·Federico Gabriele·Devidutta Gahan·Cristiano Galbiati·Grzegorz Galinski·Giacomo Gallina·Marco Garbini·Pablo Garcia Abia·Andrzej Gawdzik·Graham Kurt Giovanetti·Alberto Gola·Luca Grandi·Gianfrancesco Grauso·Giovanni Grilli di Cortona·Alexey Grobov·Maxim Gromov

Abstract

DarkSide-20k is a WIMP search experiment using liquid argon as a target, designed to perform a background-free search for dark matter with unprecedented sensitivity, and is currently under construction at INFN Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso, Italy. The detector comprises a dual-phase Time Projection Chamber complemented with external veto systems and is equipped with a total of 2720 SiPM-based readout channels. This work presents the DAQ system designed for DarkSide-20k. The system is capable of continuous, triggerless digitisation of the waveforms with high single-photoelectron detection efficiency and online processing, ensuring data reduction for long-term storage. The DarkSide-20k DAQ system employs commercial CAEN VX2745 digitisers with custom FPGA firmware implementation. Timing and synchronisation across all 48 digitisers are provided by custom Global and Crate Data Manager boards distributing a phase-aligned clock derived from a disciplined rubidium standard. Waveform segments are processed in real time by Front End Processor machines. Data are organised into collections containing whole detector information and distributed across a farm of Time Slice Processors for event reconstruction, classification, and further reduction before storage and offline analysis. A full "Quadrant" of the system, corresponding to one quarter of the final DAQ, has been assembled and validated at TRIUMF laboratory in Canada. The Quadrant has been stress-tested with simultaneous pulses and demonstrated sustained digitizer readout exceeding expected physics rates and stable long-term performance.

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Fabio Acerbi, Pushparaj Adhikari, Paolo Agnes, Iftikhar Ahmad, Sebastiano Albergo, Ivone F. M. Albuquerque, Thomas Olling Alexander, Andrew Knight Alton, Pierre-Andre Amaudruz, Gioacchino Alex Anastasi, Michele Angiolilli, Elena Aprile, David J. Auty, Maximo Ave Pernas, Oscar Azzolini, Henning Olling Back, Zoe Balmforth, Ana Isabel Barrado Olmedo, Pierre Barrillon, Giovanni Batignani, Swadheen Bharat, Pritindra Bhowmick, Sofia Blua, Valerio Bocci, Walter Bonivento, Bianca Bottino, Mark G. Boulay, Titanilla Braun, Andrzej Buchowicz, Severino Bussino, Jose Busto, Matteo Cadeddu, Mariano Cadoni, Roberta Calabrese, Vincenzo Camillo, Alessio Caminata, Nicola Canci, Andrea Capra, Mauro Caravati, Miguel Cardenas-Montes, Nicola Cargioli, Marco Carlini, Paolo Castello, Paolo Cavalcante, Susana Cebrian, Alexander Chepurnov, Sarthak Choudhary, Luisa Cifarelli, Yann Coadou, Ivan Coarasa, Valentina Cocco, Estefania Conde Vilda, Lucia Consiglio, Harrison Coombes, Andre Filipe Ventura Cortez, Barbara S. Costa, Milena Czubak, Saverio D'Auria, Manuel Dionisio Da Rocha Rolo, Alexander Dainty, Giovanni Darbo, Stefano Davini, Riccardo de Asmundis, Sandro De Cecco, Marzio De Napoli, Giulio Dellacasa, Alexander Derbin, Lea Di Noto, Philippe Di Stefano, Daniel Diaz Mairena, Carlo Dionisi, Grigory Dolganov, Francesca Dordei, Aaron Elersich, Emma Ellingwood, Tyler Erjavec, Niamh Fearon, Marta Fernandez Diaz, Luca Ferro, Andrea Ficorella, Giuliana Fiorillo, Dylon Fleming, Paolo Franchini, Davide Franco, Heriques Frandini Gatti, Federico Gabriele, Devidutta Gahan, Cristiano Galbiati, Grzegorz Galinski, Giacomo Gallina, Marco Garbini, Pablo Garcia Abia, Andrzej Gawdzik, Graham Kurt Giovanetti, Alberto Gola, Luca Grandi, Gianfrancesco Grauso, Giovanni Grilli di Cortona, Alexey Grobov, Maxim Gromov. 2026-04-03. The Darkside-20k Data Acquisition System. https://arxiv.org/abs/2604.03059

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