synApps: mca

Module Owner: Mark Rivers: University of Chicago

This page is the home of mca. 

mca supports Multi-Channel Analyzers (hence the name), and also related devices such as multi-channel scalers (MCS), waveform digitizers, and programmable ADCs, amplifiers and power supplies.

mca includes a new record, the mcaRecord.

Devices supported in mca include:

From Canberra Industries

• 556/AIM Ethernet MCA
• DSA-2000 Ethernet MCA. Support includes the internal DSP (which is the same as the 9660), and the internal programmable high-voltage power supply.
• 9660 Digital Signal Processor (replaces amplifier and ADC)
• 9615 Programmable Amplifier
• 9635 ADC
• 9641 2kV High Voltage Power Supply
• 9645 6kV High Voltage Power Supply
• 2016A Amplifier, 3-channel analyzer

The Canberra support runs on vxWorks, Linux, and Windows (win32-x86, windows-x64 static/dynamic). It should also run on other Unix systems if the libnet and libpcap packages are intalled.

From Amptek

• The digital pulse processing MCAs integrated into the X-123 CdTe, SDD, and Si-PIN detectors
• The standalone PX5 digital pulse processing MCA and power-supply
• The MCA8000D standalone MCA which works with analog pulse shaping electronics

From Struck Innovative Systems

• SIS 3801 MCS (formerly the STR7201 from Struck)
• SIS 3820 MCS

The SIS support runs on vxWorks and RTEMS. The SIS3820 support runs on Linux with the SIS PCI/VME bridge.

From Bruker (formerly Rontec)

• XFlash MCA

The Rontec support will run on any IOC with support for asyn serial ports. It will also run with better performance using Bruker's QM100 high speed interface.

Drivers that support the asyn version of the mcaRecord device support are provided for additional devices in other synApps modules that I've written.  These include dxp, areaDetector, ip330, and quadEM.

Please email any comments and bug reports to Mark Rivers who is responsible for coordinating development and releases.

Documentation

• Documentation for the mca module
• Release notes for the mca module

Where to find it

In May 2015 this module was moved from the synApps Subversion repository at the APS to epics-modules/mca on Github.com. R7-7 is first release after this move. All tagged releases, including those from before the move to Github, are available as tar.gz and zip files on Github.

Required Modules

Installation and Building

After obtaining a copy of the distribution, it must be installed and built for use at your site. These steps only need to be performed once for the site (unless versions of the module running under different releases of EPICS and/or the other required modules are needed).

1. Create an installation directory for the module, usually this will end with
   
   .../support/
   
2. Place the distribution file in this directory. Then issue the commands (Unix style)

   gunzip mcaRX-Y.tar.gz
   
   tar xvf mcaRX-Y.tar
   

   where X-Y is the release.
3. This creates a <top> application.
   

   .../support/mcaRX-Y
   

4. Edit the configure/RELEASE file and set the paths to your installation of EPICS base and to your versions of other required support modules.
5. Run gnumake in the top level directory and check for any compilation errors.
6. Please email  Mark Rivers  so that a record can be kept of which sites are using this software.

In Use

This software was originally developed by Mark Rivers and Tim Mooney.

• ANL/APS : In use at CARS, XOR, HP-CAT, UNICAT and many other beamlines.
• NSLS: In use at X-26A, X-27A, X-17C, X-17B2, X-17B3 and several other beamlines
• Other locations: CHESS, Swiss Light Source, Australian Synchrotron, Diamond Light Source, Shanghai Synchrotron, Advanced Light Source.