Design of the MiniCLEAN dark matter search veto detector subsystem

Abstract

This paper describes the design of the active muon veto subsystem for the MiniCLEAN dark matter direct detection experiment at SNOLAB in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. The water-filled veto is instrumented with 48 PMTs which are read out by front-end electronics to time multiplex 48 photomultiplier channels into 6 digitizer channels and provide an instantaneous hit sum across the subsystem (N-Hit) for the veto trigger. We describe the primary system components: the PMTs, the support structure, the front-end electronics, and the data acquisition system.