3D-flow processor for a calorimeter programmable level-1 trigger

The types of detectors and the physics involved in present experiments are reaching a level of cost and complexity so great that it is preferable to implement a programmable trigger solution at all levels rather than a system realized with cabled logic. Experience demonstrates that fine tuning on the trigger is often achieved only after running an experiment and analyzing the first data acquired. A level-1 trigger is required to identify objects (particles such as electrons, jets, etc.) with programmable algorithms at 60 million frames-per-second. These requirements have led to the design of a special 3-D flow processor that, together with a special pipelined parallel-processing architecture, allows a sustained data rate of 60 million frames-per-second. The 3-D flow is a data-flow processor that can be used in one-, two-, or three-dimension arrays for high-speed signal-processing applications such as identifying objects in a matrix in a programmable form. Feasibility studies demonstrate that with present technology a 3-D flow chip consuming 8 W and accommodating 32 processors at 60 MHz can be built today, and that the same chip can be built one year from now at a 120-MHz clock rate.<>