ALICE SAMPA-ASIC second-prototype qualification studies for LHC Run 3 and beyond

ALICE experiment studies the properties of the Quark-Gluon Plasma a new state of matter which is expected to be created at the high-energy densities reached at the CERNs LHC. In 2019 after the long-shutdown of LHC, a major upgrade of the ALICE sub-detectors is planned. The ALICE TPC is one of them which will be upgraded from wire chambers to gas electron multiplier chambers and the new TPC will acquire data in continuous-readout mode. In this context, a new front-end ASIC named SAMPA is being developed. This paper reports the outcome of the SAMPA characterization tests carried out using a pulse generator and a prototype GEM chamber