CDL, a Precise, Low-Cost Coincidence Detector Latch

The electronic detection of the coincidence of two events is still a key ingredient for high-performance applications, such as Positron Emission Tomography and Quantum Optics. Such applications are demanding, since the precision of their calculations and thus their conclusions directly depend on the duration of the interval in which two events are considered coincidental. This paper proposes a new circuitry, called coincidence detector latch (CDL), which is derived from standard RS latches. The CDL has the following advantages: low complexity, fully synthesizable, and high scalability. Even in its simple implementation, it achieves a coincidence window width as short as 115 ps, which is more than 10 times better than that reported by recent research