INTRODUCTION

FASTER is a modular digital acquisition system based upon a synchronized tree model. The system is designed to handle to medium size experiments, from one to few hundred detectors.

FASTER is a n-ary tree in which each nodes performs the followings function :

• synchronize and aggregate data streams received from the childrens nodes,
• make decision on the resulting data stream,
• send the resulting stream to the parent node.

FASTER is a triggerless system. All the data are timestamped, allowing nodes to perform online correlations between measurements over user-defined time windows.

FASTER is modular. Using standard hardware and software components, users can build acquisition system tailored to their needs.

FASTER uses the following standards:

• UDP/IP protocol
• Ethernet gigabit connection
• microTCA crate or standalone box
• VITA 57 daughter boards