Pulse shape analysis based on similarity with digital–analog fusion method

Abstract We present the application of a “fusion method” combined with a “similarity” method to improve γ-ray energy spectrum characteristics of a CdZnTe semiconductor detector. A digital and an analog system are simultaneously applied to the detector output after passing through a preamplifier, where the digital system digitizes the signal pulse shape for the similarity determination, while the analog measures the signal pulse heights with a conventional analog method. In this paper, the digital and the analog data are fused to improve the energy spectrum characteristics, giving an increase of the photopeak area, the peak-to-valley ratio, and the photopeak sharpness.