Comprehensive study of timing resolution in plastic scintillator detectors with wavelength-shifting fiber and silicon photomultiplier readout

Abstract

We present a comprehensive study of the timing resolution achievable in plastic scintillator detectors read out through wavelength-shifting (WLS) fibers coupled to silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs), combining a semi-analytical framework, toy Monte Carlo validation, and full Geant4 optical photon simulation. The analytical model traces the complete photon detection chain: scintillation emission, WLS fiber re-emission, optical transit time dispersion, SiPM single-photon time resolution, and electronics quantization. It expresses the timing resolution $\sigt$ as a function of the detected photoelectron yield $\Npe$, scintillator decay constants ($\taur$, $\taud$), WLS re-emission time ($\tauwls$), fiber numerical aperture, detector geometry, and readout electronics parameters. The analytical predictions are validated at two levels. First, toy Monte Carlo simulations ($2\times 10^5$ events per parameter point across 80 grid points spanning 8 fiber types and $\Npe$ from 5 to 200) achieve analytical-to-MC agreement of $0.9997 \pm 0.0015$. Second, full Geant4 optical photon simulations track the entire scintillation, wavelength-shifting, and fiber transport chain in realistic detector geometries, confirming the analytical timing predictions and providing first-principles photoelectron yield calibration. A comprehensive parameter scan covering 7 scintillator materials, 8 WLS fiber types, 5 SiPM models, 5 electronics configurations, 3 readout topologies, and 3 boundary conditions produces quantitative design maps and lookup tables for detector optimization.