Time protocol based timing system for time-of-flight instruments

A method of configuring a particle detector facility to record event times, the method comprising:

• among at least two facility devices of a facility device set of the particle detector facility, the respective facility devices selected from a facility device type set comprising:
• a beam monitor facility device,
• a neutron instrument facility device,
• a neutron chopper facility device,
• a nuclear reactor facility device,
• a particle accelerator facility device,
• a network router facility device, and
• a user workstation facility device,
• identifying one facility device as a grandmaster clock;
• and
• for respective selected facility devices that comprise a clock component and a local data store of the selected facility device, configuring the selected facility device to:
• synchronize the clock component with the grandmaster clock;
• and
• upon detecting an event:
• retrieve from the clock component of the selected facility device an absolute event timestamp that is independent of event times of other events;
• and
• store a record of the event and the absolute event timestamp in the local data store.

A sensor device of a particle detector facility, wherein the device set further comprises, the sensor device comprising:

• a sensor that detects a particle event arising within the particle detector facility;
• a local clock;
• a local storage device;
• a processor;
• and
• a memory storing instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the sensor device to:
• identify the remote clock of the remote device of the particle facility as a grandmaster clock;
• synchronize the clock component with a grandmaster clock of the particle facility;
• and
• upon the sensor detecting an instance of the particle event:
• retrieve, from the local clock, an absolute event timestamp that is independent of event times of other events;
• and
• store, in the local storage device, a record of the event and the absolute event timestamp retrieved from the local clock.