  Active Target Time Projection Chambers (AT-TPCs) are state-of-the-art tools
in the field of low-energy nuclear physics, particularly suitable for
experiments using low-intensity radioactive ion beams or gamma rays. The Fudan
Multi-purpose Active Target Time Projection Chamber (fMeta-TPC) with 2048
channels has been developed to study $\alpha$-clustering nuclei. {\fcb In this
work, the focus is on the study of the photonuclear reaction with the Laser
Compton Scattering (LCS) gamma source, especially for the decay of the highly
excited $\alpha$-cluster state.} The design of fMeta-TPC is described and a
comprehensive evaluation of its offline performance is performed by ultraviolet
(UV) laser and $^{241}$Am $\alpha$ source. The result shows that the intrinsic
angular resolution of the detector is within 0.30$^{\circ}$ and has an energy
resolution of 6.85\% for 3.0 MeV $\alpha$ particles. The gain uniformity of the
detector is about 10\% (RMS/Mean), tested by the $^{55}$Fe X-ray source.
