Due to their simplicity and versatility of design, straight strip or rectangular pad anode structures are frequently used with micropattern gas detectors (MPGDs) to reconstruct high-precision space ...points for various tracking applications. The particle impact point is typically determined by interpolating the charge collected by several neighboring strips. However, to effectively extract the inherent positional information, the lateral spacing of the straight strips must be comparable to or preferably smaller than the full extent of the incident charge cloud. In contrast, highly interleaved anode patterns, such as zigzags, can adequately sample the incident charge with a pitch appreciably larger than the charge cloud. This has the considerable advantage of providing the same performance while requiring far fewer instrumented channels. Additionally, the geometric parameters defining such zigzag structures may be tuned to provide a near-uniform detector response along and perpendicular to the sensitive coordinate, without the need for so-called "pad response functions," while simultaneously maintaining excellent position resolution. We have measured the position resolution of a variety of zigzag-shaped anode patterns optimized for various MPGDs, including gas electron multiplyer (GEM), Micromegas, and micro-resistive-well (<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">\mu </tex-math></inline-formula>RWELL) and compared this performance with the same detectors equipped with straight strips of varying pitch. We report on the performance results of each readout structure, evaluated under identical conditions in a test beam.
We have developed highly interleaved zigzag-shaped electrodes for collecting charge on the readout plane of various micropattern gaseous detectors (MPGDs), including gas electron multiplier (GEM) and ...micromega detectors. An optimized zigzag pad (or strip) anode can greatly enhance charge sharing among neighboring pads compared to traditional straight strip or rectangular pad designs and as a result can deliver excellent position resolution with minimal channel count, while exhibiting a virtually uniform response across the detector. We have systematically studied the effects of varying the parameters that define the zigzag geometry using simulations and have measured several printed circuit boards (PCBs) comprising a range of zigzag designs. Recently, we have employed laser ablation to generate zigzag patterns with pad-to-pad gaps smaller than 1 mil (or 25 <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">\mu \text{m} </tex-math></inline-formula>). Reducing the gap well below the 3-mil limit imposed by traditional chemical etching has allowed the production of zigzag electrodes with unprecedentedly small feature sizes. In turn, laser-etched zigzag PCBs were shown to exhibit markedly improved performance over earlier generation PCBs, with position resolutions below 50 <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">\mu \text{m} </tex-math></inline-formula> for a 2-mm pitch. This article will explore in detail the dependence of the position resolution on the structural parameters of a zigzag-shaped anode, specifically for the case of a quadruple GEM detector.
New design studies have been carried out for a readout plane for gas electron multiplier detectors using zigzag patterns that can significantly reduce the readout channel count while preserving ...excellent spatial resolution for tracking detectors. While zigzag patterns have been used in a number of applications, these studies were designed to investigate the fundamental limits of charge sharing between the electrodes to optimize the spatial resolution and minimize the nonuniformities across the readout plane, while exploring the limits of manufacturing capabilities for producing the readout board. Simulation studies were carried out to optimize the readout electrode structure, and readout boards were produced with similar zigzag designs that were tested in the laboratory using a scanning X-ray source. These studies were aimed at developing a readout board for the new time projection chamber for the sPHENIX experiment at relativistic heavy ion collider, but can readily be used in other applications, including various micropattern gas detectors, such as Micromegas.
A combined time projection chamber-Cherenkov (TPCC) prototype detector has been developed as part of the detector research and development program for a future electron-ion collider (EIC). The ...prototype was tested at the Fermilab test beam facility (FTBF) to provide a proof of the principle to demonstrate the ability to measure particle tracks and provide particle identification (PID) information within a common detector volume. The time projection chamber (TPC) portion consists of a <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">10 \times 10 \times 10 </tex-math></inline-formula> cm 3 field cage, which delivers charge from tracks to a quadruple gas electron multiplier (GEM) with zigzag-shaped charge collection anodes. The Cherenkov portion consists of a photosensitive quadruple GEM detector with a CsI photocathode. As tracks pass through the drift volume of the TPC, the generated Cherenkov light is able to escape through sparsely arranged wires making up one side of the field cage, facing the CsI photocathode. The Cherenkov detector is thus operated in a windowless, proximity focused configuration for high efficiency. Pure CF 4 is used as the working gas for both detector components, mainly due to its transparency into the deep UV, as well as its high N 0 . Results from the beam test, including the position resolution as well as the particle id capabilities of the detector, are discussed in this paper.
Inclusive transverse momentum spectra of eta mesons have been measured within p(T)=2-10 GeV/c at midrapidity by the PHENIX experiment in Au+Au collisions at root s(NN) = 200 GeV. In central Au+Au the ...eta yields are significantly suppressed compared to peripheral Au+Au, d+Au, and p+p yields scaled by the corresponding number of nucleon-nucleon collisions. The magnitude, centrality, and p(T) dependence of the suppression is common, within errors, for eta and pi(0). The ratio of eta to pi(0) spectra at high p(T) amounts to 0.40 < R-eta/pi(0)< 0.48 for the three systems, in agreement with the world average measured in hadronic and nuclear reactions and, at large scaled momentum, in e(+)e(-) collisions.
A reaction plane detector for PHENIX at RHIC Richardson, E.; Akiba, Y.; Anderson, N. ...
Nuclear instruments & methods in physics research. Section A, Accelerators, spectrometers, detectors and associated equipment,
04/2011, Volume:
636, Issue:
1
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
A plastic scintillator paddle detector with embedded fiber light guides and photomultiplier tube readout, referred to as the Reaction Plane Detector (RXNP), was designed and installed in the PHENIX ...experiment prior to the 2007 run of the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC). The RXNP's design is optimized to accurately measure the reaction plane (RP) angle of heavy-ion collisions, where, for mid-central sNN=200GeV Au+Au collisions, it achieved a 2nd harmonic RP resolution of ∼0.75, which is a factor of ∼2 greater than PHENIX's previous capabilities. This improvement was accomplished by locating the RXNP in the central region of the PHENIX experiment, where, due to its large coverage in pseudorapidity (1.0<|η|<2.8) and ϕ(2π), it is exposed to the high particle multiplicities needed for an accurate RP measurement. To enhance the observed signal, a 2-cm Pb converter is located between the nominal collision region and the scintillator paddles, allowing neutral particles produced in the heavy-ion collisions to contribute to the signal through conversion electrons. This paper discusses the design, operation and performance of the RXNP during the 2007 RHIC run.
PHENIX detector overview Ajitanand, N.N.; Akikawa, H.; Amirikas, R. ...
Nuclear instruments & methods in physics research. Section A, Accelerators, spectrometers, detectors and associated equipment,
03/2003, Volume:
499, Issue:
2
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
The PHENIX detector is designed to perform a broad study of A–A, p–A, and p–p collisions to investigate nuclear matter under extreme conditions. A wide variety of probes, sensitive to all timescales, ...are used to study systematic variations with species and energy as well as to measure the spin structure of the nucleon. Designing for the needs of the heavy-ion and polarized-proton programs has produced a detector with unparalleled capabilities. PHENIX measures electron and muon pairs, photons, and hadrons with excellent energy and momentum resolution. The detector consists of a large number of subsystems that are discussed in other papers in this volume. The overall design parameters of the detector are presented.
A magnetic field cloak for charged particle beams Capobianco-Hogan, K.G.; Cervantes, R.; Deshpande, A. ...
Nuclear instruments & methods in physics research. Section A, Accelerators, spectrometers, detectors and associated equipment,
01/2018, Volume:
877
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
Shielding charged particle beams from transverse magnetic fields is a common challenge for particle accelerators and experiments. We demonstrate that a magnetic field cloak is a viable solution. It ...allows for the use of dipole magnets in the forward regions of experiments at an Electron Ion Collider (EIC) and other facilities without interfering with the incoming beams. The dipoles can improve the momentum measurements of charged final state particles at angles close to the beam line and therefore increase the physics reach of these experiments. In contrast to other magnetic shielding options (such as active coils), a cloak requires no external powering. We discuss the design parameters, fabrication, and limitations of a magnetic field cloak and demonstrate that cylinders made from 45 layers of YBCO high-temperature superconductor, combined with a ferromagnetic shell made from epoxy and stainless steel powder, shield more than 99% of a transverse magnetic field of up to 0.45 T (95% shielding at 0.5 T) at liquid nitrogen temperature. The ferromagnetic shell reduces field distortions caused by the superconductor alone by 90% at 0.45 T.
Extensive experimental data from high-energy nucleus-nucleus collisions were recorded using the PHENIX detector at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC). The comprehensive set of measurements ...from the first three years of RHIC operation includes charged particle multiplicities, transverse energy, yield ratios and spectra of identified hadrons in a wide range of transverse momenta (
p
T
), elliptic flow, two-particle correlations, nonstatistical fluctuations, and suppression of particle production at high
p
T
. The results are examined with an emphasis on implications for the formation of a new state of dense matter. We find that the state of matter created at RHIC cannot be described in terms of ordinary color neutral hadrons.
PDF
