A study of the dimensional stability of the AMS silicon tracker

Abstract

The Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS) is designed as an independent module for installation on the International Space Station (ISS) for an operational period of 3 years. The AMS is the first cosmic ray spectrometer equipped with a large area silicon tracker (>5 m 2) . A preliminary version of the detector was flown on the NASA space shuttle Discovery during June 2–12, 1998. Results for the dimensional stability of the silicon tracker planes based on the flight data, and the metrology data recorded before and after the flight, are presented.