Pion Beam Research Articles

Considerations on time resolution of neutron irradited single pixel 3D structures at fuences up to1017 neq/cm2 using 120 GeV SPS pion beams

The proven radiation hardness of silicon 3D devices up to fluences of 1 × 1017 neq/cm2 makes them an excellent choice for next generation trackers, providing < 10 μm position resolution at a high multiplicity environment. The anticipated pile-up increase at HL-LHC conditions and beyond, requires the addition of < 50 ps per hit timing information to successfully resolve displaced and primary vertices. In this study, the timing performance, uniformity and efficiency of neutron and proton irradiated single pixel 3D devices is discussed. Fluences up to 1 × 1017 neq/cm2 in three different geometrical implementations are evaluated using 120 GeV SPS pion beams. A MIMOSA-26 type telescope is used to provide detailed tracking information with a ∼ 5 μm position resolution. Productions with single- and double-sided processes, yielding active thicknesses of 130 and 230 μm respectively, are examined with varied pixel sizes from 55 × 55 μm2 to 25 × 100 μm2 and a comparative study of field uniformity is presented with respect to electrode geometry. The question of electronics bandwidth is extensively addressed with respect to achievable time resolution, efficiency and collected charge, forming a 3D phase space to which an appropriate operating point can be selected depending on the application requirements.

Beam test of n-type Silicon pad array detector at PS CERN

This work reports the test of an n-type silicon pad array detector at the CERN PS in the context of the future Forward Calorimeter (FoCal) detector. FoCal is a proposed upgrade in the ALICE detector operating within the pseudorapidity range of 3.2 < η < 5.8. It aims to measure direct photons, neutral hadrons, vector mesons, and jets for the study of gluon saturation effects in the unexplored region of low momentum fraction x (∼ 10-5–10-6). The prototype is a 8×9 n-type Si pad array detector with each pad occupying one cm2 area, fabricated on a 6-in, 325 ± 10 μm thick, and high-resistivity (∼ 7 kΩ cm) Si wafer, which is readout using the HGCROCv2 chip. The detector is tested using pion beams of energy 10 GeV and electron beams of energy 1–5 GeV. The measurements of the Minimum Ionizing Particle (MIP) response of pions and the shower profiles of electrons are reported.

Aging effects in the COMPASS hybrid GEM-Micromegas pixelized detectors

Large-size hybrid and pixelized GEM-Micromegas gaseous detectors (40 × 40 cm2 active area) were developed and installed in 2014 and 2015 for the COMPASS2 physics program which started at the same time. That program involved in particular two full years of Drell-Yan studies using a high-intensity pion beam on a thick polarized target. Although the detectors were placed behind a thick absorber, they were exposed to an important flux of low energy neutrons and photons. The detectors were designed to drastically reduce the discharge rate, a major issue for non-resistive Micromegas in high hadron flux, by a factor of more than 100 compared to the former ones. A hybrid solution was chosen where a pre-amplifying GEM foil is placed 2 mm above the micromesh electrode. A pixelized readout was also added in the center of the detector, where the beam is going through, in order to track particles scattered at very low angles. The combination of the hybrid structure and the pixelized central readout allowed the detector to be operated in an environment with particle flux above 10 MHz/cm2 with very good detection efficiencies and spatial resolution. The performance has remained stable since 2015 in terms of gain and resolution, showing the interest of hybrid structures associating a GEM foil to a Micromegas board to protect gaseous detectors against discharges and aging effects.

Studies of Time-like Electromagnetic Structure of Baryons with HADES

We present results of studies of Dalitz decays of baryon resonances (R→Ne+e−) in proton-proton (pp) and pion-proton (πp) collisions performed by the HADES collaboration. They provided the first measurement of electromag netic transition form factors of baryons in the time-like region and contribute to the understanding of the photon-baryon coupling and the role of Vector Dom inance Model in a baryonic sector. We discuss also implications of the results to the understanding of the emissivity of dense and hot QCD matter created in heavy-ion collisions and the role played by the in-medium modification of the ρ meson. Further prospects for future studies with pion beams at GSI with HADES are given in the outlook.

Partial Wave Amplitude Analysis in Pion-Induced Reactions at the HADES Experiment

The High Acceptance Di-Electron Spectrometer (HADES) collaboration at GSI employs a pion beam to examine the characteristics of baryonic resonances and their decay channels. This pion-beam facility enables the generation of baryonic resonances at a fixed center of mass energy (√s), i.e. in the S-channel. In anticipation of conducting a more comprehensive exploration of the resonance regions in pion-proton collisions, a new implementation of the K-matrix &amp; D-matrix frameworks is currently under development. This updated implementation aims to offer a refined mapping of these regions. Example fits are presented showing the current status and the potential of the new framework.

Studies of π−-12C reactions at 0.7GeV/c with the HADES spectrometer

Abstract. The HADES collaboration has recently studied the π− + C reaction at 0.685 GeV/c, using the GSI pion beam. This provides a first insight in the pion-nucleus dynamics in the energy range above the Δ(1232) resonance, which has been very poorly studied and is relevant for the study of heavy-ion collisions in the few GeV range. Measurements of π±, p, d and t were provided in various exit channels (inclusive, pπ−, pπ+, pp, π+π−, pπ−π+…,) and compared to predictions of the INCL++ cascade and of transport models (SMASH, RQMD.RMF, GIBUU). The results allow to test selectively the capacity ofsuch models to describe the various mechanisms (quasi-elastic, multipion production, rescatterings and pion absoprtion). The sensitivity of the data measured in the quasi-elastic channel to short range correlations is also investigated.

The FAIR Phase-0 Hyperon Program at HADES

Abstract. Hyperons are a unique probe to study the non-perturbative aspects of the strong interaction. At HADES, they are produced in proton or pion induced reactions at kinetic energies up to 4.5 GeV. Already in the past, HADES has shown its potential for hyperon physics, including λ polarization, λ-N interaction and measurements of the λ(1405) and λ(1520) line-shapes. The HADES detector has recently been extended with a forward detector, partly developed for the PANDA experiment, extending the acceptance for hyperon channels at forward angles. The PANDA@HADES initiative gives the opportunity for an even richer hyperon program. The current main objectives are the production of hyperon resonances, electromagnetic decays of hyperons with special focus on hyperon Dalitz decays and double strangeness production, including a λ – λ interaction study and ξ− production. First results from the ongoing studies promise a successful execution of the program. In the future, there is the possibility for a pion beam experiment with HADES, enabling further hyperon studies.

Characterization of a 5 mm thick CZT-Timepix3 pixel detector for energy-dispersive γ-ray and particle tracking

The present manuscript describes a comprehensive characterization of a novel highly segmented 5 mm CZT sensor attached to Timepix3. First, the sensor’s IV curve was measured and basic sensor characterization was done with laboratory γ-radiation sources. The sensor resistivity was determined to be (0.155± 0.02) GOhm · cm. The sensor showed decent homogeneity, both for the per-pixel count rate and electron mobility-lifetime product μ e τ e. The latter was measured to be = 1.3 × 10−3 cm2/V with a standard deviation σ = 0.4 × 10−3 cm2/V describing the dispersion of values for different pixels. The basic sensor characterization is complemented by measurements at grazing angle in a 120 GeV/c at the CERN’s Super Proton Synchrotron. The penetrating nature of these particles together with the pixelation of the sensor allows for a determination of the charge collection efficiency (CCE), as well as charge carrier drift properties (drift times, lateral charge cloud expansion) as a function of the interaction depths in the sensor. While CCE drops by 30%–40% towards the cathode side of the sensor, from the drift time dependency on interaction depth, the electron mobility μ e was extracted to be (944.8 ± 1.3) cm2/V/s and τ e = (1.38 ± 0.31) μs. The spectroscopic performance was assessed in photon fields and extracted from energy loss spectra measured at different angles in the pion beam. While at photon energies below 120 keV incomplete charge collection leads to an underestimation of the photon energy when irradiated from the front-side, at higher energies the relative energy resolution was found to be ∼4.5%, while a relative energy resolution of ∼7.5% was found for the particle energy loss spectra. It is shown that the drift time information can be used to reconstruct particle interactions in the sensor in 3D, providing a spatial resolution of σ xyz = 241 μm within the sensor volume and a particle trajectory measurement precision Δxyz = 100 μm, at a distance of 1 m from the sensor. We demonstrate by measurement with a 22Na source, that the energy resolution combined with the 3D reconstruction allows for detection of γ-ray source location and polarity using Compton scattering within the sensor (Compton camera and scatter polarimeter).

Dosimetry of the PIM1 Pion Beam at the Paul Scherrer Institute for Radiobiological Studies of Mice.

Significant past work has identified unexpected risks of central nervous system (CNS) exposure to the space radiation environment, where long-lasting functional decrements have been associated with multiple ion species delivered at low doses and dose rates. As shielding is the only established intervention capable of limiting exposure to the dangerous radiation fields in space, the recent discovery that pions, emanating from regions of enhanced shielding, can contribute significantly to the total absorbed dose on a deep space mission poses additional concerns. As a prerequisite to biological studies evaluating pion dose equivalents for various CNS exposure scenarios of mice, a careful dosimetric validation study is required. Within our ultimate goal of evaluating the functional consequences of defined pion exposures to CNS functionality, we report in this article the detailed dosimetry of the PiMI pion beam line at the Paul Scherrer Institute, which was developed in support of radiobiological experiments. Beam profiles and contamination of the beam by protons, electrons, positrons and muons were characterized prior to the mice irradiations. The dose to the back and top of the mice was measured using thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLD) and optically simulated luminescence (OSL) to cross-validate the dosimetry results. Geant4 Monte Carlo simulations of radiation exposure of a mouse phantom in water by charged pions were also performed to quantify the difference between the absorbed dose from the OSL and TLD and the absorbed dose to water, using a simple model of the mouse brain. The absorbed dose measured by the OSL dosimeters and TLDs agreed within 5-10%. A 30% difference between the measured absorbed dose and the dose calculated by Geant4 in the dosimeters was obtained, probably due to the approximated Monte Carlo configuration compared to the experiment. A difference of 15-20% between the calculated absorbed dose to water at a 5 mm depth and in the passive dosimeters was obtained, suggesting the need for a correction factor of the measured dose to obtain the absorbed dose in the mouse brain. Finally, based on the comparison of the experimental data and the Monte Carlo calculations, we consider the dose measurement to be accurate to within 15-20%.

Performance of a front-end prototype ASIC for the ATLAS High Granularity timing detector

This paper presents the design and characterisation of a front-end prototype ASIC for the ATLAS High Granularity Timing Detector, which is planned for the High-Luminosity phase of the LHC. This prototype, called ALTIROC1, consists of a 5 × 5-pad matrix and contains the analog part of the single-channel readout (preamplifier, discriminator, two TDCs and SRAM). Two preamplifier architectures (transimpedance and voltage) were implemented and tested. The ASIC was characterised both alone and as a module when connected to a 5 × 5-pad array of LGAD sensors. In calibration measurements, the ASIC operating alone was found to satisfy the technical requirements for the project, with similar performances for both preamplifier types. In particular, the jitter was found to be 15 ± 1 ps (35 ± 1 ps) for an injected charge of 10 fC (4 fC). A degradation in performance was observed when the ASIC was connected to the LGAD array. This is attributed to digital couplings at the entrance of the preamplifiers. When the ASIC is connected to the LGAD array, the lowest detectable charge increased from 1.5 fC to 3.4 fC. As a consequence, the jitter increased for an injected charge of 4 fC. Despite this increase, ALTIROC1 still satisfies the maximum jitter specification (below 65 ps) for the HGTD project. This coupling issue also affects the time over threshold measurements and the time-walk correction can only be performed with transimpedance preamplifiers. Beam test measurements with a pion beam at CERN were also undertaken to evaluate the performance of the module. The best time resolution obtained using only ALTIROC TDC data was 46.3 ± 0.7 ps for a restricted time of arrival range where the coupling issue is minimized. The residual time-walk contribution is equal to 23 ps and is the dominant electronic noise contribution to the time resolution at 15 fC.

Performance of the CMS High Granularity Calorimeter prototype to charged pion beams of 20–300 GeV/c

The upgrade of the CMS experiment for the high luminosity operation of the LHC comprises the replacement of the current endcap calorimeter by a high granularity sampling calorimeter (HGCAL). The electromagnetic section of the HGCAL is based on silicon sensors interspersed between lead and copper (or copper tungsten) absorbers. The hadronic section uses layers of stainless steel as an absorbing medium and silicon sensors as an active medium in the regions of high radiation exposure, and scintillator tiles directly read out by silicon photomultipliers in the remaining regions. As part of the development of the detector and its readout electronic components, a section of a silicon-based HGCAL prototype detector along with a section of the CALICE AHCAL prototype was exposed to muons, electrons and charged pions in beam test experiments at the H2 beamline at the CERN SPS in October 2018. The AHCAL uses the same technology as foreseen for the HGCAL but with much finer longitudinal segmentation. The performance of the calorimeters in terms of energy response and resolution, longitudinal and transverse shower profiles is studied using negatively charged pions, and is compared to GEANT4 predictions. This is the first report summarizing results of hadronic showers measured by the HGCAL prototype using beam test data.

Description and stability of a RPC-based calorimeter in electromagnetic and hadronic shower environments

The CALICE Semi-Digital Hadron Calorimeter technological prototype completed in 2011 is a sampling calorimeter using Glass Resistive Plate Chamber (GRPC) detectors as the active medium. This technology is one of the two options proposed for the hadron calorimeter of the International Large Detector for the International Linear Collider. The prototype was exposed in 2015 to beams of muons, electrons, and pions of different energies at the CERN Super Proton Synchrotron. The use of this technology for future experiments requires a reliable simulation of its response that can predict its performance. GEANT4 combined with a digitization algorithm was used to simulate the prototype. It describes the full path of the signal: showering, gas avalanches, charge induction, and hit triggering. The simulation was tuned using muon tracks and electromagnetic showers for accounting for detector inhomogeneity and tested on hadronic showers collected in the test beam. This publication describes developments of the digitization algorithm. It is used to predict the stability of the detector performance against various changes in the data-taking conditions, including temperature, pressure, magnetic field, GRPC width variations, and gas mixture variations. These predictions are confronted with test beam data and provide an attempt to explain the detector properties. The data-taking conditions such as temperature and potential detector inhomogeneities affect energy density measurements but have small impact on detector efficiency.

Tracking the Time: Measurements towards the characterization of a 3D pixel in terms of time resolution and Landau contribution evaluation

The proven potential of 3D geometries at higher than 10 16 n˙eq/cm 2 radiation fluences, in combination with a small cell approach, makes them an excellent choice for a combined precision timing tracker. In this study, the preliminary results on timing resolution of a single 50 × 50 μ m 2 3D pixel cell are presented through charge collection measurements with discrete electronics in a laboratory setup. Aditionally, in a test-beam campaign with 160 GeV SPS pions, a detailed timing, field and efficiency map is presented using a multi-plane timing telescope with an integrated pixelated matrix. Finally, another testbeam campaign has been completed with the help of the EUDET telescope, to study field uniformity, Landau contribution, collected charge and incidence angles of + / − 12 ° ; with a preliminary 5 μ m spatial resolution through MIMOSA CMOS tracking at CERN SPS pion beams. • Sensors for vertex detectors in high energy physics with high luminosity scenarios. • Testbeam setup development for time and spatial resolution measurements. • 3D silicon Pixel sensor time resolution results.

Chiral symmetry breaking: Current experimental status and prospects

Chiral symmetry, linked to the smallness of the quark masses compared to the QCD bound states, and its breaking pattern are exploited in effective field theory to describe a multitude of phenomena by a few low-energy constants. Those concern light-meson dynamics and decays, their couplings to photons and meson-nucleon interactions. Special emphasis is given to the pion properties, in terms of pion-pion low-energy scattering, the pion polarizability and the chiral anomaly, which describes the coupling of three pions to a photon. These properties are studied by the COMPASS collaboration at CERN since first data taking with pion beams in the year 2004, and several following campaigns. In the framework of the upcoming AMBER collaboration, it is planned to extend the studies to the kaon sector.

Test-beam and simulation studies towards RPWELL-based DHCAL

Digital Hadronic Calorimeters (DHCAL) were suggested for future Colliders as part of the particle-flow concept. Though studied mainly with RPC, studies focusing on sampling elements based on Micro-Pattern Gaseous Detector have shown the potential advantages; they can be operated with environment-friendly gases and reach similar detection efficiency at lower average pad multiplicity. We summarize here the experimental test-beam results of a small-size DHCAL prototype, incorporating six Micromegas and two RPWELL sampling elements, interlaced with steel-absorber plates. It was investigated with 2–6 GeV pion beams at the CERN/PS beam facility. The data permitted validating a GEANT4 simulation framework of a DHCAL, and evaluating the expected pion energy resolution of a full-scale RPWELL-based calorimeter. The pion energy resolution derived for the RPWELL concept is competitive to that of glass RPC and Micromegas sampling techniques.

LGAD technology for HADES, accelerator and medical applications

Low Gain Avalanche Diode (LGAD) technology has been used to design and construct prototype and full-size beam detector systems for applications requiring simultaneous time and spatial precision. For these purposes, a dedicated LGAD strip sensor production has been conducted at Fondazione Bruno Kessler (FBK) with different strip geometries and sizes. This contribution will review a wide variety of LGAD applications ranging from the reaction time (T0) detector for experiments utilizing proton and pion beams with the High Acceptance Di-Electron Spectrometer (HADES) at GSI in Darmstadt, Germany, to beam structure monitoring at the Superconducting DArmstadt LINear ACcelerator (S-DALINAC) at the Technische Universität Darmstadt operated in energy recovery mode and medical applications at the MedAustron facility in Wiener Neustadt, Austria. We will also give a prospect of further upgrade projects at GSI and FAIR facilities.

J-PARC Hadron Physics and Future Possibilities on Color Transparency

The Japan Proton Accelerator Research Complex (J-PARC) is a hadron-accelerator facility that aims to provide secondary beams of kaons, pions, neutrinos, muons, and others together with the primary proton beam for investigating a wide range of science projects. High-energy hadron physics can be studied by using high-momentum beams of unseparated hadrons, which are essentially pions, and also primary protons. In this report, possible experiments are explained on color transparency and generalized parton distributions (GPDs). These projects are complementary to lepton-scattering experiments at Jefferson Laboratory (JLab), COMPASS/AMBER, and future electron-ion colliders. Thank to hadron-beam energies up to 30 GeV, J-PARC is a unique facility to investigate the transition region from the hadron degrees of freedom to the quark-gluon degrees of freedom. It is suitable for finding mechanisms of the olor transparency. Such color-transparency studies are also valuable for clarifying the factorization of hadron production processes in extracting the GPDs from actual measurements. These studies will lead to the understanding of basic high-energy hadron interactions in nuclear medium and to clarifications on the origins of hadron spins, masses, and internal pressure mechanisms.

Development of glass-based nuclear emulsion plate as an ultra-high precision tracking detector in the era of fully automated readout systems

The positional accuracy of a nuclear emulsion can reach a submicrometric resolution owing to the size of its detection elements, i.e., 200 nm sized AgBr crystals. However, when used as a film in an experimental environment, the film is deformed by temperature and various mechanical stresses, and it becomes difficult to maintain the accuracy of the submicrometric absolute position throughout the detector. In this study, we attempted to solve this problem by using a glass base instead of a plastic base, which has been widely used thus far. To evaluate the deformation effect, sets of nuclear emulsion plates with a size of 10cm×12.5cm using various base materials were exposed to 5GeV/c pion beams. The magnitude of the deformation between the two films was evaluated using the beam pattern discrepancy. For the commonly used 180 μm thick polystyrene base, the magnitude of the deformation within the 3cm×4cm region was evaluated to be 1.77 μm on average, whereas for the 500 μm thick glass base, it was improved to 0.31 μm. This was approximately the same level as the measurement accuracy of the fully automated nuclear emulsion readout system, and the effect of the film deformation can be ignored. Through an analysis of this experiment, it became clear that the angle of the track had a systematic correlation with the material of the base. Because it can be inferred that the origin is owing to the difference between the refractive index of the base and the designed refractive index of the optical system of the readout system, an equation for correcting this systematic error was proposed. Nuclear emulsions with glass supporting bases are suitable for applications that require submicrometric positional accuracy throughout the detector, such as the precise measurement of momentum using a magnetic field and multiple scattering, and for use in outdoor experiments where the temperature changes widely.

Optimized scintillation strip design for the DANSS upgrade

DANSS is a one cubic meter plastic scintillator detector with a primary goal of sterile neutrino searches at a commercial nuclear reactor. Due to its highly advantageous location, fine segmentation and ability to change the distance to the neutrino production origin, DANSS is ahead of many similar experiments around the world in terms of the counting rate, signal to background ratio and sterile neutrino exclusion regions. Yet a moderate energy resolution of the detector prevents further progress in the physics program. The main challenge of the planned upgrade is to achieve an energy resolution of 12% at 1 MeV. The new design of the main sensitive element — the plastic scintillation strip — is the most important step forward. The strip prototypes were manufactured and tested at the pion beam of the PNPI synchrocyclotron. More than twice higher light output together with fairly flat detector response uniformity, longitudinal timing information and other optimizations will help to reach the upgrade goal. This paper discusses the drawbacks of the current strip version, outlines the new features of the proposed upgrade, describes the beam test procedure and presents the test results reflecting the advantages of the new strip design in comparison with the current version.

Study of double J∕ψ production mechanisms at COMPASS

During the past 40 years, the production of pairs of [Formula: see text] mesons in high-energy hadron collisions has been studied by several experiments. Despite the experimental and theoretical efforts, the origin of the process and the relative weight of different production mechanisms remain unknown. Depending on the energy scale, the double [Formula: see text] production can be described by single- and/or double-parton scattering sub-processes and gluon–gluon fusion or quark–antiquark annihilation mechanisms. The process can also be related to the hypothesis of the intrinsic charm of hadrons and the existence of exotic tetraquark states which were predicted by various theoretical models and have recently been observed by the LHCb experiment. To study dimuon pair production, the COMPASS experiment at CERN uses a 190[Formula: see text]GeV/[Formula: see text] negative pion beam impinging on different nuclear targets. First preliminary COMPASS results on [Formula: see text] pair production will be presented. The search for possible signals from exotic resonances and the study of double [Formula: see text] production mechanisms will be discussed.