FIBER OPTIC TRACK DETECTOR

IN HIGH ENERGY PHYSICS, THE ABILITY TO DETECT, IDENTIFY AND ACCURATELY MEASURE THE TRACKS OF PARTICLES WITH SUB-MILLIMETER PATH LENGTHS HAS BECOME INCREASINGLY IMPORTANT WITH THE DISCOVERY OF "CHARM" AND "BEAUTY". CONVENTIONAL PARTICLE DETECTION EQUIPMENT, EVEN AFTER SEVERE MODIFICATION, IS ILL SUITED TO THIS NEW REALM OF SMALL CROSS-SECTIONS AND SHORT LIFETIMES. THE PROBLEM HAS LED TO EXPANDED INTEREST IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF SOLID STATE DEVICES, SUCH AS SILICON MICROSTRIP DETECTORS AND CHARGE COUPLED DEVICES. THESE DEVICES PROVIDE INTRINSICALLY HIGH RESOLUTION, BUT AT THE EXPENSE OF FREQUENT SAMPLING AND A LACK OF RADIATION RESISTANCE. IN AN ATTEMPT TO DEVELOP A NEW INSTRUMENT BETTER SUITED TO THESE CHALLENGES OF HIGH RESOLUTION, FREQUENT SAMPLING AND RADIATION HARDNESS, WE HAVE INVESTIGATED A FIBER-PLATE TARGET COMPOSED OF SCINTILLATING FIBER OPTICS. THIS DEVICE IS COMPLETELY TRIGGERABLE, AND SUITABLE FOR PULSED OR LONG-SPILL BEAMS. INITIAL FEASIBILITY TESTS HAVE ALREADY DEMONSTRATED TRACK DENSITIES OF 5 HITS PER MM, WITH RESOLUTIONS APPROACHING 10 MICRONS, USING A NON-OPTIMIZED GLASS FORMULATION. THE GOAL OF THE PROPOSED RESEARCH IS TO BETTER OPTIMIZE THE GLASS PROPERTIES, AND IMPROVE THE DESIGN OF THE IMAGE INTENSIFICATION AND ELECTRONIC RECORDING APPARATUS REQUIRED TO EFFICIENTLY EXTRACT THE DATA.