LOW COST SUBSTRATES FOR MICRO-STRIP GAS CHAMBERS

MICRO-STRIP GAS CHAMBERS (MSGC) HIGH RESOLUTION COUNTING DEVICES FOR DETECTING EVENTS PRODUCED BY PARTICLE-PARTICLE AND HEAVY ION COLLISIONS IN HIGH ENERGY ACCELERATORS. THEY ARE OF GREAT INTEREST BECAUSE OF THEIR FINE GRANULARITY, HIGH, GAIN AND POTENTIAL FOR LOW COST, LARGE AREA EVENT DETECTION. MSGCS HAVE BEEN DEMONSTRATED BY SEVERAL RESEARCH AND INDUSTRIAL CONCERNS AND THE EARLY RESULTS SUGGEST THAT LARGE AREA (250 MM X 180 MM) DEVICES CAN BE MANUFACTURED THAT WILL SUIT THE RESEARCH NEEDS. MANUFACTURING OF MSGCS FOLLOW THE METHODS OF THE MICROELECTRONICS INDUSTRY, WITH THIN FILM TECHNOLOGY AND MICROLITHOGRAPHY PLAYING KEY ROLES IN DEPOSITING PATTERNED METAL FILMS INSULATING SUBSTRATES. CURRENT ESTIMATES FOR THE LARGE SCALE MANUFACTURING OF A SINGLE MSGC ARE ABOUT $700 FOR A 100 MM(2) DEVICE, NOT INCLUDING THE COST OF THE SUBSTRATE. UNFORTUNATELY, THE CURRENT ESTIMATES FOR SUBSTRATE COST ARE ABOUT EQUAL TO THE DEVICE MANUFACTURING COST. CLEARLY, THE DEVELOPMENT OF A LOW COST SUBSTRATE IS CRUCIAL TO MAKING THIS DEVICE ECONOMICALLY FEASIBLE. A LOW COST MULTILAYERED THIN FILM STRUCTURE IS PLANNED TO ACHIEVE THE REQUIRED PROPERTIES AND TO PROVIDE A SURFACE WITH A SHEET RESISTANCE THAT IS CONTROLLABLE IN THE 10(12) TO 10(14) OHMS/SQUARE RANGE. A LOW COST FLEXIBLE ENGINEERING POLYMER WILL BE USED AS A SUBSTRATE ONTO WHICH THE MULTILAYERED THIN FILM STRUCTURE WILL BE DEPOSITED. EXCELLENT ADHERENCE TO THE METAL ELECTRODES TO THE PROPOSED SURFACE IS ALSO EXPECTED. COST FOR A MSGC SUBSTRATE USING THIS TECHNIQUE IS ESTIMATED TO BE LESS THAN 1/10 OF THE CURRENT ESTIMATED SUBSTRATE COST.