Degree Type
Honors Capstone Project
Date of Submission
Spring 5-1-2005
Capstone Advisor
Professor Marina Artuso
Honors Reader
Professor Paul Souder
Capstone Major
Physics
Capstone College
Arts and Science
Audio/Visual Component
no
Capstone Prize Winner
no
Won Capstone Funding
no
Honors Categories
Sciences and Engineering
Subject Categories
Engineering | Engineering Physics | Physics
Abstract
I have studied novel semiconductor detectors designed to provide precise space point information of the trajectory of charged subatomic particles produced in high energy physics (HEP) collisions. The technological thrust aims toward maintaining good performance of these detectors in a hard radiation environment for an extended period of time. My studies approached two different types of silicon devices: a whole wafer comprised of test structures and pixel devices designed for the inner vertex detector of the BTeV experiment, and small test structures of a novel type of quasi-3D detectors developed in the context of the CERN RD50 collaboration. This collaboration connects a group of US research institutions, which are trying to develop the technologies suited for the “SUPER-LHC,” the next luminosity upgrade envisaged for the upcoming LHC p-p collider at CERN.
Static and dynamic measurements characterized silicon detector devices, Tesla and quasi-3D. The Tesla silicon pixel detectors (Tesla) and the quasi-3D silicon detector devices (quasi-3D) were characterized with current-voltage and capacitance-voltage measurements in order to verify the behavior of these components for the envisaged tracking applications and also to compare the data with expectations coming from detailed electrostatic simulation.
During the period of my thesis work, the emphasis on electronics development in the Syracuse University HEP group, where I did my research work, was in the front-end electronics for state-of-the-art single photon detectors. The impetus was to employ these single photon detectors in another important component of the BTeV experiment, the Ring Imaging Cherenkov (RICH) system, and conveniently, the conceptual diagram of the electronics for both applications were very similar, as were the functionality tests of the “sensor plus electronics” integrated system. I implemented a single photon source with precise timing using a pulse generator capable to provide a very narrow voltage pulse and a blue LED as the light source. With this system, I studied the instrumented pulse height spectra for Multi Anode Photomultiplier Tubes (MaPMT). The study verified that the dynamic range of the preamplifier, and that the shaper were properly matched to the MaPMT gain.
Although BTeV has been terminated due to President George W. Bush’s budget appropriations, its systems are very versatile and can be used in astrophysics, biology and medical imaging applications.
Recommended Citation
Kertzscher, Gustavo, "Studies on Novel Semiconductor Detectors and Front-End Electronics for Heavy Flavor Decay Studies" (2005). Renée Crown University Honors Thesis Projects - All. 675.
https://surface.syr.edu/honors_capstone/675
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