Abstract
The design of the Time-Projection Chamber (TPC) Polarimeter for the Gravity and Extreme Magnetism Small Explorer (GEMS) was demonstrated to Technology Readiness Level 6 (TRL-6)3 and the flight detectors fabricated, assembled and performance tested. A single flight detector was characterized at the Brookhaven National Laboratory Synchrotron Light Source with polarized X-rays at 10 energies from 2.3-8.0 keV at five detector positions. The detector met all of the GEMS performance requirements. Lifetime measurements have shown that the existing flight design has 23 years of lifetime4, opening up the possibility of relaxing material requirements, in particular the consideration of the use of epoxy, to reduce risk elsewhere. We report on design improvements to the GEMS detector to enable a narrower transfer gap that, when operated with a lower transfer field, reduces asymmetries in the detector response. In addition, the new design reduces cost and risk by simplifying the assembly and reducing production time. Finally, we report on the performance of the narrow-gap detector in response to polarized and unpolarized X-rays.
Original language | English (US) |
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Title of host publication | Proceedings of SPIE - The International Society for Optical Engineering |
Publisher | SPIE |
Volume | 9144 |
ISBN (Print) | 9780819496126 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - 2014 |
Event | Space Telescopes and Instrumentation 2014: Ultraviolet to Gamma Ray - Montreal, Canada Duration: Jun 22 2014 → Jun 26 2014 |
Other
Other | Space Telescopes and Instrumentation 2014: Ultraviolet to Gamma Ray |
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Country | Canada |
City | Montreal |
Period | 6/22/14 → 6/26/14 |
Keywords
- Gas Electron Multiplier
- GEMS.
- Gravity and Extreme Magnetism Small explorer
- X-ray Polarimetry
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Applied Mathematics
- Computer Science Applications
- Electrical and Electronic Engineering
- Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials
- Condensed Matter Physics