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29 Aug 2017
Image above: The first Anode Plane Assembly module, which will collect signals from particles passing through the protoDUNE single-phase detector, has recently arrived at CERN. (Image: Julien Marius Ordan/CERN).
Two large neutrino detectors, the single- and dual-phase protoDUNE modules, are being built at CERN. They are prototypes of the future Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) detector, the construction of which has recently begun in the United States. Each of these detectors is a 10x10x10-metre Liquid Argon Time Projection Chamber, with a single- (SP) or dual-phase (DP) configuration, containing about 800 tonnes of liquid argon. While the two big cryostats housing the detectors are about to be completed, the construction of the protoDUNE-SP detector has just started, following the arrival of two key components.
The first Anode Plane Assembly module, which will collect signals from particles passing through the detector, has recently arrived at CERN. It will be tested, together with its electronics, before being installed in its final position inside the cryostat. The protoDUNE-SP detector will have six of these modules, which are 6 metres high and 2.5 metres wide. They are currently being built in the UK and US and will be shipped to CERN within the next few months.
Image above: The first field-cage module of the protoDUNE-SP detector has been fully assembled at CERN. (Image: Julien Marius Ordan/CERN).
In parallel, other parts of the protoDUNE-SP detector are being assembled at CERN, including the field cage, which keeps the electrical field uniform inside the volume of the detector, where particles are revealed. This is important because the electrical signal released by ionising particles crossing the detector is extremely small, so a perfectly uniform electrical field is needed to avoid introducing spurious signals. Four of the 28 field-cage modules have already been assembled and are stored in the EHN1 hall, ready to be installed.
The assembly and installation of the detector parts is expected to be completed by spring next year, in order to have protoDUNE-SP ready to take data in autumn 2018, before the two-year scheduled shutdown of the LHC.
Note:
CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, is one of the world’s largest and most respected centres for scientific research. Its business is fundamental physics, finding out what the Universe is made of and how it works. At CERN, the world’s largest and most complex scientific instruments are used to study the basic constituents of matter — the fundamental particles. By studying what happens when these particles collide, physicists learn about the laws of Nature.
The instruments used at CERN are particle accelerators and detectors. Accelerators boost beams of particles to high energies before they are made to collide with each other or with stationary targets. Detectors observe and record the results of these collisions.
Founded in 1954, the CERN Laboratory sits astride the Franco–Swiss border near Geneva. It was one of Europe’s first joint ventures and now has 22 Member States.
Related links:
Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE): http://home.cern/about/updates/2017/07/groundbreaking-international-neutrino-experiment
Liquid Argon Time Projection Chamber, with a single- (SP): http://home.cern/cern-people/updates/2016/06/new-wings-give-icarus-flight-second-neutrino-hunt
or dual-phase (DP) : http://home.cern/cern-people/updates/2016/08/dual-tech-gem-future-neutrino-detectors
For more information about European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), Visit: http://home.cern/
Images (mentioned), Text, Credits: CERN/Stefania Bordoni.
Best regards from the CERN neighbor! Orbiter.ch
