JINST Instrumentation Theses Archive

M.Sc. degree thesis
accepted by Universit� degli Studi di Milano, Italy, in 2008

Irene Carne

Supervisor: Grazia Gambarini and Amos Breskin

The feasibility of the application of THGEM-detectors for measurement in neutron fields possibly with spectroscopic information, was investigated. After an initial study of the properties of THGEM-based detectors a preliminary configuration of a spectrometric imaging system for fast (0.1 10 MeV) neutrons was proposed and Monte Carlo simulations, using GEANT4 and MCNP4c-5 codes, were performed to assess its properties.

 Keywords:

• Gaseous detectors, Spectrometers, Neutron detectors (cold, thermal, fast neutrons)
• Detector modelling and simulations I (interaction of radiation with matter, interaction of photons with matter, interaction of hadrons with matter, etc)

 Abstract:
This work presents the investigations of some properties of the Thick Gaseous Electron Multiplier (THGEM). It is a novel multiplier concept, developed at the Radiation Detector Physics Laboratory at WIS, in which avalanche multiplication occurs within millimeter-scale diameter holes drilled over the surface of a thin, flat insulator. This work concentrates on the following experimental and simulation studies: time resolution with UV photons and relativistic particles, imaging properties with soft x-rays and preliminary ones with fast neutrons as well as operation in pure noble gases. While the first studies are relevant to numerous general radiation detection applications, the latter relate to their possible incorporation in Dark Matter, double Beta-decay and Neutrino detectors and in noble-liquid Gamma-Cameras.