Davide Fiorina

Abstract A muon collider would enable the big jump ahead in energy reach that is needed for a fruitful exploration of fundamental interactions. The challenges of producing muon collisions at high luminosity and 10 TeV centre of mass energy are being investigated by the recently-formed International Muon Collider Collaboration. This Review summarises the status and the recent advances on muon colliders design, physics and detector studies. The aim is to provide a global perspective of the field and to outline directions for future work.

The series of upgrades to the Large Hadron Collider, culminating in the High Luminosity Large Hadron Collider, will enable a significant expansion of the physics program of the CMS experiment. However, the accelerator upgrades will also make the experimental conditions more challenging, with implications for detector operations, triggering, and data analysis. The luminosity of the proton-proton collisions is expected to exceed $2-3\times10^{34}$~cm$^{-2}$s$^{-1}$ for Run 3 (starting in 2022), and it will be at least $5\times10^{34}$~cm$^{-2}$s$^{-1}$ when the High Luminosity Large Hadron Collider is completed for Run 4. These conditions will affect muon triggering, identification, and measurement, which are critical capabilities of the experiment. To address these challenges, additional muon detectors are being installed in the CMS endcaps, based on Gas Electron Multiplier technology. For this purpose, 161 large triple-Gas Electron Multiplier detectors have been constructed and tested. Installation of these devices began in 2019 with the GE1/1 station and will be followed by two additional stations, GE2/1 and ME0, to be installed in 2023 and 2026, respectively. The assembly and quality control of the GE1/1 detectors were distributed across several production sites around the world. We motivate and discuss the quality control procedures that were developed to standardize the performance of the detectors, and we present the final results of the production. Out of 161 detectors produced, 156 detectors passed all tests, and 144 detectors are now installed in the CMS experiment. The various visual inspections, gas tightness tests, intrinsic noise rate characterizations, and effective gas gain and response uniformity tests allowed the project to achieve this high success rate.

In October and November 2021 the CMS Gas Electron Multiplier (GEM) detectors of station GE1/1 were operated for the first time in presence of a magnetic field in CMS. The phenomena observed in this first period led to performing a test on GE1/1 chambers to study their behaviour in presence of a magnetic field ramp. The magnetic field has been created using the Goliath magnet installed in the CERN North Area. The aim of the test is to determine if a magnetic field ramp causes serious problems to the operation of the GEM chambers and to develop a clear set of procedures, that will permit the safe operations of the GEM chambers during a magnetic field ramp.

Abstract In triple-GEM detectors, the segmentation of GEM foils in electrically independent sectors allows reducing the probability of discharge damage to the detector and improving the detector rate capability. However, a segmented foil presents thin dead regions in the separation between two sectors and the segmentation pattern has to be manually aligned with the GEM hole pattern during the foil manufacturing, a procedure potentially sensitive to errors. We describe the production and characterization of triple-GEM detectors obtained with an innovative GEM foil segmentation technique, the “random hole segmentation”, that allows easier manufacturing of segmented GEM foils. The electrical stability to high voltage and the gain uniformity of a random-hole segmented triple-GEM prototype are measured. The results of a test beam on a prototype assembled for the Phase-2 GEM upgrade of the CMS experiment are also presented. A high statistics efficiency measurement shows that the random hole segmentation can limit the efficiency loss of the detector in the areas between two sectors, making it a viable alternative to blank segmentation for the GEM foil manufacturing of large-area detector systems.

The high-luminosity phase of the Large Hadron Collider (HL-LHC) will result in ten times higher particle background than measured during the first phase of LHC operation. In order to fully exploit the highly-demanding operating conditions during HL-LHC, the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) Collaboration will use Gas Electron Multiplier (GEM) detector technology. The technology will be integrated into the innermost region of the forward muon spectrometer of CMS as an additional muon station called GE1∕1. The primary purpose of this auxiliary station is to help in muon reconstruction and to control level-1 muon trigger rates in the pseudo-rapidity region 1.6≤|η|≤2.2. The new station will contain trapezoidal-shaped GEM detectors called GE1∕1 chambers. The design of these chambers is finalized, and the installation is in progress during the Long Shutdown phase two (LS-2) that started in 2019. Several full-size prototypes were built and operated successfully in various test beams at CERN. We describe performance measurements such as gain, efficiency, and time resolution of these prototype chambers, developed after years of R&D, and summarize their behavior in different gas compositions as a function of the applied voltage.

In the path towards a muon collider with center of mass energy of 10 TeV or more, a stage at 3 TeV emerges as an appealing option. Reviewing the physics potential of such muon collider is the main purpose of this document. In order to outline the progression of the physics performances across the stages, a few sensitivity projections for higher energy are also presented. There are many opportunities for probing new physics at a 3 TeV muon collider. Some of them are in common with the extensively documented physics case of the CLIC 3 TeV energy stage, and include measuring the Higgs trilinear coupling and testing the possible composite nature of the Higgs boson and of the top quark at the 20 TeV scale. Other opportunities are unique of a 3 TeV muon collider, and stem from the fact that muons are collided rather than electrons. This is exemplified by studying the potential to explore the microscopic origin of the current $g$-2 and $B$-physics anomalies, which are both related with muons.

A muon collider would enable the big jump ahead in energy reach that is needed for a fruitful exploration of fundamental interactions. The challenges of producing muon collisions at high luminosity and 10 TeV centre of mass energy are being investigated by the recently-formed International Muon Collider Collaboration. This Review summarises the status and the recent advances on muon colliders design, physics and detector studies. The aim is to provide a global perspective of the field and to outline directions for future work.

Gas Electron Multiplier (GEM) technology, in particular triple-GEM, was selected for the upgrade of the CMS endcap muon system following several years of intense effort on R&D. The triple-GEM chambers (GE1/1) are being installed at station 1 during the second long shutdown with the goal of reducing the Level-1 muon trigger rate and improving the tracking performance in the harsh radiation environment foreseen in the future LHC operation [1]. A first installation of a demonstrator system started at the beginning of 2017: 10 triple-GEM detectors were installed in the CMS muon system with the aim of gaining operational experience and demonstrating the integration of the GE1/1 system into the trigger. In this context, a dedicated Detector Control System (DCS) has been developed, to control and monitor the detectors installed and integrating them into the CMS operation. This paper presents the slice test DCS, describing in detail the different parts of the system and their implementation.

The CMS muon system in the region with 2.03<|η|<2.82 is characterized by a very harsh radiation environment which can generate hit rates up to 144 kHz/cm2 and an integrated charge of 8 C/cm2 over ten years of operation. In order to increase the detector performance and acceptance for physics events including muons, a new muon station (ME0) has been proposed for installation in that region. The technology proposed is Triple—Gas Electron Multiplier (Triple-GEM), which has already been qualified for the operation in the CMS muon system. However, an additional set of studies focused on the discharge probability is necessary for the ME0 station, because of the large radiation environment mentioned above. A test was carried out in 2017 at the Cern High energy AcceleRator Mixed (CHARM) facility, with the aim of giving an estimation of the discharge probability of Triple-GEM detectors in a very intense radiation field environment, similar to the one of the CMS muon system. A dedicated standalone Geant4 simulation was performed simultaneously, to evaluate the behavior expected in the detector exposed to the CHARM field. The geometry of the detector has been carefully reproduced, as well as the background field present in the facility. This paper presents the results obtained from the Geant4 simulation, in terms of sensitivity of the detector to the CHARM environment, together with the analysis of the energy deposited in the gaps and of the processes developed inside the detector. The discharge probability test performed at CHARM will be presented, with a complete discussion of the results obtained, which turn out to be consistent with measurements performed by other groups.

To extend the acceptance of the CMS muon spectrometer to the region 2.4< |η| <2.8, stacks of triple-GEM chambers, forming the ME0 station, are planned for the CMS Phase 2 Upgrade. These large-area micro-pattern gaseous detectors must operate in a challenging environment with expected background particle fluxes up to 150 kHz/cm <sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sup> . Unlike traditional non-resistive gaseous detectors, the rate capability of such triple-GEM detectors is limited not by space charge effects, but by voltage drops on the chamber electrodes due to avalanche-induced currents flowing through the resistive protection circuits (introduced as discharge quenchers). We present a study of the irradiation of large-area triple-GEM detectors with moderate fluxes to obtain a high integrated hit rate. The results show drops as high as 40% of the nominal detector gas gain, which would result in severe loss of tracking efficiency. We discuss possible mitigation strategies leading to a new design for the GEM foils with electrode segmentation in the radial direction, instead of the 'traditional" transverse segmentation. The advantages of the new design include uniform hit rate across different sectors, minimization of gain-loss without the need for voltage compensation, and independence of detector gain on background flux shape.

In triple-GEM detectors, the segmentation of GEM foils in electrically independent sectors allows reducing the probability of discharge damage to the detector and improving the detector rate capability; however, a segmented foil presents thin dead regions in the separation between two sectors and the segmentation pattern has to be manually aligned with the GEM hole pattern during the foil manufacturing, a procedure potentially sensitive to errors. We describe the production and characterization of triple-GEM detectors produced with an innovative GEM foil segmentation technique, the ``random hole segmentation'', that allows an easier manufacturing of segmented GEM foils. The electrical stability to high voltage and the gain uniformity of a random-hole segmented triple-GEM prototype are measured. The results of a test beam on a prototype assembled for the Phase-2 GEM upgrade of the CMS experiment are also presented; a high-statistics efficiency measurement shows that the random hole segmentation can limit the efficiency loss of the detector in the areas between two sectors, making it a viable alternative to blank segmentation for the GEM foil manufacturing of large-area detector systems.

The CMS experiment is a general-purpose detector installed in the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN. During the High Luminosity LHC phase, the luminosity is expected to increase by a factor of 10 compared to the LHC design value. The forward region of the CMS muon system will be equipped with 3 additional triple GEM-based muon stations, where GEM stands for Gas Electron Multiplier. The three stations, in order of distance from the interaction point, are called ME0, GE1/1, and GE2/1. The ME0 station, where ME stands for Muon Endcap, is located just behind the new endcap calorimeter, where the background particle flux can reach up to 150 kHz/cm$^{2}$. Recent studies of rate capability and gain drop resulted in a design change in the segmentation of the high voltage (HV) distribution for the GEM foils. The second-generation ME0 prototype has radial segments in contrast to the (approximate) segmentation in pseudorapidity employed for GE1/1 and GE2/1. In this report, we describe the mechanical design of the second-generation prototype, the simulation of the background counting rate in the HV segments, and the measurement of the energy spectrum, the effective gain, and the response uniformity.

The upgrade of the CMS detector for the high luminosity LHC (HL-LHC) will include gas electron multiplier (GEM) detectors in the end-cap muon spectrometer. Due to the limited supply of large area GEM detectors, the Korean CMS (KCMS) collaboration had formed a consortium with Mecaro Co., Ltd. to serve as a supplier of GEM foils with area of approximately 0.6 m2. The consortium has developed a double-mask etching technique for production of these large-sized GEM foils. This article describes the production, quality control, and quality assessment (QA/QC) procedures and the mass production status for the GEM foils. Validation procedures indicate that the structure of the Korean foils are in the designed range. Detectors employing the Korean foils satisfy the requirements of the HL-LHC in terms of the effective gain, response uniformity, rate capability, discharge probability, and hardness against discharges. No aging phenomena were observed with a charge collection of 82 mC cm−2. Mass production of KCMS GEM foils is currently in progress.

Abstract The Gas Electron Multiplier (GEM) detectors of the GE1/1 station of the CMS experiment have been operated in the CMS magnetic field for the first time on the 7 th of October 2021. During the magnetic field ramps, several discharge phenomena were observed, leading to instability in the GEM High Voltage (HV) power system. In order to reproduce the behavior, it was decided to conduct a dedicated test at the CERN North Area with the Goliath magnet, using four GE1/1 spare chambers. The test consisted in studying the characteristics of discharge events that occurred in different detector configurations and external conditions. Multiple magnetic field ramps were performed in sequence: patterns in the evolution of the discharge rates were observed with these data. The goal of this test is the understanding of the experimental conditions inducing discharges and short circuits in a GEM foil. The results of this test lead to the development of procedure for the optimal operation and performance of GEM detectors in the CMS experiment during the magnet ramps. Another important result is the estimation of the probability of short circuit generation, at 68 % confidence level, p short HV OFF = 0.42 -0.35 +0.94 % with detector HV OFF and p short HV OFF &lt; 0.49% with the HV ON. These numbers are specific for the detectors used during this test, but they provide a first quantitative indication on the phenomenon, and a point of comparison for future studies adopting the same procedure.

Concurrently with the high-luminosity LHC (HL-LHC) upgrade, the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) experiment is renovating some of its subsystems. In particular, in the muon spectrometer region, Triple-GEM detectors will be installed to cope with the high-rate environment and to maintain the actual performance of the detector. In this work we summarize the aging tests performed to validate the Triple-GEM technology for the CMS purpose. Furthermore the tests and results completed to amplify the knowledge of the aging issue in Triple-GEMs and gaseous detectors in general are presented, with some hint for future test to perform.

Abstract We present here a new study of the aging of Triple-GEM detectors in contaminated environment. The goal of this experiment is to evaluate the influence of the ionization power of particles on the longevity of the gaseous detectors and therefore determine the best configurations required to reliably reproduce the classical aging phenomena in laboratory. A 100 cm 2 triple-GEM detector operating in Ar/CO 2 (70/30%) was irradiated simultaneously with low energy X-rays and 5.5 MeV alpha particles. Hydrocarbons and Si-based molecules were added to the gas mixture in order to accelerate the aging and simulating many years of slow gas pollution. We measured the evolution of the detector performance in two irradiated zones and we performed a systematic chemical analysis of the GEM foils to measure the polymer concentration and thus the potential aging effects. The detector collected a total charge of 165 mC/cm 2 in the two irradiated sectors with no performance loss. Chemical analysis revealed a greater Si-based polymers concentration in the region irradiated with alpha particles. This is due to their higher ionization power, with respect to low energy X-rays, which generate denser electron avalanches and, thus, a higher polymerization rate. Further studies have to be performed in order to validate this result, at different experimental conditions and with different detector technologies.

Abstract A temperature monitoring system based on fibre Bragg grating (FBG) fibre optic sensors has been developed for the gas electron multiplier (GEM) chambers of the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) detector. The monitoring system was tested in prototype chambers undergoing a general test of the various technological solutions adopted for their construction. The test lasted about two years and was conducted with the chambers being installed in the CMS detector and operated during regular experimental running. In this paper, we present test results that address the choice of materials and procedures for the production and installation of the FBG temperature monitoring system in the final GEM chambers.

We present analytical calculations, Finite Element Analysis modelling, and physical measurements of the interstrip capacitances for different potential strip geometries and dimensions of the readout boards for the GE2/1 triple-Gas Electron Multiplier detector in the CMS muon system upgrade. The main goal of the study is to find configurations that minimize the interstrip capacitances and consequently maximize the signal-to-noise ratio for the detector. We find agreement at the 1.5–4.8% level between the two methods of calculations and on the average at the 17% level between calculations and measurements. A configuration with halved strip lengths and doubled strip widths results in a measured 27–29% reduction over the original configuration while leaving the total number of strips unchanged. We have now adopted this design modification for all eight module types of the GE2/1 detector and will produce the final detector with this new strip design.

Among the post-LHC generation of particle accelerators, the muon collider represents a unique machine with capability to provide very high energy leptonic collisions and to open the path to a vast and mostly unexplored physics programme. However, on the experimental side, such great physics potential is accompanied by unprecedented technological challenges, due to the fact that muons are unstable particles. Their decay products interact with the machine elements and produce an intense flux of background particles that eventually reach the detector and may degrade its performance. In this paper, we present technologies that have a potential to match the challenging specifications of a muon collider detector and outline a path forward for the future R&D efforts.

To extend the acceptance of the CMS muon spectrometer to the region 2.4 $<|\eta|<$ 2.8, stacks of triple-GEM chambers, forming the ME0 station, are planned for the CMS Phase 2 Upgrade. These large-area micro-pattern gaseous detectors must operate in a challenging environment with expected background particle fluxes up to 150 kHz/cm$^2$. Unlike traditional non-resistive gaseous detectors, the rate capability of such triple-GEM detectors is limited not by space charge effects, but by voltage drops on the chamber electrodes due to avalanche-induced currents flowing through the resistive protection circuits (introduced as discharge quenchers). We present a study of the irradiation of large-area triple-GEM detectors with moderate fluxes to obtain a high integrated hit rate. The results show drops as high as 40% of the nominal detector gas gain, which would result in severe loss of tracking efficiency. We discuss possible mitigation strategies leading to a new design for the GEM foils with electrode segmentation in the radial direction, instead of the "traditional" transverse segmentation. The advantages of the new design include uniform hit rate across different sectors, minimization of gain-loss without the need for voltage compensation, and independence of detector gain on background flux shape.

In this paper we report on the current status of studies on the expected performance for a detector designed to operate in a muon collider environment. Beam-induced backgrounds (BIB) represent the main challenge in the design of the detector and the event reconstruction algorithms. The current detector design aims to show that satisfactory performance can be achieved, while further optimizations are expected to significantly improve the overall performance. We present the characterization of the expected beam-induced background, describe the detector design and software used for detailed event simulations taking into account BIB effects. The expected performance of charged-particle reconstruction, jets, electrons, photons and muons is discussed, including an initial study on heavy-flavor jet tagging. A simple method to measure the delivered luminosity is also described. Overall, the proposed design and reconstruction algorithms can successfully reconstruct the high transverse-momentum objects needed to carry out a broad physics program.

The perspective of designing muon colliders with high energy and luminosity, which is being investigated by the International Muon Collider Collaboration, has triggered a growing interest in their physics reach. We present a concise summary of the muon colliders potential to explore new physics, leveraging on the unique possibility of combining high available energy with very precise measurements.

In the path towards a muon collider with center of mass energy of 10 TeV or more, a stage at 3 TeV emerges as an appealing option. Reviewing the physics potential of such muon collider is the main purpose of this document. In order to outline the progression of the physics performances across the stages, a few sensitivity projections for higher energy are also presented. There are many opportunities for probing new physics at a 3 TeV muon collider. Some of them are in common with the extensively documented physics case of the CLIC 3 TeV energy stage, and include measuring the Higgs trilinear coupling and testing the possible composite nature of the Higgs boson and of the top quark at the 20 TeV scale. Other opportunities are unique of a 3 TeV muon collider, and stem from the fact that muons are collided rather than electrons. This is exemplified by studying the potential to explore the microscopic origin of the current $g$-2 and $B$-physics anomalies, which are both related with muons.

In order to extend previous studies and test additional variables playing a role in the aging processes, a single wire proportional chamber was specially designed. In this contribution, the author will present the result of two types of tests performed on this single wire proportional chamber. During the first test, the single wire proportional chamber was irradiated with X-rays and alpha particles with the same hit rate until the same collected charge (1.4 mC/cm) was reached. Nevertheless the performance loss during the x-ray irradiation was larger, traces of polymers were found on the wire only in the case of alpha irradiation. The second test was performed irradiating the single wire proportional chamber with alphas and X-rays, but this time with the same anodic current i.e. very different hit rate. The irradiation continued until the wire chamber lost about half of the initial gas gain. In the case of alpha irradiation the integrated charge needed for the goal was lower with respect to the one needed during the x-ray radiation: 9.5 and 33.0 mC/cm, respectively. However, the electron microscope analysis revealed, once again, a large polymer deposit on the alpha irradiated wire while no deposit was found on the X-ray irradiated one.

In the framework of the HL-LHC project, the upgrade of the CMS Muon System foresees the installation of three new muon stations based on the GEM technology, named as GE1/1, GE2/1 and ME0. The CMS GEM Group has developed a novel construction design of GE1/1 triple-GEM detectors; especially, a new self-stretching technique has been introduced to mechanically stretch the GEM foils without using spacer grids or glue inside the gas volume. As has been observed, the PCB boards get deformed under the internal gas overpressure, introducing irregularities in the planarity of the detector, which could potentially affect the uniformity of the detector performance. New solutions and design upgrades have been implemented to prevent such effects in future GE2/1 and ME0 upgrade projects. The contribution will focus on the novel design solutions based on the PCB pillars and their impact on the performance of the detector. Furthermore, the early results of the R&D campaign will be presented regarding the optimization of the detector for the very high hit rate environment and the reduction of the discharge probability.

The Phase-II high luminosity upgrade to the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is planned for 2023, significantly increasing the collision rate and therefore the background rate, particularly in the high $\eta$ region. To improve both the tracking and triggering of muons, the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) Collaboration plans to install triple-layer Gas Electron Multiplier (GEM) detectors in the CMS muon endcaps. Demonstrator GEM detectors were installed in CMS during 2017 to gain operational experience and perform a preliminary investigation of detector performance. We present the results of triple-GEM detector performance studies performed in situ during normal CMS and LHC operations in 2018. The distribution of cluster size and the efficiency to reconstruct high $p_T$ muons in proton--proton collisions are presented as well as the measurement of the environmental background rate to produce hits in the GEM detector.

Abstract In 2018, a system of large-size triple-GEM demonstrator chambers was installed in the CMS experiment at CERN's Large Hadron Collider (LHC). The demonstrator's design mimicks that of the final detector, installed for Run-3. A successful Monte Carlo (MC) simulation of the collision-induced background hit rate in this system in proton-proton collisions at 13 TeV is presented. The MC predictions are compared to CMS measurements recorded at an instantaneous luminosity of 1.5 ×10 34 cm -2 s -1 . The simulation framework uses a combination of the FLUKA and GEANT4 packages. FLUKA simulates the radiation environment around the GE1/1 chambers. The particle flux by FLUKA covers energy spectra ranging from 10 -11 to 10 4 MeV for neutrons, 10 -3 to 10 4 MeV for γ's, 10 -2 to 10 4 MeV for e ± , and 10 -1 to 10 4 MeV for charged hadrons. GEANT4 provides an estimate of the detector response (sensitivity) based on an accurate description of the detector geometry, the material composition, and the interaction of particles with the detector layers. The detector hit rate, as obtained from the simulation using FLUKA and GEANT4, is estimated as a function of the perpendicular distance from the beam line and agrees with data within the assigned uncertainties in the range 13.7-14.5%. This simulation framework can be used to obtain a reliable estimate of the background rates expected at the High Luminosity LHC.