S. Pigazzini

We report on the response of microchannel plates (MCPs) to single relativistic particles and to electromagnetic showers. Particle detection by means of secondary emission of electrons at the MCP surface has long been proposed and is used extensively in ion time-of-flight mass spectrometers. What has not been investigated in depth is their use to detect the ionizing component of showers. The time resolution of MCPs exceeds anything that has been previously used in calorimeters and, if exploited effectively, could aid in the event reconstruction at high luminosity colliders. Several prototypes of photodetectors with the amplification stage based on MCPs were exposed to cosmic rays and to 491 MeV electrons at the INFN-LNF Beam-Test Facility. The time resolution and the efficiency of the MCPs are measured as a function of the particle multiplicity, and the results used to model the response to high-energy showers.

The observation of Higgs boson production in association with a top quark-antiquark pair is reported, based on a combined analysis of proton-proton collision data at center-of-mass energies of √s = 7, 8, and 13 TeV, corresponding to integrated luminosities of up to 5.1, 19.7, and 35.9  fb^(-1), respectively. The data were collected with the CMS detector at the CERN LHC. The results of statistically independent searches for Higgs bosons produced in conjunction with a top quark-antiquark pair and decaying to pairs of W bosons, Z bosons, photons, τ leptons, or bottom quark jets are combined to maximize sensitivity. An excess of events is observed, with a significance of 5.2 standard deviations, over the expectation from the background-only hypothesis. The corresponding expected significance from the standard model for a Higgs boson mass of 125.09 GeV is 4.2 standard deviations. The combined best fit signal strength normalized to the standard model prediction is 1.26^(+0.31)_(−0.26).

We report on the signal timing capabilities of thin silicon sensors when traversed by multiple simultaneous minimum ionizing particles (MIP). Three different planar sensors, with depletion thicknesses 133, 211, and 285 µm, have been exposed to high energy muons and electrons at CERN. We describe signal shape and timing resolution measurements as well as the response of these devices as a function of the multiplicity of MIPs. We compare these measurements to simulations where possible. We achieve better than 20 ps timing resolution for signals larger than a few tens of MIPs.

Hundreds of concurrent collisions per bunch crossing are expected at future hadron colliders. Precision timing calorimetry has been advocated as a way to mitigate the pileup effects and, thanks to their excellent time resolution, microchannel plates (MCPs) are good candidate detectors for this goal. We report on the response of MCPs, used as secondary emission detectors, to single relativistic particles and to electromagnetic showers. Several prototypes, with different geometries and characteristics, were exposed to particle beams at the INFN-LNF Beam Test Facility and at CERN. Their time resolution and efficiency are measured for single particles and as a function of the multiplicity of particles. Efficiencies between 50% and 90% to single relativistic particles are reached, and up to 100% in presence of a large number of particles. Time resolutions between 20 ps and 30 ps are obtained.

At the high luminosity LHC (HL-LHC) about 200 concurrent interactions are expected, with a spread between the interaction vertices of few centimeters in the beam direction and 200 ps in the collision time. A time of flight resolution of the order of 30 ps would be able to reduce neutral particles pile-up contamination at the calorimeter level of about one order of magnitude, restoring pile-up conditions similar to what is routinely sustained in the current run of the LHC . Micro-channel plates have been used in PMT configuration as fast charged particles detector (resolution of better than 20 ps have been achieved with commercial devices), however they are not particularly radiation tolerant, mostly due to the ion feedback on the photocathode. The possibility of using micro-channel plates without a photocathode (i-MCP) has been studied in several test beams. Different MCP geometries are compared with the goal to identify the optimal configuration. Efficiency of more then 70% with a time resolution of better than 40 ps are achieved for single charged particles, leading to an efficiency close to 100% for EM shower after few radiation lengths. This open the possibility to use i-MCPs as a timing layer in a sampling calorimeter or to use it in a pre-shower device independent from the calorimeter technology.

We describe our R&D effort to develop radiation-hard scintillating and wavelength shifting fibers by doping fused-silica with cerium. This new type of cerium-doped fiber potentially offers myriad new applications in calorimeters for high-energy physics, tracking systems, and profiling of charged particle beams.

We have evaluated the performance of a Ce-doped fused-silica fiber as wavelength shifter coupled to a CeF3 crystal using electron beams at CERN . The pulse shape and collection efficiency were measured using irradiated (100 kGy) and un-irradiated fibers. In addition, we evaluated the light yield of various Ce-doped fibers and explored the possibility of using them in the future, including for precision timing applications in a high-luminosity collider environment.

I-MCP is an R&D project aimed at the exploitation of secondary emission of electrons from the surface of micro-channel plates (MCP) for single ionizing particles and fast timing of showers in high rate environments. Results from tests with electrons with energies up to 50 GeV of MCP devices with different characteristics are presented. In particular detection efficiency and time resolution are measured for a range of MCP prototypes: different MCP channel diameter and layers configuration are studied. Devices operated in I-MCP configuration, where the particle detection proceed through direct ionization of the MCP layers, are studied in comparison with the more usual PMT-MCP configuration. The results show efficiencies up to 70% for single charge particle detection for I-MCP devices with a time resolution of about 40 ps. The efficiency raise to 100% in response to high energy electromagnetic showers.

Future high rate hadron colliders are expected to have hundreds of concurrent proton-proton interactions in the same bunch crossing, deteriorating the energy resolution and identification capabilities of calorimeters. The possibility to distinguish neutral particles coming from different interaction vertices is being pursued as a tool to reduce pile-up contamination in calorimeters, and restore optimal performance. A time of flight resolution of the order of 20 ps will be able to reduce neutral particles pile-up contamination at the calorimeter level by about one order of magnitude, restoring pile-up conditions similar to what is routinely sustained in the current run of the LHC . Micro-channel plates (MCP) can be used in PMT configuration as fast charged particles detector (resolution of better then 30 ps can be achieved with commercial devices). However they are not particularly radiation tolerant, mostly due to the ion feedback on the photocathode. The possibility of using micro-channel plates without a photocathode (i-MCP) has been studied in several test beams. Different MCP geometries are compared with the goal to identify the optimal configuration. Efficiency of more than 70% with a time resolution of better than 40 ps are achieved for single charged particles, leading to an efficiency close to 100% for EM shower after few radiation lengths. This opens the possibility to use i-MCPs as a timing layer in a sampling calorimeter or to use it in a pre-shower device independent from the calorimeter technology. Preliminary results on the radiation hardness of the i-MCP configuration will be also presented.

IMCP is an R&D project aimed at the exploitation of secondary emission of electrons from the surface of microchannel plates (MCP) for fast timing of showers in high rate environments. The usage of MCPs in “ionisation” mode has long been proposed and is used extensively in ion time-of-flight mass spectrometers. What has not been investigated in depth is their use to detect the ionizing component of showers. The fast time resolution of MCPs exceeds anything that has been previously used in calorimeters and, if exploited effectively, could aid in the event reconstruction at high luminosity colliders. Results from tests with electrons with energies up to 150 GeV of MCP devices with different characteristics will be presented, in particular detection efficiency and time resolution.