Detector Development
Detector Development
The Detector Development group works within the Particle Physics Experiment (PPE) Group at the University of Glasgow, to develop new and novel detector devices. The detectors are for use within experimental particle physics and many other applications. The group has a long history of successful contributions to PPE detectors, recently completing major projects in two of the LHC experiments: LHCb and ATLAS. The detector projects included: the ATLAS SCT tracker; the ATLAS ID cooling and DCS systems; the LHCb VELO and the LHCb RICH detectors.
The activities in PPE are now directed towards maintenance and operation of the two LHC experiments, and upgrades of the experiments for super-LHC exploitation. Development of new detectors and fabrication methods, and their use in experiments is a major theme here. We have unique facilities: our own: 300mm wafer probe station and use of University new £6M Nanofabrication centre. Key STFC and ‘Basic Technology’ activities at present are radiation-hard detector technologies via RD39 and RD50, CMOS active pixel sensors via MI3, and work on new materials (SiC and GaN). These new technologies enable the group to progress new projects, including: (a) sLHC ATLAS upgrade (b) ATLAS FP – Romanpots for double-diffractive Higgs searches (c) LHCb VeLo upgrade. The Detector Development activity continues to pioneer new technologies that will provide the basis for the next generation of detectors for Experimental Particle Physics.
[Picture above right: The new Glasgow-PPE 300mm Si wafer probe station – unique in UK Universities. A vital tool for future detector systems development.]
Further detector development activities include basic detector research in the areas of sensors and electronics, and detector development for specific applications, for example medical imaging and non-destructive testing.
The group is actively involved in two Scottish Universities Physics Alliance (SUPA) research themes, which are Particle Physics, and Physics and Life Sciences, as we as the SUPA initiative on Technology for Experimental and Observational Physics in Scotland (TEOPS). The group further benefits from close links with Glasgow's Insitute for Gravitational Research (IGR) and James Watt Nanofabrication Centre (JWNC).
The group is composed of experimental particle physicists and dedicated detector device specialists with a strong technical support team.
Overall detector development contact Val O'Shea