M. Giorgini

Hardware performance of a scanning system for high speed analysis of nuclear emulsions

The use of nuclear emulsions in very large physics experiments is now possible thanks to the recent improvements in the industrial production of emulsions and to the development of fast automated microscopes. In this paper the hardware performances of the European Scanning System (ESS) are described. The ESS is a very fast automatic system developed for the mass scanning of the emulsions of the OPERA experiment, which requires microscopes with scanning speeds of � 20 cm 2 =h in an emulsion volume of 44mm thickness.

The Physics Programme Of The MoEDAL Experiment At The LHC

The MoEDAL experiment at Point 8 of the LHC ring is the seventh and newest LHC experiment. It is dedicated to the search for highly-ionizing particle avatars of physics beyond the Standard Model, extending significantly the discovery horizon of the LHC. A MoEDAL discovery would have revolutionary implications for our fundamental understanding of the Microcosm. MoEDAL is an unconventional and largely passive LHC detector comprised of the largest array of Nuclear Track Detector stacks ever deployed at an accelerator, surrounding the intersection region at Point 8 on the LHC ring. Another novel feature is the use of paramagnetic trapping volumes to capture both electrically and magnetically charged highly-ionizing particles predicted in new physics scenarios. It includes an array of TimePix pixel devices for monitoring highly-ionizing particle backgrounds. The main passive elements of the MoEDAL detector do not require a trigger system, electronic readout, or online computerized data acquisition. The aim of this paper is to give an overview of the MoEDAL physics reach, which is largely complementary to the programs of the large multipurpose LHC detectors ATLAS and CMS.

Momentum measurement by the angular method in the Emulsion Cloud Chamber

We present the first automated momentum measurement in an Emulsion Cloud Chamber, consisting of multiple sandwiches of lead plates and nuclear emulsion sheets. The measurement is based on the detection of the multiple Coulombscattering analysed by the so-called angular method. A 3 X0 chamber was exposed to 2, 3 and 4 GeV=c p � : A pion momentum resolution of 36% at 4 GeV=c; 35% at 3 GeV=c and 28% for 2 GeV=c was achieved.

Fragmentation studies of 158 A GeV Pb ions using CR39 nuclear track detectors

Abstract Six stacks of CR39 [(C12H18O7)n, a Registered Trade Mark of PPG Industries, Inc.] nuclear track detectors with different targets were exposed to a lead ion beam of 158 A GeV at the CERN-SPS, at normal incidence, in order to study the fragmentation properties of ultra-relativistic lead nuclei. Measurements of the total, break-up and pick-up charge-changing cross sections of 158 A GeV Pb ions have been made for the first time.

Optimization of CR-39 for fast neutron dosimetry applications

Abstract We present the results of an experimental work aimed at improving the performances of the CR-39 ® (Registered Trademark of PPG Industries Inc.) nuclear track detector for neutron dosimetry applications. The work was done in collaboration with the Intercast Europe S.p.A., producer of CR-39 for commercial and scientific applications. We compare the CR-39 made with different additives concentrations and different polymerization processes. We evaluate the response of the CR-39 to fast neutrons from three sources: 241 AmBe, 252 Cf and 238 PuLi. Particular attention was paid to background fluctuations that limit the lower detectable dose.

Fragmentation cross-sections of Fe26+, Si14+ and C6+ ions of 0.3 ÷ 10 A GeV on polyethylene, CR-39 and aluminum targets

We present new measurements of the total and partial fragmentation cross sections in the energy range 0.3–10 A GeV of 56 Fe, 28 Si and 12 C beams on polyethylene, CR39 and aluminum targets. The exposures were made at Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL), USA, and Heavy Ion Medical Accelerator in Chiba (HIMAC), Japan. The CR39 nuclear track detectors were used to identify the incident and survived beams and their fragments. The total fragmentation cross sections for all targets are almost energy independent while they depend on the target mass. The measured partial fragmentation cross sections are also discussed.

Track reconstruction in the emulsion-lead target of the OPERA experiment using the ESS microscope

The OPERA experiment, designed to conclusively prove the existence of ????? oscillations in the atmospheric sector, makes use of a massive lead-nuclear emulsion target to observe the appearance of ??s in the CNGS ?? beam. The location and analysis of the neutrino interactions in quasi real-time required the development of fast computer-controlled microscopes able to reconstruct particle tracks with sub-micron precision and high efficiency at a speed of ~20 cm2/h. This paper describes the performance in particle track reconstruction of the European Scanning System, a novel automatic microscope for the measurement of emulsion films developed for OPERA.

Search for a Lorentz invariance violation contribution in atmospheric neutrino oscillations using MACRO data

The energy spectrum of neutrino-induced upward-going muons in MACRO has been analysed in terms of relativity principles violating effects, keeping standard mass-induced atmospheric neutrino oscillations as the dominant source of v(u) -> v(tau) transitions. The data disfavor these exotic possibilities even at a subdominant level, and stringent 90% C.L. limits are placed on the Lorentz invariance violation parameter vertical bar Delta v vertical bar < 6 x 10(-24) at sin2 theta(v) = 0 and vertical bar Delta(v)vertical bar < 2.5-5 x 10(-26) at sin 2 theta(v) = +/- 1. These limits can also be re-interpreted as upper bounds on the parameters describing violation of the equivalence principle. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

New calibrations and time stability of the response of the INTERCAST CR-39

We present new calibrations of different production batches (from 1989 to 1999) of the INTERCAST CR-39, using the BNL-AGS 1AGeV iron beam. The comparison with previous results, obtained with the 158AGeV lead beam from the CERN-SPS shows that, while each production batch has a different calibration curve (mainly due to minor differences in the production conditions), the aging effect is negligible. We also tested the dependence of the CR-39 response from the time elapsed between exposure and analysis (fading effect). The fading effect, if present, is less then 10%. It may be compatible with the experimental uncertainties on the bulk etching rate vB.

Electron/pion separation with an emulsion cloud chamber by using a neural network.

We have studied the performance of a new algorithm for electron/pion separation in an Emulsion Cloud Chamber (ECC) made of lead and nuclear emulsion films. The software for separation consists of two parts: a shower reconstruction algorithm and a Neural Network that assigns to each reconstructed shower the probability to be an electron or a pion. The performance has been studied for the ECC of the OPERA experiment [1]. The e/π separation algorithm has been optimized by using a detailed Monte Carlo simulation of the ECC and tested on real data taken at CERN (pion beams) and at DESY (electron beams). The algorithm allows to achieve a 90% electron identification efficiency with a pion misidentification smaller than 1% for energies higher than 2 GeV.