The "BoNuS" Radial Time Projection Chamber

General information on GEMs Gas Electron Multipliers  (GEMs) are a new particle detection technique developed by Fabio Sauli at CERN. They are basically perforated plastic foils with copper cladding on both sides, held at several hundred volts of potential difference. This produces a field of several kV/cm in each hole, leading to signal amplification (up to 400 times per GEM stage) through ionization avalanches for each incoming drift electron. With GEMs, tracking detectors can be operated at rates that are several orders of magnitude higher than previously achievable. By eliminating the wires from conventional wire chambers, the GEM allows us to build detectors in new non-planar geometries. The robust character of this technology also offers many prospects for applications outside nuclear physics. Additional links: Sauli's Website CERN Courier article Additional literature

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