The GlueX Central Drift Chamber: Design and Performance

TL;DR

This paper details the design, testing, and performance evaluation of the GlueX Central Drift Chamber, including prototype development, simulation, and particle identification capabilities.

Contribution

It presents new insights into the design process, prototype testing, and simulation methods for the CDC, enhancing detector performance understanding.

Findings

Successful prototype construction and testing

Effective gas mixture selection and simulation validation

Demonstrated particle identification and charge division potential

Abstract

Tests and studies concerning the design and performance of the GlueX Central Drift Chamber (CDC) are presented. A full-scale prototype was built to test and steer the mechanical and electronic design. Small scale prototypes were constructed to test for sagging and to do timing and resolution studies of the detector. These studies were used to choose the gas mixture and to program a Monte Carlo simulation that can predict the detector response in an external magnetic field. Particle identification and charge division possibilities were also investigated.