Comparison of hadron shower data with simulations

TL;DR

This paper presents the design, construction, and testing of a highly granular analog hadron calorimeter prototype, aiming to study hadronic shower shapes and evaluate SiPM performance in particle physics experiments.

Contribution

The paper introduces a novel 38-layer AHCAL prototype with integrated calibration and monitoring systems, tested across multiple international test beam facilities.

Findings

Successful recording of hadronic, electron, and muon showers at various energies.

Demonstrated performance and reliability of 7608 SiPMs in a calorimeter prototype.

Insights into hadronic shower behavior and SiPM response characteristics.

Abstract

An analog hadron calorimeter (AHCAL) prototype of 5.3 nuclear interaction lengths thickness has been designed and constructed by members of the CALICE Collaboration. The AHCAL prototype consists of a 38-layer sandwich structure of steel plates and 7608 scintillator tiles that are read out by wavelength-shifting fibres coupled to SiPMs. The signal is amplified and shaped with a custom-designed ASIC. A calibration/monitoring system based on LED light was developed to monitor the SiPM gain and to measure the full SiPM response curve in order to correct for non-linearity. Ultimately, the physics goals are the study of hadronic shower shapes and testing the concept of particle flow. The technical goal consists of measuring the performance and reliability of 7608 SiPMs. The AHCAL prototype was commissioned in test beams at DESY, CERN and FNAL, and recorded hadronic showers, electron showers and muons at different energies and incident angles.