Development of a TPC for an ILC Detector

TL;DR

This paper reports on the development and testing of a large prototype TPC for the ILC detector, exploring various read-out technologies including Micromegas, GEM, and TimePix for improved tracking performance.

Contribution

It presents the design, construction, and testing of a large prototype TPC with multiple read-out modules, advancing the R&D for the ILC detector's main tracking system.

Findings

Successful testing of a large prototype TPC with multiple read-out modules

Evaluation of Micromegas, GEM, and TimePix read-out technologies

Progress towards finalizing the TPC design for the ILC detector

Abstract

The ILD concept, one of two proposed detector concepts for the planned International Linear Collider (ILC), foresees a Time Projection Chamber (TPC) as the main tracking detector. The LCTPC (Linear Collider TPC) collaboration pursues R&D to develop such a TPC based on the best state-of-the-art technology. After tests with smaller prototypes, the current efforts focus on studies using a large prototype with a diameter of 770 mm and a length of 610 mm. This prototype can accommodate seven read-out modules of a size comparable to the ones that would be used in the final TPC. Several prototypes of modules using Micromegas or GEM structures as gas amplification were constructed and tested. Besides the traditional pad read-out, a pixel read-out based on the TimePix chip is studied in these tests with up to 8 TimePix chips on a board. The current status and future plans of the R&D are presented.