Radiation hardness test of un-doped CsI crystals and Silicon Photomultipliers for the Mu2e calorimeter

TL;DR

This study evaluates the radiation tolerance of un-doped CsI crystals and Silicon Photomultipliers for the Mu2e calorimeter, demonstrating acceptable performance degradation under expected radiation doses and informing cooling requirements for operation.

Contribution

It provides experimental data on the radiation effects on CsI crystals and SIPMs, guiding their use in high-radiation environments like Mu2e.

Findings

20% light yield reduction at 900 Gy for CsI crystals

Less than 15% light yield deterioration from neutron flux

Cooling SIPMs to 0°C reduces leakage current effectively

Abstract

The Mu2e calorimeter is composed by 1400 un-doped CsI crystals coupled to large area UV extended Silicon Photomultipliers arranged in two annular disks. This calorimeter has to provide precise information on energy, timing and position. It should also be fast enough to handle the high rate background and it must operate and survive in a high radiation environment. Simulation studies estimated that, in the hottest regions, each crystal will absorb a dose of 300 Gy and will be exposed to a neutron fluency of 6 x 10^{11} n/cm^2 in 3 years of running. Test of un-doped CsI crystals irradiated up to 900 Gy and to a neutron fluency up to 9 x 10^{11} n/cm^2 have been performed at CALLIOPE and FNG ENEA facilities in Italy. We present our study on the variation of light yield (LY) and longitudinal response uniformity (LRU) of these crystals after irradiation. The ionization dose does not modify LRU while a 20% reduction in LY is observed at 900 Gy. Similarly, the neutron flux causes an acceptable LY deterioration (<15%). A neutron irradiation test on different types of SIPMs (two different array models from Hamamatsu and one from FBK) have also been carried out by measuring the variation of the leakage current and the charge response to an ultraviolet led. We concluded that, in the experiment, we will need to cool down the SIPMs to 0 C reduce the leakage current to an acceptable level.