A facility for radiation hardness studies based on the Bern medical cyclotron

TL;DR

This paper presents a new irradiation facility based on a Bern medical cyclotron, enabling controlled, high-dose radiation testing of devices for space, nuclear, and particle physics applications with precise beam control and comprehensive monitoring.

Contribution

The paper introduces a novel irradiation facility utilizing a medical cyclotron with adjustable beam parameters and integrated monitoring systems for radiation hardness studies.

Findings

Facility allows dose rates from 0.1 to 1000 Grad/hour.

Enables detailed device characterization under irradiation.

Supports comprehensive post-irradiation analysis.

Abstract

The development of instrumentation to be operated in high-radiation environments is one of the main challenges in fundamental research. Besides space and nuclear applications, particle physics experiments also need radiation-hard devices. The focus of this paper is a new irradiation facility based on the medical cyclotron located at the Bern University Hospital (Insespital), which is used as a controlled 18 MeV proton source. The adjustable beam current allows for dose rate dependent characterisation over a large dynamic range, from 0.1 to 1000 Grad per hour. The beam can be tuned so that the user can obtain the desired irradiation conditions. A complete study of the device under irradiation is possible thanks to dedicated beam monitoring systems as well as a power control system for the device under irradiation, which can be operated on-line. Further characterisations of the irradiated devices are possible thanks to a laboratory equipped with gamma spectroscopy detectors, ammeters and transient current technique setups.