The Design and Performance of Charged Particle Detector onboard the GECAM Mission

TL;DR

This paper details the design, working principle, and initial performance results of the charged particle detector (CPD) onboard GECAM, a satellite mission for detecting gamma-ray bursts and space radiation phenomena.

Contribution

It introduces the physical design, calibration method, and preliminary testing results of the CPD, a novel detector for space charged particles in the GECAM mission.

Findings

Successful initial performance tests of the CPD

Effective calibration using onboard Am-241 source

Capability to distinguish gamma-ray bursts from charged particle events

Abstract

The Gravitational Wave highly energetic Electromagnetic Counterpart All-sky Monitor (GECAM) is dedicated to detecting gravitational wave gamma-ray bursts. It is capable of all-sky monitoring over and discovering gamma-ray bursts and new radiation phenomena. GECAM consists of two microsatellites, each equipped with 8 charged particle detectors (CPDs) and 25 gamma-ray detectors (GRDs). The CPD is used to measure charged particles in the space environment, monitor energy and flow intensity changes, and identify between gamma-ray bursts and space charged particle events in conjunction with GRD. CPD uses plastic scintillator as the sensitive material for detection, silicon photomultiplier (SiPM) array as the optically readable device, and the inlaid Am-241 radioactive source as the onboard calibration means. In this paper, we will present the working principle, physical design, functional implementation and preliminary performance test results of the CPD.