Optimisation of Operating High Voltage of the large area Resistive Plate Chamber for ICAL experiment

TL;DR

This paper discusses optimizing the high voltage operation of large-area Resistive Plate Chambers used in the INO-ICAL experiment, considering non-uniform response to ensure long-term performance.

Contribution

It presents a method to determine the optimal operating high voltage for large-area RPCs with non-uniform response, crucial for long-term experimental stability.

Findings

Optimal HV settings improve detector efficiency.

Method accounts for non-uniform surface response.

Ensures stable operation over 20-year period.

Abstract

The Resistive Plate Chamber is a widely used detector in high energy physics. The operating potential of this chamber is determined by the optimisation of the efficiency and noise rate of the device. This optimisation is based on the assumption that the performance of the device over the whole surface area is uniform. The INO-ICAL experiment is going to use $\sim$ 30000 RPC of size $\sim$2\,m$\times$2\,m. All the RPC will have to pass a minimum quality assurance criteria, but may not be able to maintain a good uniformity over the whole surface area, particularly for the whole running period of about twenty years. This paper describes the choice of the optimum operating HV for an RPC of non-uniform response.