Direct Comparison of SiPM and PMT Sensor Performances in a large-size imaging air Cherenkov telescope

TL;DR

This study compares the performance of silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) and photomultiplier tubes (PMTs) in a large imaging air Cherenkov telescope, demonstrating the viability of SiPMs under real observational conditions.

Contribution

The paper presents the first direct comparison of SiPM and PMT sensors in an operational IACT, including the development and deployment of SiPM-based modules in the MAGIC telescopes.

Findings

SiPM modules showed comparable or better photon detection efficiency than PMTs.

The SiPM modules performed reliably under night sky background conditions.

Design improvements in second-generation modules enhanced performance.

Abstract

The peak photon detection efficiency (PDE) of silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) can be as good or better than the PDE of photomultiplier tubes (PMTs). There are experiments where the signal is measured in the presence of a strong, steady background light emission. In these, one needs to accurately evaluate the signal-to-noise ratio. Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes (IACTs) observe in the presence of strong noise induced by the light of the night sky. It is certainly interesting to investigate the SiPM performance under operational conditions of IACTs and to compare it with that of the PMTs. For that purpose, we built a SiPM-based detector module, which was installed in one of the imaging cameras of the two Major Atmospheric Gamma-ray Imaging Cherenkov (MAGIC) telescopes in 2015. The experience gained from that module was used to design the second generation of modules of improved performance. Two such modules were installed in 2017. MAGIC is a system of two IACTs located on the Canary Island of La Palma. The mechanical structure of the MAGIC imaging cameras offers the possibility to install up to 6 additional detector modules of 7 pixels each into the open vertices of the hexagonal-shaped camera. This allows us to directly, without making any assumption, compare the performance of the PMT-based modules with that of the SiPM-based prototype modules, where SiPMs from three different manufacturers are used.