Design and development of the HERMES Pathfinder payloads
R. Campana, Y. Evangelista, F. Fiore, A. Guzman, G. Baroni, G. Della, Casa, G. Dilillo, P. Hedderman, E. J. Marchesini, G. Bertuccio, F. Ceraudo,, E. Demenev, M. Fiorini, M. Grassi, P. Malcovati, F. Mele, P. Nogara, A. Nuti,, M. Perri, S. Pirrotta, S. Pliego-Caballero

TL;DR
The paper details the design, development, and testing of the HERMES Pathfinder payloads, a nanosatellite constellation for gamma-ray burst detection using innovative miniaturized detectors.
Contribution
It introduces a novel hybrid detector system for nanosatellites, integrating Silicon Drift Detectors and GAGG:Ce scintillators, and provides comprehensive development and testing results.
Findings
Successful calibration of detectors
Environmental testing confirms robustness
Payload design meets size and power constraints
Abstract
HERMES (High Energy Rapid Modular Ensemble of Satellites) Pathfinder mission aims to observe and localize Gamma Ray Bursts (GRBs) and other transients using a constellation of nanosatellites in low-Earth orbit (LEO). Scheduled for launch in early 2025, the 3U CubeSats will host miniaturized instruments featuring a hybrid Silicon Drift Detector (SDD) and GAGG:Ce scintillator photodetector system, sensitive to X-rays and gamma-rays across a wide energy range. Each HERMES payload contains 120 SDD cells, each with a sensitive area of 45 mm^2, organized into 12 matrices, reading out 60 12.1x6.94x15.0 mm^3 GAGG:Ce scintillators. Photons interacting with an SDD are identified as X-ray events (2-60 keV), while photons in the 20-2000 keV range absorbed by the crystals produce scintillation light, which is read by two SDDs, allowing event discrimination. The detector system, including front-end…
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