Beam Test of a SiPM-on-Tile ZDC Prototype with 5.3 GeV Positrons at Jefferson Laboratory

TL;DR

This paper presents a beam test of a prototype SiPM-on-tile ZDC detector for the Electron-Ion Collider, evaluating its energy response, shower shape, and spatial resolution to inform design optimization.

Contribution

It introduces a novel SiPM-on-tile ZDC prototype with staggered scintillator tiles and provides experimental validation of its performance at Jefferson Laboratory.

Findings

Energy response measured and compared with simulations

Shower shape characteristics characterized

Spatial reconstruction performance evaluated

Abstract

We report on a beam test of a Silicon Photo-Multiplier (SiPM)-on-tile Zero Degree Calorimeter (ZDC) prototype developed for the future Electron-Ion Collider (EIC). The detector implements the staggered scintillator-tile geometry envisioned for the final detector and includes 370 instrumented channels, corresponding to O(10%) of the full ZDC. The detector was tested using a 5.3 GeV positron beam at Jefferson Laboratory. We measure the energy response, shower shape, and spatial reconstruction performance of the detector and compare these results with simulation. These studies provide key input for the optimization of the final ePIC ZDC design.