In an experiment at the Queen's Centre for Nuclear Studies, a team from the Saphir Millennium Institute subjected two electronic boards to a radiation dose equivalent to what they would receive after 10 years of operation in the Large Hadron Collider's Atlas experiment. This test will determine, among other things, whether the electronics designed for Atlas at Saphir will be able to withstand a decade of experiments.
A team from the Saphir Millennium Institute visited in January the La Reina Nuclear Research Centre of the Chilean Nuclear Energy Commission (CCHEN) to develop, together with researchers from the Centre for Nuclear Physics and Neutron Spectroscopy (Cefnen), an irradiation test of two electronic cards identical to the ones they will use in the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) Atlas experiment. The cards were subjected to a radiation dose equivalent to what they would receive after 10 years in the Atlas experiment.
The aim of this test is to study how much the exposure to these radiation doses affects these boards, especially in terms of failure rate and power consumption. This will make it possible to establish what is an acceptable failure rate after a decade of exposure to gamma and neutron radiation in the Atlas experiment.
The tested boards are two prototypes for Atlas' Charge Monitoring System project. The test started at the Irradiator Laboratory of the La Reina Nuclear Centre, where the cards were subjected to 330 Gy of gamma irradiation. The final tests will be done at CERN," says Orlando Soto, "however, it is very useful to be able to perform preliminary tests in Chile to prepare ourselves.
The tested boards are two prototypes for Atlas' Charge Monitoring System project. The test started at the Irradiator Laboratory of the La Reina Nuclear Centre, where the cards were subjected to 330 Gy of gamma irradiation. The final tests will be done at CERN," says Orlando Soto, "however, it is very useful to be able to perform preliminary tests in Chile to prepare ourselves.
The Saphir team consisted of Orlando Soto, young researcher at the Saphir Millennium Institute and academic at the University of La Serena, together with Vicente Agosín (engineer at the University of La Serena), Víctor Arredondo (engineer at the Saphir Millennium Institute) and Agustín Campeny (master's student at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile). Francisco Molina (director of Cefnen), Marcelo Zambra (researcher at CCHEN), Jorge Gamarra and Manuel Escudero (both from CCHEN's Characterisation and Irradiation Services Department), Bryan Ruz (from CCHEN's Engineering and Systems Department) and Pamela Rebolledo (from CCHEN's Research Management Department) also participated.
The Saphir team consisted of Orlando Soto, young researcher at the Saphir Millennium Institute and academic at the University of La Serena, together with Vicente Agosín (engineer at the University of La Serena), Víctor Arredondo (engineer at the Saphir Millennium Institute) and Agustín Campeny (master's student at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile). Francisco Molina (director of Cefnen), Marcelo Zambra (researcher at CCHEN), Jorge Gamarra and Manuel Escudero (both from CCHEN's Characterisation and Irradiation Services Department), Bryan Ruz (from CCHEN's Engineering and Systems Department) and Pamela Rebolledo (from CCHEN's Research Management Department) also participated.
Atlas is the largest of the seven experiments of the LHClocated at CERN (European Organisation for Nuclear Research) on the border between Switzerland and France. Atlas is one of the most complex scientific devices ever created by humans: it is 44 metres long and 22 metres in diameter, and weighs about 7,000 tonnes. That is, it is almost as long as two tennis courts, is as tall as an eight-storey building and is heavier than three space shuttles like Atlantis at liftoff (with its boosters and fuel tank full). Its creation, use and improvements involve 232 institutions in 38 countries, one of which is Chile.