Beam test results of the irradiated Silicon Drift Detector for ALICE

The Silicon Drift Detectors will equip two of the six cylindrical layers of high precision position sensitive detectors in the ITS of the ALICE experiment at LHC. In this paper we report the beam test results of a SDD irradiated with 1 GeV electrons. The aim of this test was to verify the radiation tolerance of the device under an electron fluence equivalent to twice particle fluence expected during 10 years of ALICE operation.Comment: 6 pages,6 figures, to appear in the proceedings of International Workshop In high Multiplicity Environments (TIME'05), 3-7 October 2005, Zurich,Switzerlan

Study of the transverse mass spectra of strange particles in Pb-Pb collisions at 158 A GeV/c

The NA57 experiment has collected high statistics, high purity samples of \PKzS and \PgL, $\Xi$ and $\Omega$ hyperons produced in Pb-Pb collisions at 158 $A$ GeV/$c$. In this paper we present a study of the transverse mass spectra of these particles for a sample of events corresponding to the most central 53% of the inelastic Pb-Pb cross-section. We analyse the transverse mass distributions in the framework of the blast-wave model for the full sample and, for the first time at the SPS, as a function of the event centrality.Comment: 22 pages, 14 figures, submitted to J. Phys. G: Nucl. Phy

Operation and calibration of the Silicon Drift Detectors of the ALICE experiment during the 2008 cosmic ray data taking period

The calibration and performance of the Silicon Drift Detector of the ALICE experiment during the 2008 cosmic ray run will be presented. In particular the procedures to monitor the running parameters (baselines, noise, drift speed) are detailed. Other relevant parameters (SOP delay, time-zero, charge calibration) were also determined

Production of {\pi}+ and K+ mesons in argon-nucleus interactions at 3.2 AGeV

First physics results of the BM@N experiment at the Nuclotron/NICA complex are presented on {\pi}+ and K+ meson production in interactions of an argon beam with fixed targets of C, Al, Cu, Sn and Pb at 3.2 AGeV. Transverse momentum distributions, rapidity spectra and multiplicities of {\pi}+ and K+ mesons are measured. The results are compared with predictions of theoretical models and with other measurements at lower energies.Comment: 29 pages, 20 figure

Results on cascade production in lead-lead interactions from the NA57 experiment

The NA57 experiment has been designed to study the production of strange and multi-strange particles in Pb-Pb and p-Be collisions at the CERN SPS. The predecessor experiment WA97 has measured an enhanced abundance of strange particles in Pb-Pb collisions relative to p-A reactions at 160 GeV/c per nucleon beam momentum. NA57 has extended the WA97 measurements to investigate the evolution of the strangeness enhancement pattern as a function of the beam energy and over a wider centrality range. In this paper, we report results on cascade production for about the 60% most central collisions at 160 GeV/c per nucleon

An upgrade of the SCANDAL setup for measurements of elastic neutron scattering at 175 MeV

The experimental setup SCANDAL, used for measurements of the differential cross section for elastic and inelastic neutron scattering, has recently been upgraded with larger CsI scintillating detectors to enable measurements at energies up to 175 MeV. Measurements on Fe, Bi and Si have been carried out using the quasi mono-energetic neutron beam at the The Svedberg Laboratory, and data is under analysis. The experimental setup can be used for measurements on a wide range of target nuclei, including C and O, which are important for dosimetry applications. SCANDAL can also run in proton mode, for measurements of the (n,p) reaction. This paper describes the new experimental setup, and reports on its properties, such as energy resolution

Neutron Elastic Scattering Cross-Section Measurements at 175 MeV

An off-line data analysis of an experimental campaign on elastic neutron cross-section measurements at 175 MeV for iron and bismuth performed by the SCANDAL set-up has started. Energy calibration has shown expected values of energy resolution and MCNPX simulations have provided suggestions for further analysis

MCNPX simulations of the SCANDAL setup for measurement of neutron scattering cross section at 175 MeV

The Scattered Nucleon Detection Assembly (SCANDAL) setup at The Svedberg Laboratory has been used to produce neutron elastic scattering cross section data at 175 MeV for bismuth and iron. This work presents MCNPX simulations of the experimental setup and aims to describe processes and data important for the upcoming off-line data analysis. In the experiment, neutrons scattered off the target are converted to protons, which are stopped in scintillator crystals. The results include a description of the proton spectra dependence on the neutron-to-proton conversion angle, suggesting a cut at a conversion angle of 15.2°. Calculation of the hit position gates indicates high proton leakage from the crystals. A study of the converter describes the role of its chemical composition and also the role of other plastic scintillators on the proton spectra. The neutron-to-proton conversion efficiency of the converter simulated by MCNPX is 5.1×10−4 and corresponds to theoretical predictions