T. Sumiyoshi
"Production of a New Generation of Silica Aerogel and its
Application for the KEK B-factory Experiment"
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Abstract:
- Low-refractive index silica aerogel is the most convenient
radiator for threshold-type Cherenkov counters, which is used for
particle identification in high-energy physics experiments. For the
BELLE detector at the KEK B-Factory, we have produced about 2 m3 of
hydrophobic silica aerogels of n = 1.01 - 1.03 using a new production
method. The particle identification capability of the aerogel
Cherenkov counters was tested and 3 sigma pion/proton separation has been
achieved at 3.5 GeV/c. Radiation hardness of the aerogels was
confirmed up to 9.8 Mrad. Thanks to the improved transparency,
aerogels prepared by the two-step method can be used as radiators for
not only threshold-type, but also for Ring Imaging-type Cherenkov
counters. The newly developed aerogels will be used extensively for
particle identification devices in future high-energy physics
experiments.
Last modified: 7 April 1999,
Jochen.