P Abbon et al 2007 J. Phys.: Conf. Ser. 65 012010 doi:10.1088/1742-6596/65/1/012010
P Abbon2, S Andriamonje2, S Aune2, D Besin2, S Cazaux2, T Dafni4,2, T Decker3, B O Dogan6, N Duportail2, G Fanourakis1, E Ferrer Ribas2, J Galan5, T Geralis1, M Gros2, A Giganon2, I Giomataris2, R Hill3, I G Irastorza2,5, K Kousouris1, J Morales5, T Papaevangelou7, M Pivovaroff3, M Riallot2, J Ruz5, R Soufli3, K van Bibber3, K Zachariadou1 and G Zaffanela2
Show affiliationsThe Micromegas technology can be used to construct very powerful detectors for low background, low energy measurements. A Micromegas X-ray detector has been used to search for solar axions in the CAST experiment at CERN. The detector has an active area of 7 cm × 7 cm, a very good x-y position, and a good energy resolution. It is built using low radioactivity materials and it is capable of low energy X-ray measurements of a few hundred eV. Despite the lack of external shielding the obtained background level is below 5 × 105 counts/keV/cm2/s. The detector is being upgraded with a reduced active area Micromegas module, a focusing X-Ray telescope and shielding, which are expected to further reduce the background by about two orders of magnitude.
14.80.Mz Axions and other Nambu-Goldstone bosons (Majorons, familons, etc.)
95.55.Ka X- and &ggr;-ray telescopes and instrumentation
95.30.Cq Elementary particle processes
95.55.Vj Neutrino, muon, pion, and other elementary particle detectors; cosmic ray detectors
Instrumentation and measurement
Issue 1 (2007)
P Abbon et al 2007 J. Phys.: Conf. Ser. 65 012010
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