Investigations of Charge Collection and Signal Timing in a multi-pixel Silicon Drift Detector

• Published in: arXiv.org
• Main Authors: stner, Christian, Urban, Korbinian, Carminati, Marco, Edzards, Frank, Fiorini, Carlo, Lebert, Manuel, Lechner, Peter, Siegmann, Daniel, Spreng, Daniela, Mertens, Susanne
• Format: Paper
• Language: English
• Published: Ithaca Cornell University Library, arXiv.org 10.09.2024
• Subjects: Beta decay; Dark matter; Drift; Kinematics; Laser beams; Neutrinos; Particle decay; Particle physics; Pixels; Sensors; Silicon; Standard model (particle physics); Tritium
• ISSN: 2331-8422

Sterile neutrinos are a minimal extension of the Standard Model of particle physics and a promising candidate for dark matter if their mass is in the keV-range. The Karlsruhe Tritium Neutrino experiment (KATRIN), equipped with a novel multi-pixel silicon drift detector array, the TRISTAN detector, will be capable of searching for these keV-scale sterile neutrinos by investigating the kinematics of the tritium \(\beta\)-decay. This measurement will be performed after the completion of the neutrino mass measurement campaign. To detect a sterile neutrino signal with a high sensitivity, a profound understanding of the detector response is required. In this work, we report on the characterization of a 7-pixel TRISTAN prototype detector with a laser system. We present the experimental results obtained in high-resolution scans of the detector surface with a focused laser beam and demonstrate how the charge collection and the timing of the signals generated in the detector is related to the detector geometry. A comparison of the experimental data with simulations shows a good agreement.