LGAD technology for heavy ion detection and radiation damage diagnostics in diamond

Abstract

We present the application of LGAD technology for time-of-flight measurements of heavy ions and for precise diagnostics of radiation damage in diamond sensors. The polycrystalline CVD (pcCVD) diamond sensor used in this work was irradiated with heavy ion beams at GSI, Darmstadt, Germany during several experimental campaigns and subsequently investigated at MedAustron, Wiener Neustadt, Austria. To mitigate radiation-induced performance degradation, we propose a dedicated amplification system originally developed for LGAD sensors, which significantly extends the operational lifetime of diamond detectors. For precise sensor diagnostics, we employed strip LGAD sensors — commonly used for minimum ionizing particle (MIP) detection — and demonstrated their excellent performance for heavy ion (He/C) detection, achieving timing resolutions below 40 ps.