A gas microstrip detector with low noise preamplifier/shaper integrated onto a common silicon substrate

Gas microstrip detectors have been integrated with low noise preamplifier and shaper electronics on a common silicon substrate. These devices were fabricated at the Hewlett-Packard company using a standard 0.8 μm process. This unique approach offers advantages over conventional microstrip design: ease of fabrication, lower noise, and higher channel density. The detector/electronics assembly was tested in a small drift chamber. An energy resolution of 18% FWHM and a noise level of 80 e ^- r.m.s per channel were obtained with a gas gain of about 200. These integrated microstrip detectors are being developed as the readout devices for a small, high-resolution Time Projection Chamber (MicroTPC). Low mass and high resolution make the MicroTPC well suited for use as a vertex detector, especially in high track-density environments such as RHIC and the LHC.