MPGD with a 3D-printed Thick-GEM as sole gain element

Abstract

We present the first micropattern gaseous detector that employs a small 3D-printed Thick-GEM as its sole gain element. The detector can achieve sufficient gas gain for regular operation without the need for pre-amplification by additional gain elements. We describe the design, quality control, assembly, and test of this detector. The 10 cm $\times$ 10 cm active area of the Thick-GEM features three separate sectors with different sizes of the clearance rim annuli (0.1 mm, 0.15 mm, 0.2 mm) around the 0.7 mm diameter holes. The gas gain is found to depend strongly on the rim size. When operated in Ar/CO$_2$ 70:30 gas, the sector with 0.15 mm annulus rims reaches a gain above 10$^4$ while operating in a stable manner with an acceptably low discharge rate. The gain reach under stable operation is found to be considerably lower in the other two sectors. The gas gain shows a characteristic time-dependence as it rises quickly in the first hour of operation and then drops slowly over the next 24 hours and subsequently stabilizes.