Speaker
Description
An optical Time Projection Chamber (oTPC) is proposed for low-energy nuclear physics experiments at TRIUMF/ARIEL, using a Timepix3-based single-photon camera as readout. When charged particles ionize the detector gas, the resulting electron avalanches produce scintillation light captured by an externally mounted camera with an image intensifier — avoiding the complexity of conventional wire-based systems.
The Timepix3 chip offers a 256×256 pixel matrix with 55 µm pitch, simultaneous time-of-arrival and time-over-threshold readout, and 1.6 ns timing resolution. This enables full 3D track reconstruction by combining pixel position with timing data to avoid pile-up, while the energy-sensitive response adds calorimetric capability.
The system demonstrates high granularity, precise timing, and flexible 3D reconstruction in a compact format, validated with alpha-particle sources and cosmic rays. The oTPC + Timepix3 platform is presented as a promising instrument for next-generation low-energy nuclear experiments at ARIEL.
