Detection efficiency of microchannel plates to penetrating radiation in space

André, Nicolas; Fedorov, A.; Chassela, O.; Grigoriev, Alexander; Comte, Éric; Rouzaud, Jean-Noël; Bassas, M.

doi:10.1007/s12567-019-00285-5

Cited by 1 publication

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“…Not many studies have investigated the interaction of MCPs with high-energy particles on planetary missions (Andre et al 2019). Obtaining such information is critical to exploring the harsh Jupiter environment, such as for the JUpiter ICy moons Explorer (JUICE) mission.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Galactic Cosmic Rays at Mars and Venus: Temporal Variations from Hours to Decades Measured as the Background Signal of Onboard Microchannel Plates

Futaana

Shimoyama

Wieser

et al. 2022

ApJ

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A microchannel plate (MCP) is a component widely used for counting particles in space. Using the background counts from MCPs on the Mars Express and Venus Express orbiters—operating over 17 yr and 8 yr, respectively—we investigated the galactic cosmic ray (GCR) characteristics of the inner solar system. The MCP background counts at Mars and Venus, on a solar cycle timescale, exhibited clear anticorrelation with the sunspot number. We concluded that the measured MCP background counts contained GCR information. The GCR characteristics measured using the MCP background counts at Mars showed features consistent with measurements on Earth in Solar Cycle 24. The time lag between the sunspot number and the MCP background counts was found to be ∼9 months at Mars. The shorter-term background data recorded along the orbits (with a timescale of several hours) also showed evident depletion of the background counts, due to absorption of the GCR particles by the planets. Thanks to the visible planetary size change along an orbit, we developed a model to separate the GCR contribution to the MCP background counts from the internal contribution caused by the β-decay of radioactive elements in the MCP glass. Our statistical analysis of the GCR absorption signatures at Mars implies that the effective absorption radius of Mars for the GCR particles is >100 km larger than the radius of the planet. However, the cause remains an open question.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%