Special Focus workshop:
Synchrotron Radiation Detectors

Photograph of the Sincrotrone Trieste

Dear Colleagues,

During the past 20 years synchrotron light sources and the associated optical components developed at a fast pace providing a remarkable increase of intensity and brightness. Ever since then research with synchrotron radiation has emerged to be one of the most powerful tools in almost every field of science and technology. However, these sources can maintain their high level of competitiveness only if a new generation of x-ray and electron detectors is developed as well. Right now we are facing a situation in which it is mostly the detection device that limits the final data quality. Arise from these circumstances it is necessary to increase the research effort in this field.
In contrast to HEP where the detectors are tailored for one specific purpose / experiment only, in synchrotron radiation experiments one has to deal with a wide range of experiments. Therefore it is difficult to specify detectors which can be utilized in recent and future synchrotron radiation experiments.
For the general classes of experiments such as diffraction / scattering, spectroscopy, microscopy and imaging one needs devices with high-count capability as well as excellent time resolution. In general these devices are not commercial available and have to be developed in close cooperation with beam line scientists and synchrotron light users.
A closer analyzes of detectors used in other fields such as astrophysics, high-energy physics or medical imaging shows that state of the art detectors and electronics concepts already exist which could be - with some modifications- well suited for synchrotron radiation applications. Utilizing this knowledge pool could ensure further exploitation of modern sources.
Therefore I hope that this workshop will be a vivid playground to establish an interdisciplinary communication channel between the synchrotron radiation users and detector developers of NSS and MIC. It might be the basis for collaborations that are able to joint forces and to develop the next generation of detectors of synchrotron radiation. I look forward to meeting you in the splendid city of Rome and wish you a pleasant and fruitful stay.

Ralf-Hendrik Menk
Workshop Chair
Phone: +39-040-375 8201
Fax: +39-040-375 8565
E-mail: ralf.menk@elettra.trieste.it
Sincrotrone Trieste S.C.p.A
Instrumentation
Strada Statale S.S. 14, km 163.5
I-34012 Basovizza
Italy

Contacts