In the Milky Way galaxy, there exists a mysterious source of antimatter subatomic particles called positrons or antielectrons, the origins of which are currently unknown. The 511 keV photons emitted from positron-electron annihilations are the clues to understanding the origin of these positrons. The instrument responsible for the current, most-sensitive mapping of galactic 511 keV emissions is the International Gamma-Ray Astrophysics Laboratory (INTEGRAL). I am working on simulating high-purity germanium (HPGe) spectrometers using Geant4-based software to characterize the performance of the HPGe modules that will be placed in CubeSAT and SmallSAT payloads. These detectors will be the successor to INTEGRAL. In addition to the HPGe crystal providing the current highest resolution in mapping the 511 keV line, the plans to increase the active mass of the HPGe crystal while minimizing overall spacecraft mass will allow for higher detector efficiency while reducing noise caused by cosmic rays producing local positrons. These are some aspects of our detector that will provide a more sensitive mapping of the 511 keV line than INTEGRAL and allow us to further study the origin of these galactic positrons.

Simulating High-Purity Germanium Spectrometers Using Geant4-Based Software to Characterize Detector Performance

Poster session - on demand viewing

poster

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William Ho

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SHORT BIO

Presentations

Simulating High-Purity Germanium Spectrometers Using Geant4-Based Software to Characterize Detector Performance