HERD: The High Energy cosmic-Radiation Detector

摘要

An overview of the High Energy cosmic-Radiation (HERD) detector will be presented, as one of the prominent instruments to be installed onboard the upcoming Chinese Space Station (CSS). Primary scientific goals regarding this initiative include: precise measurements of the cosmic-ray (CR) energy spectra and mass composition, at energies up to the PeV range; contributions to high-energy gamma-ray astronomy and transient studies; as well as indirect searches for Dark Matter (DM) particles via their annihilation/decay to detectable products. HERD is configured to accept incident particles from both its top and four lateral sides. Specifically considering its initial setup, HERD comprises a homogenous calorimeter, conceived as an octagonal prism of LYSO cubic crystals, subsequently enclosed by layers of silicon trackers and plastic scintillator detectors, thus finalized with the instrumentation of a transition radiation detector on one of its lateral faces. In that sense, an order of magnitude increase in acceptance (regarding previous missions) is foreseen, owing to its pioneering design. Continuous updates and beam tests validate HERD's capabilities, while varying configurations are tested in order to optimize its performance.