Advanced muon-spin spectroscopy with high lateral resolution using Si-pixel detectors

Muon-spin spectroscopy at continuous sources has stagnated at a stopped muon rate of ∼40kHz for the last few decades. The major limiting factor is the requirement of a single muon in the sample during the typical 10µ⁢sdata gate window. To overcome this limit and to be able to perform muon-spin relaxation/rotation (µSR) measurements on millimeter-sized samples, one can use vertex reconstruction methods to construct µSR spectra. This is now possible thanks to the availability of very thin monolithic Si-pixel chips, which offer minimal particle scattering and high count rate. Here, we present results from a Si-pixel-based spectrometer that utilizes vertex reconstruction schemes for the incoming muons and emitted positrons. With this spectrometer, we were able to obtain a first vertex reconstructed (vx-𝜇⁢SR) spectrum. The unique capabilities and benefits of such a vx-µSR spectrometer are discussed.

Facility: SμS

Reference: L. Mandok et al, Physical Review Research 8,  013092 (2026)

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