MICROGAP MULTIWIRE CHAMBERS

The multiwire proportional counter (MWPC) is well established device f or capturing x-ray images at synchrotron sources such as at the synchr otron radiation source (SRS) at Daresbury. The latest generation of sy nchrotrons can deliver much more intense x-ray fluxes than the SRS whi ch itself produces xray fluxes well beyond the capabilities of current photon counting detectors, There is an imminent demand for 2-D photon counting detectors which can cope with rates >10(5) photons/mm(2)/sec locally and readout systems with an unbuffered throughput of >10(7) e vents per second. This must be achieved with a high dynamic range and a good efficiency. The detector development group at the SRS have deve loped the wire microgap detector to address these problems. A new read out system has been designed using a highly parallel approach. Each de tector channel in the detector is separately instrumented, and the dat a is accumulated using fast, state-of-the-art electronics systems. A p rototype of the system has been constructed and tested with the 2 dime nsional wire microgap detector. We report the results of the use of a wire microgap linear detector on the SRS and the first results from th e 2D wire microgap detector system.