A NEW SILICON DETECTOR TELESCOPE FOR MEASURING THE LINEAR-ENERGY-TRANSFER DISTRIBUTION OVER THE RANGE FROM 0.2 TO 400 KEV MU-M IN-SPACE/

A new telescope consisting of three two-dimensional position-sensitive silicon detectors which can measure the Linear energy transfer (LET) distribution over the range from 0.2 to 400 keV/mu m has been develope d as a real-time radiation monitor in manned spacecraft. First, the pr inciple of LET measurement and its design method are described. Second , suitable electronic parameters for the LET measurement are experimen tally determined. Finally, the telescope performance is investigated b y using relativistic heavy ions. The first in-flight test of this type of telescope on the US Space Shuttle (STS-84) is scheduled for May, 1 997.