TESTS OF CATHODE STRIP CHAMBER PROTOTYPES

We report on the results of testing two six-layer 0.6 x 0.6 m(2) catho de strip chamber (CSC) prototypes in a muon beam at CERN. The prototyp es were designed to simulate sections of the end-cap muon system of th e Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) detector which will be installed at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). We measured the spatial and time resoluti ons of each chamber for different gains, different orientations with r espect to the beam direction and different strength magnetic fields, T he single-layer spatial resolution of a prototype with a strip pitch o f 15.58 mm ranged from 78 to 468 mu m, depending on whether the partic le passed between two cathode strips or through the center of a strip; its six-layer resolution was found to be 44 mu m. The single-layer sp atial resolution of a prototype with a strip pitch of 6.35 mm ranged f rom 54 to 66 mu m; its six-layer resolution was found to be 23 mu m. T he efficiency for collecting an anode wire signal from one of six laye rs within a 20 ns time window appropriate for the LHC was found to be greater than 95% in normal running conditions.