Ion Transportation Study for Thick Gas Electron Multipliers

Ion back flow(IBF) is defined as the ions that are generated during multiplication in a thick-gas-electron-multiplier (THGEM) detector flow along the electric field. In order to suppress the IBF effect, we study ion transportation for THGEMs with various high voltages and geometrical parameters. By measuring the currents of all the electrodes of the THGEMs, the effective gain and ion back flow ratio are calculated. The measurement and simulation results reveal that with a staggered triple THGEM configuration, ion back flow can be suppressed to 1% with a proper working high voltage. The gain of the staggered configuration is less than that of the aligned configuration by 5% under the same high voltage condition. The design and the results are presented.