Creation of the precision magnetic spectrometer SCAN-3

The new JINR project [1] is aimed at studies of highly excited nuclear matter created in nuclei by a high-energy deuteron beam. The matter is studied through observation of its particular decay products - pairs of energetic particles with a wide opening angle, close to 180°. The new precision hybrid magnetic spectrometer SCAN-3 is to be built for detecting charged ( π ± , K ± , p) and neutral (n) particles produced at the JINR Nuclotron internal target in dA collisions. One of the main and complex tasks is a study of low-energy η A interaction and a search for η -bound states ( η -mesic nuclei). Basic elements of the spectrometer and its characteristics are discussed in the article.