Fabrication & development of end-of-stave mounts for the UT upgrade

Student name: Josh Owens (Fayetteville-Manlius)
Teacher mentor: Justin Shute (Fayetteville-Manlius)
Research mentor: Prof. Ray Mountain (Syracuse University)
Summer 2017
The purpose of our research was to fabricate a number of the “end-of-stave” mounts for the
UT upgrade project, and flesh out the quality assurance techniques that will be used to certify
them for the full detector. The UT detector is composed of four planes of silicon microstrip
detectors, each roughly 1.5 m x 1.5 m in size. Each silicon plane is formed from 14 (or 16)
“staves”, and each stave is formed by mounting about fifteen 10 cm x 10 cm silicon detectors
in a columnar structure. The end-of-stave mounts are attached to the stave structure, and
provide the mechanical coupling of each stave to a larger aluminum frame. This larger
aluminum frame supports the entire UT detector. The end-of-stave mounts also provide for
precise alignment of each stave, and therefore are critical for such a precise detector. Thus,
a very rigorous inspection and quality assurance needed to be performed.
The components were received from the machine shop and thoroughly cleaned and
inspected for machining flaws. All holes were tested for proper diameter and thread
dimensions. Multiple measurements of component and mount thickness, widths, lengths,
and masses were made and recorded in spreadsheets to identify possible machining or
assembly inconsistencies. The components were then assembled into completed end of
stave mounts using epoxy and clamping screws. An aluminum fixture was employed to
ensure proper location and orientation of the components. During the course of our work,
we identified several minor problems with the fixture. This included a bending of the
bar/plate pinned connection, and a slight lifting of the end of stave legs away from the
fixture. A new fixture was machined that incorporated some suggested modifications to
increase the efficiency and accuracy of the end of stave mount assembly construction.
During the summer, we produced many of the needed end-of-stave mounts, and fleshed out
the quality assurance tests. The end-of-stave mounts should be finished in the near future
by students at Syracuse University.