An Integration of MICROMEGAS Based Muon Tracking Chambers in ALICE

A global solution for the muon tracking chambers of ALICE based on the detector MICROMEGAS [1], is investigated at SUBATECH. A technical design of the structures of the MICROMEGAS modules is presented as well as their assemblies in individual chamber and their final integration in the five tracking stations required for the muon spectrometer. The whole concept is based on only 3 kinds of MICROMEGAS units. Within these stand-alone modules, the 2D location is achieved by taking advantage of charge division with resistive strips. Including the support frames for the mosaic of detectors, the average station thickness will stay below 3% of Xo. The whole electronics features about 1.3 10<SUP>6</SUP> channels. Preliminary considerations on the MICROMEGAS FEE and its on-board integration are discussed. A first estimation of the total cost of this option stays well inside the assigned budget of the technical proposal.